Fan site brings its own trailer to the mix

by Michael Martinez, Monday, October 9, 2000

Joe Russell has created Mordor...the Land of Shadow, a Web site devoted to Mordor and Sauron. The site relies upon a mixture of popular artwork and citations from Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings to provide the visitor with a guided tour of Sauron's world. The visitor is treated to a multimedia experience as occasional music accompanies the tour. The site even includes its own fan trailer made with Flash. This may be the first Web site to feature a trailer about itself. Some of the artwork and images are taken from Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" Internet preview and pre-production artwork. The Mordor trailer itself is probably the most impressive part of the site, but it's well worth a look around.

Pavement magazine speaks with Sean Astin

by Michael Martinez, Monday, October 9, 2000

Tolkien-Movies.Com has posted the transcript of an article in Pavement magazine about Sean Astin. Astin was interviewed on location in New Zealand about his life and the impact that working on Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" films (as Sam Gamgee) has had on him. Location filming is expected to wrap by November 1.

Suite101 poll on smoking warning

by Michael Martinez, Monday, October 9, 2000

If you'd like to share your thoughts on whether Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" movies, which will depict the hobbits smoking pipes (as they do in the book), should include a warning against the dangers of smoking, Suite101's Tolkien and Middle-earth topic is running a poll through November 9. The results will be available throughout the polling period.

Author Pat Murphy engaging in ongoing interview at Inkwell

by Michael Martinez, Sunday, October 8, 2000

Murphy, author of the delightful Hobbit-homage 'There and Back Again', is participating in an ongoing interview conducted by Martha Soukup at Inkwell. Murphy writes in her latest email newsletter: So far we've been talking about the basic conceit behind the three books I've been working on: There and Back Again by Max Merriwell Wild Angel by Mary Maxwell by Max Merriwell and Adventures in Time and Space with Max Merriwell There'll be plenty of chance to talk about writing under pseudonyms, about being a woman writing as a man writing as a woman, about feminist aspects of Wild Angel, and about anything else anyone wants to raise. Anyway, if you feel like stopping by, you can, even if you don't belong to the Well. Here's how: Go to http://engaged.well.com/engaged/engaged.cgi?c=inkwell.vue&t=90&q=0- ...If you get to the conference this way, you can't post directly, but you can post by sending an email to inkwell-hosts@well.com and telling them you want it posted to Topic 90. The Well is an interesting community, so I'm confident the conversation will be worth checking out. Pat Murphy There and Back Again is a light space opera which follows the adventures of Bailey Beldon (Bilbo Baggins), a Norbit (Hobbit) who is drawn into a long journey by thirteen members of the Farr family (Thorin and Company). The author occasionally drops into whimsical asides to explain background information much as Tolkien himself did in The Hobbit. There and Back again is now available as a paperback.

Ferthu Theoden Hal!

by Michael Martinez, Friday, October 6, 2000

One tale people seldom discuss is the story of Theoden. That is, people who have read The Lord of the Rings recognize Theoden as the heroic king of Rohan who with the aid of Gandalf recovers from the evil spell Saruman's spy and surrogate, Grima Wormtongue, has woven about him. Theoden seems bent with old age when the reader first sees him, and then Gandalf works a near-miraculous recovery on the king. Theoden rides forth to do battle with his enemies and the enemies of Gondor, and he dies in glory on the Pelennor Fields. It may surprise people to learn that we know a great deal about Theoden's life and career, and that we can probably reasonably infer many things about him from the events and peoples who surrounded him. Why did the Rohirrim so admire Theoden? Was it simply because he was their king? These were a brave and warlike people who valued courage, honesty, and faithfulness. They would not have been devoted to a king whom they considered weak just because his ancestors had accomplished great things. We get a glimpse of how the Rohirrim measure men when Eomer meets Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli. He is impressed by their courage and loyalty to one another, and also to their dedication to friends who have been lost to Orcs. Later on, when Gandalf refuses to relinquish his staff before entering Meduseld, Hama, Theoden's doorward, relents, saying, "Yet in doubt a man of worth will trust to his own wisdom. I believe you are friends and folk worthy of honor, who have no evil purpose." Read the rest of the article here.

