Tobias Hock writes: I am a German student. For my graduation in 2007 I am about to make a school work with the topic “J.R.R. Tolkien´s THE LORD OF THE RINGS: A cultural phenomenon’ I want to find out to what extent fantasy literature deals with topical issues and, above all, what makes Tolkien´s work, half a century after its publication, still so attractive for millions of people. [More]

PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Actor Viggo Mortensen is on a three-day fundraising tour for Robert Johnson, the Democrat challenging U.S. Rep. John McHugh (news, bio, voting record) for the 23rd Congressional District seat. “I’m pretty skeptical of all politicians, and I think it’s only in the movies that you find no-strings-attached, sincere people,” Mortensen said Thursday at a $75 buffet dinner that drew 140 people. “Dr. Bob is that rare thing: He’s a man that’s not bought and paid for. I wish there were candidates like him all over the country,” he said. [More]

WESTWOOD, MA – SEPTEMBER 8, 2006 – Turbine and Midway announced today that The Lord of the Rings Online™: Shadows of Angmar™ (LOTRO) has officially entered Beta in North America. Codemasters Online Gaming is pleased to announce the simultaneous launch of Pre-Beta in Europe. [More]

More DragonCon 2006 Photos Celebriel writes: This year Kiran Shah, noted actor and stuntman who played the scale double for Frodo and other hobbits in “The Lord of the Rings,” was the Tolkien Track’s celebrity guest. He hosted a Q&A panel on Saturday, and appeared with “The Dork of the Rings” cast and crew on Monday. In between, he could be found mostly at The Walk of Fame over in the Hilton, greeting fans, signing autographs, and posing for pictures. [More]

More DragonCon 2006 Photos Celebriel reports on LOTR Dragon Con 2006 programs: Wow, how to summarize four wonderful days of LOTR and other fantasy/sci-fi franchise madness. It’s impossible to attend everything of interest, but where else can you hear fans, writers, and scholars passionately debate The Dork of the Rings, whether Dumbledore is really dead, how Star Wars Episodes 1 to 3 could have been made better, and how the portrayal of dragons, from Tolkien’s Smaug to Paolini’s Saphira, has evolved. Not to mention listening to Emerald Rose, watching sword fighting displays, learning how to apply costume prosthetics, and meeting the amazing Kiran Shah. [More]

Celebriel forwards a link, sent to her by Arymetore, to the one minute CNN segment on DragonCon. Look for Emerald Rose playing at An Evening in Bree here! [More]