TORn banner circles before and afterWelcome to our collection of TORn’s hottest topics for the past week.  If you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening on the Message Boards, here’s a great way to catch the highlights.  Or if you’re new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the links to some of our most popular discussions.  Watch this space as every weekend we will spotlight the most popular buzz on TORn’s Message Boards.  Everyone is welcome, so come on in and join the fun!

Continue reading “TORn Message Boards Weekly Roundup – May 27, 2013”

Amazon.com_ Charlemagne_ Omens of Death_ Christopher Lee_ MusicWhat will you be doing on your 91st birthday? If you are Sir Christopher Lee, you are releasing a heavy metal album based on the life of the French ruler Charlemagne. Recorded with Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner, Charlemagne: The Omens of Death is the follow-up to Lee’s 2010 release Charlemagne: By the Sword and the Cross. One can only hope to be so active in their Nineties!  [Audio CD] [MP3 Download] [Vinyl]

Lee was born in Belgravia, Westminster, England on May 27th 1922 – making him exactly 91 years old today. We all know his work as Saruman in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings films, but did you know Sir Lee holds the world record for most film acting roles ever ! We at TheOneRing.net would like to continue to offer a good pint of well-earned ale as a toast to a true master of his craft! A better portrayal of Saruman there will never be! Cheers!

[Audio CD] [MP3 Download] [Vinyl]

phxcomicon_2013_Arrived Thursday for the start of Phoenix Comicon, and the first thought is the heat in Phoenix in May, can’t even imagine what it would be like in July and so glad San Diego is next to water. That being said, there were cosplayers galore regardless of the heat.

Tonight will be ‘The Desolation of Smaug: Sneak Peek’ panel from TheOneRing.net in room 122ABC, join us if you are attending comicon. And if you are not going to be able to make the panel, or even make the convention, there is going to be an AZ Ringer Moot on Sunday evening after the end of the convention at the Greenhouse Grill on Adams street right across the street from the convention center and the Hyatt hotel. We will be gathering at 7pm on Sunday night and talking Tolkien and Middle-earth and The Hobbit and whatever else strikes your fancy (for this reporter, that may well be the Los Angeles Kings in the Stanley Cup Playoffs). The restaurant closes at 9pm, but if there are enough Mooters, we can always take the party over to one of the hotel bars. If you wish to attend on Sunday evening, please email me at Garfeimao@TheOneRing.net so I can give the restaurant an approximate attendance by Sunday morning.

Red Carpet's Premiere Tour group dressed up for their Hobbiton visit
Red Carpet’s Premiere Tour group dressed up for their Hobbiton visit

Red Carpet is steadily adding new locations into its tours in the light of the new Hobbit movie, says director Vic James.

“We’re pretty excited because since the Unexpected Journey came out, we’ve been able to add new sites and new people,” James says. “We visit landowners and check out new locations on a regular basis, as information and invitations come to hand.

“The Premiere Tour last November was the first to visit some of the new places and when the time is right for further landowners to allow visits, we will add them in.”

The north island leg of the tour includes, as before, Hobbiton and the central volcanic plateau that served as Mt Doom. A new feature are some rapids where the dwarves’ more hair-raising barrel-riding scenes were filmed.

The ‘top’ of the South Island is a beautiful addition to the tour, James says.  Nelson, with its sunny bay ringed by mountains,  is reached by a ferry cruise through the beautiful fjords of Marlborough Sounds. There’s a stop along the way at Pelorus Bridge, scene of Bilbo and the dwarves’ barrel-riding adventures.

Red Carpet’s LOTR tours always include visits to extras, artisans, actors and crew members for the films. Halfdan Hansen, son of the real-life Ringmaker for LOTR, has  his studio in Nelson and has created a new version of the Ring, invisibly weighted with some denser metal so that it lies strangely heavy on the palm of the hand.

In Nelson there is also the option to take a two-and-a-half hour helicopter flight to Dimrill Dale and South of Rivendell.  The flights have been a huge success with tour guests.

Olympus Rocks - a place to hide from the spies of Saruman
Olympus Rocks – a place to hide from the spies of Saruman

To accommodate the extra locations, tours are now 14 days duration. People can also choose to join the North Island 6 day or the South Island 10 day options. “It’s a long way to come to not see it all,” James says.

the-hobbit-OIN_GLOINWelcome to our weekly live webcast — known as TORn TUESDAY — a unique show format where you can come into the chat and participate live. We are now on the 4th part of our ongoing series of discussions on the History of the Dwarves who undertake the Quest of Erebor.  Today we switch gears to discuss OIN and GLOIN (father of our Fellowship member Gimli) and learn about the great fate tying up these characters in the House of Durin’s Line! Bring your questions and join us LIVE for what will be a very illuminating discussion of dark Dwarven secrets! We have *JUST* confirmed that our actors playing these roles have been whisked away to the studios in Wellington, where Peter Jackson has commenced new shoots for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug!

Join us for TORn TUESDAY every week at 5:00PM Pacific: brought to you by host Clifford “Quickbeam” Broadway and producer Justin “I Haven’t Read The Books Yet” Sewell — as we discuss the unique characteristics of each Dwarf. We shall learn how they fit into the larger history of Tolkien’s legends — and what Peter Jackson & WETA did to help us distinguish these rough and tumble travelers from each other (using more than just colored hoods). Our innovative live show includes worldwide fans who join us on the Live Event page with a built-in IRC chat (affectionately known as Barliman’s Chat room). Be part of the fun and mischief every week as we broadcast *live* from Meltdown Comics in the heart of Hollywood, U.S.A.!

NEXT WEEK:  Bifur, Bofur…..  and Bombur, for real this time!

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Follow Cliff ‘Quickbeam’ Broadway on Twitter: @quickbeam2000

The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey 1 copyWelcome to our collection of TORn’s hottest topics for the past week. If you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening on the Message Boards, here’s a great way to catch the highlights. Or if you’re new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the links to some of our most popular discussions. Watch this space as every weekend we will spotlight the most popular buzz on TORn’s Message Boards. Everyone is welcome, so come on in and join in the fun!

Continue reading “TORn Message Boards Weekly Roundup – May 20, 2013”