Village by a lake, huh?

by Michael Martinez, Friday, October 6, 2000

TheOneRing.Net has posted a transcript from a New Zealand news show which discusses the secrecy surrounding the Poolburn set. It appears that the lake will be used, and that a village set is being discussed. Xenite.Org has offered some preliminary analysis of the possible uses of the region although we have very little information to go on at this time. Filming for Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" is expected to begin there soon. Area residents have been notified that they may not disclose information about what they see under protection of copyright, so Tolkien Webmasters will no doubt be looking for information from visitors to the area who may not be held as accountable as the residents . In the literary story, there are no scenes with lakeside villages, but that doesn't necessarily mean the Poolburn scenes will be departures from the storyline. For example, suppose for some reason a flashback to Laketown is going to be filmed? Gollum visited there, according to Gandalf, and it may be within the bounds of Peter Jackson's license to film scenes in Erebor, Laketown, and northern Mirkwood. Another possibility, though it seems unlikely, is that the scenes may involved Bywater. The Hobbiton set has been burned down, and filming on the first movie "The Fellowship of the Ring" has reportedly been completed. But Peter Jackson did indicate at one point he would try to preserve the "Scouring of the Shire" if he could. Although Saruman is reportedly going to die at the end of the second film, the possibility of seeing Frodo and friends roust the Ruffians in the Shire seems to remain strong.

Poolburn: What will be filmed there?

by Michael Martinez, Wednesday, October 4, 2000

TheOneRing.Net's spy report about Poolburn got us to wondering. And since we blew it with identifying the funeral at Edoras, we thought we'd try to redeem ourselves by figuring out what will be filmed in Poolburn. Poolburn is a lightly populated district located in Ida Valley near the southern end of the South Island in New Zealand. The region, like all the country of New Zealand, is a mixture of landscapes. The spy report mentions one area of the valley has willow trees, and we did find some pictures of well-wooded regions in the Ida Valley. But DozDanz doesn't think the filming will be near the willows, and we agree. On June 9, 2000 The Southland Times carried an article which attributed to "Lord of the Rings" publicist Claire Raskind the statement that a number of battles would be filmed in Central Otago, and the article went on to say "It is understood filming could be about 40km to 50km from Alexandra with the Poolburn and Maniototo areas tipped as likely filming sites because of the moon-like landscape." Poolburn is located west of Alexandra, although it's not clearly marked on the map segments we located above. There are in fact several "Poolburn" locations or features, including Poolburn Gorge and Poolburn Dam and Poolburn Resevoir. Canadian Jean-François Fontaine visited New Zealand when he was 19 years old (in 1992-3) and engaged in a little rabbit hunting in Poolburn. He has posted several pictures from his expedition on his Web site. Rabbits are not native to New Zealand and I was curious to learn that the Ida Valley is afflicted with rabbit calicivirus disease in the Twizel and Maniototo areas. The disease is deadly to rabbits but can afflict other species of animals. Well, putting all these facts together (except for the RCD problem), one can see that Peter Jackson is most likely interested in the rocky landscapes, not the woodland areas, in the Ida Valley. But what kind of battle scenes would be filmed in such territory? It will be interesting to see what, if any, spy pictures or news media images appear which reveal more about the exact location. Our analysis of the available data leads us to conclude that a Mordor battle scene is planned, or at least something in Mordor. The region might also lend itself (despite the appearances of these pictures) to filming for Ithilien scenes. There are picturesque and well-wooded areas in the Ida Valley. Another possibility could be the Emyn Muil, the rocky hills east of the Anduin River where Frodo and Sam meet up with Gollum. These hills are separated from Mordor by the Dead Marshes. It is not necessary, judging by the literary story, to film any battle scenes in a rocky area, but the cinematic story may require some background setting. It could also be that the report of plans for battle scenes in the region was in error, or that the plans have changed (i.e., the battle scenes were or will be filmed elsewhere). One other possibility does come to mind, although we are not necessarily in agreement about it. That is, Aragorn leads his company of Rangers through the highlands of Gondor in the White Mountains. The region is well-inhabited in the literary story, and that implies it must be well-wooded and watered. Nonetheless, because of the dramatic scene at the Stone of Erech, it may be that some people interpret the region as being rocky (and there is no reason the highlands of Gondor could not have a mixture of landscapes, just like New Zealand's Ida Valley). Hence, perhaps scenes involving Aragorn and the Rangers will be filmed here. In the literary story, Aragorn led his company, and the Army of the Dead, down to the city of Ethring, where a Gondorian army was engaged in a fierce battle with Corsairs and Haradrim. Ethring was situated on the Ringlo river in a valley of the Ered Nimrais. The river was navigable at least as far north as Ethring, since the Haradrim and Corsairs had sailed up the river from the sea.

