While not quite as famous as the anniversary of the publication of ‘The Hobbit,’ J.R.R. Tolkien penned what would become an important part of his larger mythology 95 years ago. Marc wrote to remind us of the event which is talked about in John Garth’s “Tolkien and the Great War,” and according to Marc, “Tolkien’s Gedling.” The poem, published in “The Book of Lost Tales Part 2,” contained the linguistic and imaginative seeds that helped inspire Middle-earth. In short, celebrate Tolkien today and perhaps read of Eärendel!
Category: Tolkien
WIRED.com: J.R.R. Tolkien 1916J.R.R. Tolkien was a leading scholar of the English language’s Anglo-Saxon roots, and he invented entire languages for his legendary Middle Earth narratives. According to a new restricted exhibit at Britain’s intelligence-agency Government Communications Headquarters, the acclaimed author and philologist also trained to crack a few languages at the top-secret Government Code and Cypher School before World War II. More..
Matt Blessing from Marquette University gives us the heads up: An online registration form has been prepared for public tours of manuscript exhibit, “The Beginnings of a Masterpiece: Original Manuscripts from The Fellowship of the Ring.” Continue reading “Advanced Registration for Tours of Tolkien Manuscripts”
JRR Tolkien was secretly trained as a Government spy during the Second World War…
“Tolkien, one of his generation’s most respected linguists, was ”earmarked” to crack Nazi codes in the event that Germany declared war. Intelligence chiefs singled him and a ‘cadre’ of other intellectuals to work at Bletchley Park, the codebreaking centre in Buckinghamshire. Its staff – which included Alan Turing, the gay codebreaker – would later decipher the ‘impenetrable’ Enigma machines. This saved Britain from German conquest by allowing the Navy to intercept and destroy Hitler’s U-Boats.”
Thanks to Ringer David for sending in the link to this article. [Read More]
From Geek Dad Matt Blum on Wired.com: Some questions have such clear answers that you know your answer the moment you hear or read it. These are of the “Who was the better James Bond: Connery or Dalton?” sort. You might even blink a few times to make sure you read the question correctly. This is not what the Great Geek Debates are all about. They are about the deep, soul-searching, tough questions — not quite Sophie’s Choice-tough, but nearly so. They challenge you to determine, once and for all, what kind of geek you truly are. More..
As was predicted last week, the legal rumblings between the Tolkien Estate and New Line have come to an end and the path is now clear for ‘The Hobbit’ film(s). Here’s the official press release:
The Tolkien Trust (a UK registered charity), New Line Cinema, and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. have resolved the lawsuit relating to the “Lord of the Rings” films.
The claim was filed in February of last year. HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. and the trustees of the JRR Tolkien Estate were co-plaintiffs in the claim, which concerned plaintiffs’ participation interest in the “Lord of the Rings” films released between 2001 and 2003. The precise terms of the settlement are confidential.