Pieter Collier from the Tolkienlibrary.com writes: Exactly 50 years ago the artist Cor Blok created about 140 illustrations to accompany The Lord of the Rings, he visited Tolkien who liked his art and bought 3 pieces – the only artist who ever sold his art to Tolkien. In his letters Tolkien once said that if ever an illustrated The Lord of the Rings could be created it would have been Cor Blok who would receive the job. No such thing ever happened. However Cor Blok’s art was featured on the Dutch translation of The Lord of the Rings for 27 years, without even mentioning the name Cor Blok. Some five years ago I talked to Cor Blok and embarked on a mission to track down his art, since many were sold and lost. They were all over the world, no one knew how much there were and how they looked like. Continue reading “New Book: A Tolkien Tapestry: Pictures to accompany The Lord of the Rings”
Category: Merchandise
Our friend Jason Fisher (better known here at TORN as message board member Visualweasel) has published his first book, Tolkien and the Study of His Sources: Critical Essays. Source criticism — the analysis of a writer’s source material — has long been one of the most popular approaches in exploring the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien, but there has never been a comprehensive book on the subject until now. Since Tolkien drew from many disparate sources, an understanding of these sources, as well as how and why he incorporated them, can enhance readers’ appreciation of his work. This collection of new essays by leading Tolkien scholars — including Tom Shippey, John Rateliff, Diana Pavlac Glyer, Jason Fisher, and others — describes the theory and methodology for proper source criticism and provides practical demonstrations of the approach. A must have for serious fans! Here’s what the Tolkien community is saying:
“The most exhaustive examination yet published of demonstrable, probable, and conjectural sources for Tolkien’s legendarium ransacks myth, history, astronomy, literature and popular culture for clues to Tolkien’s raw material. This collection will stimulate readers and scholars alike.”
—Verlyn Flieger, author of Splintered Light: Logos and Language in Tolkien’s World
“This critical collection provides a solid defense of the sometimes-maligned literary discipline of ‘source-hunting’ along with outstanding examples of the value of this approach in understanding the depths of Tolkien’s literary creation.”
—Douglas A. Anderson, author of The Annotated Hobbit
“A valuable book for anyone serious about Tolkien. It not only adds new, confirming material to what is known about Tolkien’s sources but covers areas of influence previously denied or underplayed.”
—Marjorie J. Burns, author of Perilous Realms: Celtic and Norse in Tolkien’s Middle-earth
Follow this link to learn more on Amazon, and good luck with the book, Jason!
TORn’s good friend The Tolkien Shop in Holland is supporting us at DragonCon again this year – be sure to stop by our table for a free pen! The Tolkien Shop reaches a remarkable milestone this year – 25 years in the business! That’s pretty impressive – and they’re celebrating! If you’re in the area in October, stop by and celebrate with them. More details after the break. Continue reading “Silver jubilee for Tolkien Shop”
The group SF in SF presents a special charity fund-raiser screening tomorrow night (Aug. 25th) of the award-winning feature documentary RINGERS: LORD OF THE FANS. The evening will feature a discussion featuring the film’s director, editor and also legendary fantasy author Peter S. Beagle. Doors and cash bar open at 6:00PM, the event begins at 7:00PM. The screening and discussion will be held in the Variety Preview Room Theater in San Francisco.
Peter S. Beagle is no stranger to The Lord of the Rings. He penned both the screenplay for the Ralph Bakshi animated adaptation and the introduction to the infamous 1970’s Ballantine re-issue of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. Mr. Beagle is one of the many outstanding authors featured in RINGERS. A resident of Oakland, Beagle recently accepted the 2011 World Fantasy Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Continue reading “SF in SF to Screen Indie Documentary, Ringers: Lord of the Fans”
Last Friday we announced a contest in conjuction with the folks at Weta for three copies of their amazing Collector’s Guide. As I said in the article this book came out during Comic-Con this year and the books first 147 pages cover their work on The Lord of the Rings line of collectibles. The contest ended this past Thursday at midnight PST and after receiving several entries I am proud to announce the winners: Tom F. of Visalia, CA, Alex G. of Australia, and the final winner Mike S. of England. We want to thank everyone for your entries!! If you would like to check out the review you can check it out my thoughts of the Collector’s Edition and buy your own copy from Weta.
Kristin writes: I’ve just posted an interview with Janice M. Bogstad and Philip E. Kaveny, the co-editors of the new anthology Picturing Tolkien: Essays on Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings Film Trilogy, on my blog, The Frodo Franchise.