Every year the Ojai Music Festival has a house tour to help raise funds. This was the 61st year of the Festival and there was what has to have been the crowning jewel of houses on the tour. It was the Whitman House as noted on The One Ring on November 7th. This stunning home was designed and built by noted architect Marc Whitman and his wife Julia. Julia’s father bought the original home that had been built in the 1930’s as part of a cattle ranch. Marc remodeled the home in two phases with an eye to influence by art nouveau and gothic revival – especially Antoni Gaudi and Bernard Maybeck. The delightful result is a home that, to a Tolkien fan’s eyes, looks like a combination of a hobbit hole and Rivendell.
Mr. Whitman’s philosophy is that “Nature is the standard on which we weigh our sense of beauty.” The home and gardens (as designed by Mrs. Whitman) fit as seamlessly into the natural landscape of the hills of Ojai as any elfin home. Each room of the home is a cozy individually sculpted creation that would please the most discerning hobbit. Mr. Whitman believes “Integrating architecture and nature is the ultimate marriage of mind and heart.”
Mr. and Mrs. Whitman had a charming story about the round hobbit door of their home. That part of the house was completed just two weeks after the opening of Peter Jackson’s Fellowship of the Ring. They were teased at how lovely their “hobbit door” was, as though they had somehow put it together in just a few weeks!
If you are interested in learning more about the other works of Mr. Whitman please visit his website at whitman-architect.com. If you would like to learn more about the Ojai Music Festival please visit their website at ojaifestival.org.
I would like to personally thank Mr. and Mrs. Whitman for the privilege of photographing their beautiful home.
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The news of Peter Jackson’s letter to us at TheOneRing.net has spread around the world faster than we thought possible. Here are some of the headlines we caught online today. Most of these articles repeat the same news..however it is interesting to see the medias reactions.
Peter Jackson: No More Hobbit
Studio to Peter Jackson: No Hobbit for You!
Jackson Not To Direct Hobbit; Nerds Weep
New Line not bringing Peter Jackson back for “The Hobbit” & second LOTR prequel(?)
Peter Jackson Will Not Be Making The Hobbit
Jackson: “I’m Not Making ‘The Hobbit'”
“The Hobbit” without Peter Jackson
Peter Jackson On Why He Isn’t Making The Hobbit
Peter Jackson not wanted for ‘The Hobbit’
Jackson dumped from new Rings films
Jackson Out As Hobbit Director
Jackson will not direct Hobbit
Oscar-winning ‘Rings’ director Peter Jackson backs out of ‘Hobbit’
Jackson Reportedly Out of ‘The Hobbit’
Jackson Dropped From The Hobbit
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The Monday, November 20, 2006 edition of ‘Dork Tower’ speaks for itself!
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TheOneRing.net and the entire Tolkien community spent the last day reacting to the jaw-dropping letter we received from Peter Jackson concerning The Hobbit. Thanks to the support of many Ringers, we’ve compiled a contact list of individuals and companies who have a say in the decision making process and the events that have lead to Peter Jackson and his team dropping involvement with The Hobbit. We encourage you to make your voices heard and send letters and emails to the entities on this list. [Read the Letter] [React]
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TheOneRing.net believes that our strongest allegiance is to you, the Lord of the Ring fans. Therefore, we will continue to strive to keep you up to date with all of the latest information on the making — or breaking — of The Hobbit.
The best way for us to do that is to give you the information you need to express your feelings, especially after reading Peter Jackson’s letter to our community. Tell the people who can change the future of this film what you think about the recent developments in the possible production of The Hobbit, and how you hope they proceed.
NEW LINE CINEMA:
Co-Chairmen and Co-CEOs Robert K. Shaye and Michael Lynne
New Line Cinema Corp.
888 7th Ave., Fl. 19
New York, NY 10106
Phone: 212-649-4900
Fax: 2112-649-4966
Contact Form: http://www.newline.com/contactus.shtml
TIME WARNER CORPORATION
New Line Cinema parent company
One Time Warner Center
New York, NY 10019-8016
212.484.8000
MGM/UA
CEO Harry E. Sloan and COO Rick Sands
10250 Constellation Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90067-6421
Contact Form: http://www.mgm.com/help.do
SONY
MGM parent company
Sony Corporation of America
550 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10022
Contact: consumer@SPHECustomerSupport.sony.com
Please be as professional and courteous as possible in your correspondence with these entities – and take into account how they are responsible for bringing The Hobbit to the big screen!
If you are inclined to sign petitions, here is a running list of what is currently out there:
The Hobbit Film – the way it was meant to be or not at all
The Hobbit petition
Italian fans’ petition
Talk to other fans about how you feel! Share your thoughts on The Hobbit with other Ringers by joining us through our java chat using your browser. Alternatively, point your favorite IRC client to our server:irc.theonering.net and join #theonering.net. Come along and vent and discuss. All we request is that you do so politely!
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Variety has a short story rounding up the fracas surrounding the making of The Hobbit right now. Among all the regurgitation, the most interesting point is this one that provides some insight into the current thinking of MGM – which holds the distribution rights.
All of this has riled MGM, which in recent weeks has been openly touting the fact that the newly revamped studio is serious about making “The Hobbit” — with Jackson.
An MGM spokesman said that “the matter of Peter Jackson directing ‘The Hobbit’ films is far from closed.” [More]
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