Tolkien Online gets some straight answers on LOTR board game

by Michael Martinez, Wednesday, October 4, 2000

Wizards of the Coast will be distributing an American version starting in November. Or, so Tolkien Online has been told. David Farquhar, who advised game designer Reiner Knizia, answered some questions about when the game project began and when a US Edition will be available. So, what's next? An Istari secret decoder ring?

Ancanar.com is now accepting questions for the cast of 'Ancanar'

by Michael Martinez, Wednesday, October 4, 2000

Now Ancanar.com offers more interaction with the fantasy production. Come in and post questions to the four major cast members, Gregory Lee Kenyon, Raiya Corsiglia, Gordon Capps and Jamie Alexander. The movie, based on a story inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien's Beleriand, begins filming on October 20. Distribution will be through theaters and direct-to-video sales where theatrical viewings are not available. Sam R. Balcomb wrote the script.

Arwen, does Aragorn know?

by Michael Martinez, Wednesday, October 4, 2000

Well, whatever Tolkien fans may think of her, Liv Tyler certainly doesn't shy away from controversial roles. It seems Liv and Kate Hudson will be closer than friends in the upcoming movie 'Dr. T. and the Women'. Liv Tyler, who plays the Elven princess Arwen in Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" movies, will also appear in "Dr. T. and the Women". The movie was going to feature Kate in a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders uniform, but when "America's Team" found out that Kate's character and Liv's would have an intimate relationship, they refused to give Kate permission to wear an official uniform (or reasonable facsimile thereof). Apparently, when the New York Daily News tried to ask about the football team's objections, Dallas lost contact with New York. Should people with pointed ears object to Arwen's relationship with the clearly round-eared Aragorn?

It's good to be the Entmooster, er, Mootmaster!

by Michael Martinez, Wednesday, October 4, 2000

Ben Milder, founder of the popular Entmoot forums on EZBoard, was interviewed with his brother, Tristan, who also runs a Harry Potter board on the service. Each month EZBoard interviews Webmasters who are doing well with their service, and the October newsletter announced that the Milder brothers were the featured Webmasters in Helping People Connect. The brothers have been using EZBoard for a year or less. Tristan runs the popular Gryffindor Tower forums for Potter fans.

Ringzone confirms Sarah McLeod error

by Michael Martinez, Wednesday, October 4, 2000

Ringzone also received a message from a fan who knows his Sarahs, and it appears that CHUD's Sarah is not Sam Gamgee's Rosie Cotton. The actress Sarah McLeod is said to have appeared on a New Zealand television show called Get Real. Unfortunately, this information seems to come from the Internet Movie Database, which is an unfiltered rumor mill that anyone can post information to. Xenite.Org is making some inquiries to see if any official information about Sarah is available.

So we yelled to a yellow tennis ball representing the mad maia

by Michael Martinez, Tuesday, October 3, 2000

Sir Ian McKellen has also updated his famed Grey Books section with loads of new information. Fans who were disgusted by the October update at E! Online will be very, very pleased with Sir Ian's reports. More my style is the chestnut Rastus who plays Bill the pony and is adorable. The compliant, ever-licking Rastus is 11 years old, an American quarter horse crossed with Shetland. Led by Samwise (Sean Astin) he reliably carried the Fellowship's baggage and endured the uncomfortable snowstorm of polystyrene and rice flakes when Saruman's agents attacked the nine of us in the Wellington studio en route for Moria. He was less fazed by the tempest than the rest of the cast, even though he didn't have blinkers on.

Sir Ian puts the Arwen rumors to REST!

by Michael Martinez, Tuesday, October 3, 2000

Okay, we're posting news as we read along. You should be over at Sir Ian McKellen's LOTR E-Post for October 3! He talks about Arwen again. And the question is: : I was glad that you were able to debunk the rumors of Arwen joining the Fellowship. However, I wasn't sure whether this covers just the rumor of her being at Moria or not. I am hoping you can also dispel the rumors of Arwen being placed in battle scenes. Other sites might tell you the answer. We won't. Go read it. You won't regret the click-thru.

Sir Ian McKellen updates his E-Post section

by Michael Martinez, Tuesday, October 3, 2000

Fandom's favorite Gandalf, Sir Ian McKellen, answers more questions in his October 3 E-Post. Run, don't surf, to get there! Sir Ian plays Gandalf in Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" production, currently being filmed in New Zealand. And in this latest E-Post he takes on some hard questions: Lord of the Rings is perhaps the most faithful screenplay ever adapted from a long novel. This is not just because our writing quartet is devoted to the original and would share other fans' resentment if it were "mistreated".... Hey, just get over there NOW.

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