Middle Earth News

Questions and Answers – Glorfindel, Saruman Survives, Pointy Ears, Stone Giants and more…
Back in September 1999, these were the questions on the minds of fans… [Read more]

Collecting The Precious – Weta Workshop to attend Supernova
The Weta World Tour continues in June with Supernova. Starting June 22nd-23rd in Sydney and June 29th-30 in Perth, fans will get a chance to come together to celebrate what they love about the pop culture. The team from Weta will also be making the trip to both places bringing their magical work creating Middle-earth with them. [Read more]

The (Biblical) Beacons of Gondor … Did Tolkien Know?
In his second of many articles for our worldwide community, Tedoras, long-time audience participant on our TORn TUESDAY webcast brings us a fascinating idea: a lost connection to the Beacons of Gondor perhaps… Read on for a short but very interesting look at how an ancient Biblical account may have inspired Tolkien! [Read more]

From The Tolkien Society
A brand new J.R.R. Tolkien epic, The Fall of Arthur, will be released this Thursday. This never-before-seen story starts with the legendary King Arthur going to war in “Saxon lands” before returning home to confront Mordred’s treachery.

[Read more]

J.R.R. Tolkien, well-known as the author of international best-selling books The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, wrote The Fall of Arthur in the 1930s before he started work on The Hobbit. Its existence was revealed in the 1970s, and its publication has been rumoured for some years, but it had been overtaken by other new posthumous releases such as The Children of Húrin and The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún.

Tolkien was a professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford University and worked on the translations of Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The Fall of Arthur is Tolkien’s own reimagining of a tale that is most-commonly associated with Thomas Mallory and in an alliterative verse format used in Anglo-Saxon epic poetry.

Shaun Gunner, Chairman of the Tolkien Society, said, "We are all used to seeing Tolkien’s stories set in Middle-earth, but this is the first time we’ve ever seen Tolkien write about legendary Britain. We know Tolkien loved the powerful alliterative verse of Anglo-Saxon epics so Tolkien’s own re-imagining of Arthur’s downfall in this format will make for an interesting read. This is fundamentally important in terms of considering Tolkien’s academic career and his wider creative process, but it will also be fascinating to see how The Fall of Arthur – written before The Hobbit – may have parallels in Tolkien’s other stories."

Shaun added, “It is always important when a new book is published by such a well-known and much-loved author, but this is particularly special due to the poetic format and subject matter. I am in no doubt that we will see the same skill and creativity on display in The Fall of Arthur as in Tolkien’s other works – this book will be a permanent feature of the Arthurian canon for centuries to come and will add to Tolkien’s own reputation as one of the most brilliant writers this country has ever produced.”

Note from the Mods: We would like to invite the moderators of other fandom communities to become 'reporters' or 'scouts' for middleearthnews. All we ask is that you send us formatted updates on your own communities for posting here.

* hobbitfilmfic updates:
Harebrained Ideas (Balin, Thorin, Dwalin, Kili, Fili; implied Dwalin/Thorin if you squint; rated G) by empy

* oeam updates:
Archive Updates for the Week of May 17

The current challenge at tolkien_weekly is Grass: Lawn

From hobbit_kink:
Prompt post #11
RPF prompt post #2

From AO3 - Archive of Our Own:
-- TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works
-- Lord of the Rings - All Media Types-- The Hobbit - All Media Types
-- Lord of the Rings RPF
-- The Hobbit (2012) RPF

* Via silwritersguild:
Why did Feanor's sons take the Oath?
With all the discussion/speculation going on about the elves' motivations at Alqualonde, I'd like to throw this question out there: Why did Feanor's sons feel the need to simultaneously leap to his side and take the Oath? Was it truly a "madness" caused by grief over the death of their grandfather, family loyalty and Feanor's speeches? Was it an obligation to be by their father's side, or a sense of injustice, or simply the quasi-magical lure of the Silmarils? Was it more hesitant than the text paints it?

All of these? Or is there a simpler explanation, as in this Silmarillion/Good Omens fanfic?

* Via the TORn forums:
Anyone know which Hobbit dwarves are still living post-LOTR?
Three die at the BoFA, and at least three more in Moria several years later. I've seen comments that the survivors stayed on at Erebor--or some of them did, anyway.

So, possibly living during the LoTR time period are
Dwalin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Gloin, Dori, and Nori. (I assume Gloin is still alive, as book-Gimli never refers to his father as dead.)

And of course we know Dain is killed at Erebor at the same time as the Battle of the Pelennor (and his son Thorin Stonehelm then becomes King under the Mountain....)

Anyone know how long any of the above seven lived after the War of the Ring? I saw a TORn post somewhere that stated Dwalin lived to be something like 300 or so years...not sure where that came from. I'm particularly interested in which of them might still be alive 16 years after the war when appendix B notes that Aragorn visits the hobbits at the Brandywine Bridge, SR 1436.

Question about Hobbit fashion/ hygene.
Okay, if I understand things correctly Hobbit were more or less Tolkien's take on the Victorian era English. Now in spite of the fact that Hobbit seem to be rather laid back, much like the Victorian country folk, they would have had formal occasions from time to time. Presumably they would have styled their hair and worn nicer clothing than the usual. But what about their foot hair? Would they have styled it too? You know maybe with some hair wax like what was used on beards and the like in the the age of good ol' Queen Vic. I figure they wouldn't be wearing dress shoes so might they have done this?

Middle-earth Conspiracy Theories
What were the Nazgul doing during all those years of secrecy before Sauron unleashed them to hunt down Baggins and the One Ring?

