Welcome to the first “Getting to know…” questions that need answering. It’s based on the old Getting to know you threads that I used to post on the message boards here, so those familiar with them will know that the questions can be a little crazy and the answers even crazier.
This month we’re asking questions of our favourite Ent, and Host of TORn Tuesday, Quickbeam.
Once again, thank you for agreeing to take part in all of this Quickbeam.
Me: Remembering, of course, that your beautiful kitty passed on just before you left for “Where the Stars are Strange“. Do you have any cats or other pets?
Quickbeam: Ah yes, that was a blow. I remember very clearly how I wanted to just “close up shop” when my little feline friend died. The thought of pleasurable vacationing in New Zealand seemed out of bounds, but obviously I went. Perhaps that is a normal response for anyone who has taken guardianship of an animal… those are the bonds of love that are peculiarly the strongest. The idea then came to me of how I might be sharing my unique trip to Middle-earth with the spirit of my lost friend. Somehow it was therapeutic and indulgent at the same time.
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
On Monday 5th March The Coolidge Theatre in Boston honoured Viggo Mortensen with their Coolidge Award. (More information about the award, and the prestigious list of former winners, can be found here.)
The first event of the day was a press Q&A, which TheOneRing.net attended. There were about twenty reporters in the room, from publications ranging from student magazines to Boston newspapers, and the sound of cameras clicking was constant throughout the session. Mortensen was charming, easy-going and friendly; he began the session by commenting on the stage set up – ‘Nice flowers!’ – and ended, as reported here last week, with a teasing joke to the organisers.
When the floor was opened to questions, there was the usual hesitation whilst everyone wonders who will be brave and go first. A dragon is never afraid, so TORn’s own greendragon – ’tis I! – raised her hand. Of course I wanted to ask Mortensen something to do with Middle-earth! As you will recall, when the two Hobbit movies were first being discussed, there was talk of the second movie being a ‘bridge’ movie, telling the tale of events between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. In a 2006 interview with Ain’t it cool News, Peter Jackson said that he hoped to include ‘Aragorn protecting The Shire. [I’d]… love to work with Viggo again.’ I asked Mortensen about this, and if he would like to have gone back to Middle-earth; he responded with some surprise, (‘Did he say that?!’) and said, ‘It sounds like a lot of fun but I never heard from Peter!’ He added that he loves to go back to the ‘beautiful country’ New Zealand when he can, and that he also is looking forward to seeing how The Hobbit will be adapted for the big screen.
It’s been just over a week and I’ve finally been able to gather my thoughts enough to bring you a full write-up of all the fun and games which happened at the Coolidge Theatre in Boston, when Viggo Mortensen came to town! We have three parts of TORn’s write-up to bring you, plus links to some wonderful footage from other sources. If you’re a Viggo fan, you’re in for a treat!
To begin with, on Sunday 4th March The Coolidge hosted a screening of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. As fans know, it is always special when you get to see these films on the big screen, surrounded by fellow geeks; and there are few better cinemas for atmosphere than The Coolidge. It is an independent movie house which is everything a cinema should be – wonderful, knowledgeable staff, beautiful decor, comfy seats and wide-ranging programming. Whenever they can, the folks at The Coolidge show movies on 35mm film – they still have actual projectionists working away to bring you what you see on the big screen! (This meant that, whilst we saw the extended editions of Fellowship of the Ring and Two Towers, Return of the King was the theatrical edition. The 35mm prints of the extended editions for the first two movies were made for ‘Trilogy Tuesday’ in 2003, when Return of the King was released; so there are no 35mm prints of the RotK EE in existence.)
Following the release of the blu-rays last December, we have started to get used to seeing these movies in crystal clear, vibrant hi-def. For me, however, the original prints have a richness and softness which is lacking in the sharpness of high-definition. 35mm offers a depth of vision, an almost golden or sepia warmth, which seems appropriate for Middle-earth. The Coolidge’s main theatre also has wonderful sound, so my seat vibrated as the balrog roared and I felt the need to cover my ears at the Witch King’s piercing shriek – perfect! The sold-out house of fans – almost 450 of us! – all seemed to enjoy revisiting these old friends as much as I did.
Middle-earth Madness and all the fun that implies, is soon to be released to fans of J.R.R. Tolkien everywhere. Readers and moviegoers will be able to vote as we pit character vs. character in a showdown to determine the 2012 Middle-earth character champion.
In the spirit of the U.S.’ NCAA college basketball tournament, known as March Madness, we will create matchups that pit the likes of Gollum vs. Treebeard and Boromir vs. Balin. Unlike the NCAA bracket, ours will be a 32 team showdown. Using voting fan input and finally our own selection committee.
And, because there are hundreds of great characters across the Middle-earth catalog, we know not everybody’s favorite character can fit in a field of 32 and just like in the NCAA tournament, some deserving characters may not get in. (Unlike the basketball tournament however, all of the characters are fictional and none will have his or her feelings hurt and they all have “next year” to be a contender.) So, we hope you will join us for our voting and enjoy Middle-earth Madness! The Bracket will be revealed soon!
We’ve gotten a lot of great reaction to yesterday’s reveal of our Today in Middle-earth Calendar and want to share a quick update for those of you looking to add it to your feed or Apple’s iCal. For iCal, simply click on this link and the calendar will be automatically added to your iCal application (from there you can share it on your iPHone, etc). When we make updates to the calendar they should automatically populate your calendar as well. If you are looking for a XML feed of this calendar, click here. [XML Feed] [iCal Download] [TIME Calendar]
Our staffers are warming up their speaking voices, brushing up on their Hobbit knowledge and getting ready to head for the Anaheim Convention Center for WonderCon in less than a week. Friday March 16, at 12:30 p.m. (lunch time) TORn will start programming at the convention that will surely take over the title “Happiest Place On Earth,” from neighboring Disneyland for three days.
We will explore the latest news from New Zealand and The Hobbit film that is currently in overdrive filming. We will discuss news, rumors and have a wealth of opinions and speculation about what fans can expect this December and next. On hand will be staffers Justin, Garfiemo, MrCere, Ostadan, Quickbeam and Saruman as either part of the panel or part of the day. Continue reading “TORn ready to kick off WonderCon in Anaheim”
“Getting to know…” questions that need answering. It’s based on the old Getting to know you threads that I used to post on the message boards here, so those familiar with them will know that the questions can be a little crazy and the answers even crazier.
Middle-earth Madness and all the fun that implies, is soon to be released to fans of J.R.R. Tolkien everywhere. Readers and moviegoers will be able to vote as we pit character vs. character in a showdown to determine the 2012 Middle-earth character champion.
