Whether it was the photoshopped image of JRR Tolkien signing a document, many years after his passing, or the last line of this release, this was one of our 2013….
APRIL FOOLS
Global leader in high-quality family entertainment agrees to acquire world-renowned Middle-earth Enterprises, including THE LORD OF THE RINGS and THE HOBBIT franchises.
Acquisition continues Disney’s strategic focus on creating and monetizing the world’s best branded content, innovative technology and global growth to drive long-term shareholder value.
Middle-earth Enterprises to join company’s global portfolio of world class brands including Disney, ESPN, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and ABC.
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: RETURN TO MIDDLE-EARTH feature animated film targeted for release in 2016.
Burbank, CA and Berkeley, CA, April 1, 2013 – Continuing its strategy of delivering exceptional creative content to audiences around the world, The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) has agreed to acquire Middle-earth Enterprises in a stock and cash transaction. Middle-earth Enterprises, formerly known as Tolkien Enterprises, is a division of The Saul Zaentz Company, headquartered in Berkeley, California.
Under the terms of the agreement, the transaction value is $10 billion (US). The final consideration will be subject to customary post-closing balance sheet adjustments.
“Middle-earth Enterprises reflects the extraordinary passion, vision, and storytelling of JRR Tolkien, the greatest author of the 20th century,” said Robert A. Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company. “This transaction combines a world-class portfolio of content, with Disney’s unique and unparalleled creativity across multiple platforms, businesses, and markets to generate sustained growth and drive significant long-term value.”
Continue reading “Press Release: Disney to Acquire Middle-earth Enterprises”
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Today fans of The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and the works of J.R.R. Tolkien will join together in a worldwide celebration of the late author’s works for Tolkien Reading Day. The theme for this year’s event is Tolkien’s landscapes in honour of the fabulous scenery currently on offer in Sir Peter Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy. Continue reading “Celebrate Tolkien Reading Day!”
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The review copy of Hobbitus Ille by Mark Walker is a beautifully presented hardcover edition with art and interior maps in the style of early English copies and is provided by Harper Collins.
Walker has taken up a very brave challenge in providing us with the first Latin translation of Tolkien’s The Hobbit. His intent was to provide as direct a translation of Tolkien’s own words as possible and the end result is a complete and unabridged volume where even the poetry is in Latin. This direct translation is not the hallmark of the best translations, nor is it the Classical Latin of Caesar and Cicero. Continue reading “Reviewed: Hobbitus Ille”
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
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In this interesting feature, Tolkien scholar Michael Martinez answers what on the surface seems a very simple question: why is the land of the Hobbits in The Lord of the Rings called The Shire? Continue reading “Why is it called The Shire?”
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
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As you’re probably aware, Harper Collins is publishing J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fall of Arthur in May 2013.
Edited by the Professor’s son, Christopher, the publication also includes “three illuminating essays that explore the literary world of King Arthur, reveal the deeper meaning of the verses and the painstaking work that his father applied to bring it to a finished form, and the intriguing links between The Fall of Arthur and his greatest creation, Middle-earth.”
But while we all wait, I thought people might enjoy this interesting speculation about what The Fall of Arthur might hold for us that I stumbled across over on Tolkien Library. Continue reading “Some speculation about Tolkien’s The Fall of Arthur”
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
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The first official Tolkien Reading Day was held on March 25, 2003. A New York journalist was wondering if there was such a thing as Tolkien Reading Day and asked the Tolkien Society about this in 2002. It was decided that there should be a Tolkien Reading day, and then the only debate was ‘when’ should it be held? Please go to the Tolkien Society’s official page for Tolkien Reading Day to find out just how and why March 25th was chosen.
You will also see some very helpful tips on what types of activities can be done to celebrate Tolkien Reading Day, from discussions about common themes or settings, to fun games to engage children with. Tolkien Reading Day can be held at a home, a school, a library or a bookstore or you can even take it outside, maybe at a picnic and add a meal to the event. And while the Middle-earth stories tend to be the more popular at a Tolkien Reading Day event, his other works, such as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Letters from Father Christmas or Roverandam can be just as enchanting.
The theme for this year is Landscapes, a subject that Tolkien was particularly adept at envisioning and describing in wonderful detail. Middle-earth must have had very successful travel agents, how many times have you wondered what it would be like to visit some of the realms described?
Tolkien Forever, the Tolkien Smial in Southern California, will be hosting an event this Saturday, March 23. True, it is not the correct day, but a Saturday works better for drawing more people to the event in the ever busy Megalopolis that is So Cal. For those in the Los Angeles area, stop by their Facebook event page for details.
If you have a Tolkien Reading Day event happening in your area, please let us know the details so we can post it and let others know where they can go in an area near them. You can drop a line to Spymaster@TheOneRing.net.
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