J.R.R. TolkienJ.R.R. Tolkien was the fifth top earning dead celebrity on Forbes’ list, earning $50 Million last year. From Forbes.com: The creator of hobbits and Middle Earth languages left a lasting legacy for his fans and family with The Lord of the Rings franchise. The Tolkien estate and publisher HarperCollins recently reached a settlement with New Line Cinema over allegedly unpaid royalties from the Lord of the Rings movies. September’s agreement was reported at over $100 million, meaning J.R.R. Tolkien earned a sizable income in the last year. His earning potential isn’t dimming: The Hobbit is rumored for release in 2011, with directors Guillermo del Toro and Peter Jackson at the helm. More…

Shadow Dragons“The Shadow Dragons (Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica),” released October 27, 2009, is the fourth installment of James Owen’s The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica. In this installment, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and Charles Williams, members of the Ancient Society of the Caretakers of the Imaginarum Geographica, are back to protect the Archipelago of Dreams and our world. Legendary Caretakers, past and present, will have to join forces with the mythical Don Quixote to prevent Mordred and his lieutenant, Sir Richard Burton, from rebuilding the collapsed Keep of Time and take over the world –both the Imaginary and our own. Time, space, legendary writers and larger than life characters meet as the Inklings take on the adventure of The Shadow Dragons.

Malcx sends this in: Now into its seventh year, our annual Art Exhibition is held at The Redesdale Hall, Moreton-in-Marsh, Glos, a wonderful Victorian building both on the outside and inside, making it an ideal location with free parking too. This year’s theme is “The Edge of the Wild” with Ted Nasmith’s wonderful image “Bilbo and the Eagles” leading the way and consisting of Original Artwork and Limited edition Prints from Tolkien artists: Ted Nasmith, Ruth Lacon, Jef Murray and Peter Pracownik. The artwork is displayed upstairs (there is a chair lift for disabled access) and completely fills the space – well decorated with flags and banners, with a showcase of historical Tolkien artifacts too. Continue reading “Tolkien Art Exhibition Event: The Edge of the Wild, Moreton-in-Marsh”

cs-lewisFrom HarperOne’s blog on C.S. Lewis: “Did C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien collaborate on a project that was never published? It is well known that the two were close friends and relished each other’s praise and criticism. However, there is little evidence that the two intended on working together on any manuscript. Steven A. Beebe, professor and chair of communication studies at Texas State University, believes he has found a fragment of an unpublished work. CSLewis.com recently interviewed Dr. Beebe to get more insight on his findings. More…

J.R.R. TolkienAs part of its “Clash of the Gods” series, the History Channel is airing an episode tonight on what it calls “The greatest myth of modern times:” J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. Similar to the other episodes in the series, this episode features an impressive array of experts on Tolkien and mythology, including Michael Drout (Wheaton College), Corey Olsen (Washington College), John Davenport (Fordham University) and many others. Readers of Tolkien’s complete mythology will be delighted that the episode branches out from the realm of The Lord of the Rings into some of the myths and legends of The Silmarillion. But beware! If you haven’t read The Hobbit, or The Lord of the Rings trilogy yet, major plot points are revealed!

Continue reading “History Channel Episode on LOTR; J.R.R. Tolkien Tonight”

J.R.R. TolkienThanks to our friend Corey Olsen at The Tolkien Professor for alerting us that The History Channel will air an episode on J.R.R. Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings as part of its “Clash of the Gods” series. Corey and Michael Drout are among Tolkien scholars who are interviewed as part of the program. The episode airs at 10:00 p.m. EST, Monday, October 5 and again at 2:00 a.m. EST on Tuesday, October 6.  You can see The History Channel’s schedule here and check out more about the series at the production company’s site, kpitv.com.