Via the Desolation of Smaug 2014 Calendar and the Annual, check out these interesting new images of Bard and his daughters. As the Annual explains, in Peter Jackson’s adaptation, Bard at the time of the events of The Hobbit has a son, Bain, and two daughters, Sigrid and Tilda. Continue reading “Bard the Bowman, his daughters and their outfits”
Category: Tolkien
Every fall, Los Angeles Ringers hold a fabulous Hall of Fire party that features all the things Hobbits, Elves, and Dwarves love most: food, drink, and fabulous costumes. The yard of a private residence in Glendora is transformed for the evening with pavilions representing the Shire, Rohan, and other regions of Middle-earth. You can visit Smaug’s Horde and Gollum’s pool, then relax with a drink at the Flaming Mumak Tavern.
Hosted by Tolkien Forever, the local smial of the Tolkien Society, “costumes are highly encouraged (though not required), and just like the Hall Of Fire from the book, people often bring games to play; sing and play music; and share the art and inspiration that Tolkien has given them.”
If you are in the Los Angeles area, join us this Saturday, October 19, at 6:00pm. Visit the event’s Facebook page and read the event details to RSVP and be sent the party address. The party is open to all, but it is being held at a private home, so you must email the host to receive directions. All ages are welcome, but please be responsible for your children. This a big backyard with a pool in the middle of it. Some parts of the yard are dimly lit. so please be aware of your surroundings. All party attendees must respect the wishes of the home owners at all times.
[Visit the event page] [Local to LA? Check out Tolkien Forever] [See photos from last year’s Hall of Fire]
Could the Disney theme parks be the next potential location for a Lord of the Rings-themed attraction? We reported back in January and also in February that tongues were wagging about a possible Middle-earth theme park partnership between Warner Brothers and Universal. There was even documentation that the Saul Zaentz Company had registered “several uses for Middle-earth properties that includes theme parks.” But those rumors seemed to have fizzled.
Now it seems that, “Disney and Warner Brothers have either signed or are very close to singing an agreement that will bring “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” movie-inspired areas to the Disney Parks.” WDW News Today is reporting that the partnership has been in the works since late last year and is now practically a fait accompli. The story claims that Disney may incorporate a Middle-earth attraction as part of an overhaul at the California Adventure park in Anaheim, CA. It also suggests that Disney may be looking for Hobbits to give them an edge over Hogwarts in order to compete with the Wizarding World of Harry Potter area at Universal Studio’s theme park.
WDW News today says, “As with any rumor, you should take this with a grain of salt until it is actually announced.” Is it likely that Disney would be able to overcome the hurdles that have hung up similar ventures? That they could overcome the long-held anti-Disney prejudice from within the Tolkien Estate itself? TORn staffer Demosthenes points out Tolkien’s Letter #13, where he famously insisted that he would “veto anything from or influenced by the Disney Studios (for all whose works I have a heartfelt loathing).”
Additionally, should the supposed negotiations be happening on the studio level, making an end-run around the Tolkien Estate, it seems unlikely that Warner Brothers would be keen to work together after Disney stole Oz out from under them when they released Oz the Great and Powerful earlier this year. “The Walt Disney Company did not own rights to the original 1939 The Wizard of Oz movie but moved stealthily to mount an audacious raid on the story and leave a rival studio flat-footed.”
But perhaps TheOneRing.net’s April Fools’ story this year was actually prescient and we will enter an era where Hobbit feet and Mouse ears can coexist in one big glorious theme park universe. Or maybe we’ll all just have to aspire to visit the real Hobbiton for a while longer.
It’s also a nice little history lesson for those interested in learning more about the heritage of Arnor and Gondor, and Aragorn’s forebears. Continue reading “Was Elendil the Rightful King of the Númenoreans?”
By now you’re undoubtedly aware of the newest edition of The Hobbit, illustrated in gorgeous and whimsical fashion by Jemima Catlin.
She was just 23 when artwork she’d created for a personal project on Tolkien’s short story Rover Random came to the notice of literary giants Harper Collins -– and eventually landed her a contract to illustrate The Hobbit.
Here, Tolkien Library chats with her about how it all happened. Continue reading “An interview with Jemima Catlin, newest illustrator of The Hobbit”
On the heels of Tolkien fan-films Born of Hope and The Hunt for Gollum comes a new effort being directed by French film-maker Dimitri Frank: Storm Over Gondolin.
Unlike those other two films, the non-profit movie Storm Over Gondolin will take viewers back to events of the Elder Days, committing to film for the first time the events of The Fall of Gondolin. Continue reading “There’s going to be a Storm Over Gondolin”