Sam wrote in with a video he posted at YouTube from the recently passed annual Middle-earth Weekend in Birmingham near Sarehole Mill, famously a site of inspiration for Tolkien. The video, shot by Ian Fish with photography from Ellie Gibbons is an 11-minute taste of the weekend which doesn’t feel dramatically different from fan gatherings around the world, except that it takes place in J.R.R. Tolkien’s childhood stomping grounds. Included are costumes, interviews and a look at the mill that will seem familiar to readers of “The Hobbit,” and “Lord of the Rings.” Enjoy!

Living legend Sir Christopher Lee was born in Belgravia, Westminster, England on May 27th 1922 – making him exactly 90 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 – a whopping 275 films! (and he just keeps going) We at TheOneRing.net would like 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!

And for a great read, including some wonderful LOTR related trivia, check the 90 reasons Christopher Lee is awesome at MovieFone.com. [Read on]

Last week we told you about an exclusive discount ticket offer for the upcoming Charlie Ross performance of ‘One Man Lord of the Rings’ at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, and now we are excited to offer you a chance to WIN tickets to the show! We are giving away two pairs of tickets for the June 2nd show – one pair for 3pm and one pair of 8pm. To enter, simply fill out the form below. We will randomly choose the winner on May 31st from all the eligible entrants and announce the winners right here on TheOneRing.net. Good luck to all those who live close enough to enter! (Entry form is after the break) And of course, you can purchase tickets for this universally praised and highly recommended show! [Buy Tickets] [Entry Form]
Continue reading “Win Tickets for ‘One Man Lord of the Rings’ in New Jersey!”

Welcome 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 21, 2012”

 

Here at TheOneRing.net, we are very proud of the community we have helped create, and like any community, we experience losses. One such loss occurred this weekend in Los Angeles, where the Tolkien fan community, and the costuming community as a whole, lost one of its brightest and most creative individuals. Kent Elofson died on May 18 of an apparent suicide in his Pasadena home, leaving behind a huge community of fellow costumers, all mourning his passing.

More behind the break.   Continue reading “LOTR Fandom Loses One of its Own: Kent Elofson”

The folks over at Super Power Beat Down are obviously trying to tick off Tolkien fans. In the recent match-up of ‘Darth Vader vs. Gandalf,’ they’ve managed to make an amazing technical presentation of a battle between these two pop culture icons (well worth the watch!), but failed when it came down to making an educated decision on who could actually win a battle between the two. Ultimately if the competition comes down to a vote of the pop culture masses, we can always count on the slavish drones of Lucasites feverishly voting for anything that has the moniker of ‘Star Wars.’ Yea, I’m all kinds of sour grapes. Enjoy the video for the technical prowess and presentation. And, I may mention, the guy in the Darth Vader outfit is actually good TORn friend David Baxter (aka Treebeard)! He’s really tall, but next time I see him, I’ll try to send a collective slap for the Tolkien community. (P.S. – the views in this story of those of Calisuri, and not TheOneRing.net :P) [Super Power Beat Down] [Direct YouTube Link]