Your friendly middleearthnews mods are constantly on the lookout for all things LotR-related, from fics to fandom events, comics to current news. Make them happy by emailing them at middle_earth_news@yahoo.com.

From estelanui:
The Lord of the Beers, Middle-earth Beer.
"A few statistics: the words beer or ale comes up 40 times in LOTR, while wine is mentioned 25 times..."

Monday's BOOK question: To what did Gandalf liken Mr Butterbur's memory?
Answer: A lumber-room.

dreamflower02, frolijahfan and namarielorien answered correctly.

Today's MOVIE question contributed by special_majick: Which cast member was so enchanted with her prosthetic ears that she had them bronzed?

All comments are screened so that only the mods can see the answers. Comments will be unscreened when the next edition is posted. Any comments on a different subject will be unscreened ASAP.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, carush_girl AND HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY, slesia AND equanimity23!

The mods would like to wish anyone having a special day the very best. Please send your special wishes to middle_earth_news@yahoo.com.

(Link contributions are welcome)

Via ROFLrazzi, fanart by Noelle Stevenson a.k.a Gingerhaze:
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This is caras_galadhon sneaking in to help out with the Monday edition as our lovely estelanui is off on a quest of some importance. As she left she muttered something about a Ring and a bunch of hobbits elves men... or maybe they were dwarves? Anyway, she'll be back with us next week, no doubt refreshed after her visit to a beautiful volcanic location... some sort of spa, I imagine?

Note from the Mods: Please encourage friends on your friends list to join and send their news. If you have an announcement you would like to make, a fic you'd like to promote, a question you'd like to ask, we invite you to simply format it according to the rules on the info page and email it to middle_earth_news@yahoo.com. You do not have to be a member to post but we are an open community and encourage everyone to join now. Only the mods may initiate new posts but comments are encouraged.

~Collecting The Precious -- The Bridge Direct Comic-Con 2013 Exclusive Figure Announcement
Last year for Comic-Con the folks at The Bridge Direct lead off their line of figures for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey with the Invisible Bilbo 6" figure. Well, today via their Facebook page they announced the figure they will be bringing with them to Comic-Con 2013. This year's figure will go the bad guy route with the choice being Azog the pale Orc. [More]

~Peter Jackson updates his facebook, filming started, v-blog coming soon
Peter Jackson updated his personal Facebook page today to let fans know that filming for "The Hobbit," has begun. He called the block of filming, "Our last ever Tolkien pick ups," He also promises a new video blog soon, although that could mean a day, a week or a month. [More]

Note from the Mods: We would like to invite the moderators of other fandom communities to become 'reporters' or 'scouts' for middleearthnews. All we ask is that you send us formatted updates on your own communities for posting here.

tolkien_weekly (drabbles) updates:

A Scarred Tabletop (Aragorn, Frodo, Sam; G) by engarian

hobbitfilmfic updates:

Clarity of Vision, Chapter 5 (Thorin/Bilbo, Fíli, Kíli, Balin; G) by mithen

heirs_of_durin updates:

Then and Now: Chapter 19 and Chapter 20 (Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield; RED) by eowyns_musings

My Stubborn Dwarf (Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield; YELLOW) by eowyns_musings

From tolkien_weekly:

~Grass Challenge
And for your delectation... This week's prompt word is: LAWN.

- TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works
- Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
- The Hobbit - All Media Types
- Lord of the Rings RPF
- The Hobbit (2012) RPF

From silwritersguild:

~Agency at Alqualondë: Materialism, World View, Neither, All, or None?
Recently, a discussion ensued on Tumblr that addressed two theses pertaining to the Kinslaying at Alqualondë. Silm fans have wrestled with this topic ad nauseum, and it would seem some folks who are relatively new to the fandom are likewise considering it. I do not necessarily have a horse in this race, but I tried to follow the discussion as best I might, so I am distilling it down to the following (numerical order for convenience, not for weight). [More]

~TORn Message Boards Weekly Roundup -- May 20, 2013
Welcome to our collection of TORn's hottest topics for the past week. If you've fallen behind on what's happening on the Message Boards, here's a great way to catch the highlights. Or if you're new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the links to some of our most popular discussions. Watch this space as every weekend we will spotlight the most popular buzz on TORn's Message Boards. Everyone is welcome, so come on in and join in the fun! [More]

middleearthnews

From estelanui:

~Speaking of Legolas...
"There seems to be a lot of curiosity about this Elf. People want to know all sorts of things about him, such as what color was his hair, who was his mother, when was he born, was he at the Battle of Five Armies?" An essay by Michael Martinez.

Today's BOOK question contributed by elanorgardner:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, gayalondiel, esteliel and noldoparma!

HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY, ladyminya!

~TheOneRing.net is going to Phoenix Comicon over Memorial Day weekend
The kind folks at Phoenix Comicon have invited TheOneRing.net to host a panel on The Hobbit, with our popular 'Sneak Peak at the Desolation of Smaug' we debuted at Wondercon earlier this Spring. Any and all new and breaking news will be included with the breakdown of Peter Jackson's Sneak Peak, along with commentary and discussion with the audience. The panel will be on Friday at 6pm in room 122ABC, and I hope to see many of you in attendance. [More]

~Happy Hobbit: Hobbit Party -- Episode 17
Have you ever wanted to throw an amazing, authentic hobbit party like Bilbo Baggins' 111th bash? Then join Kili to learn some tips and get started on planning your own "night to remember!" [Happy Hobbit: Hobbit Party - Episode 17]

~All About Sam -- Why the Main Character of 'The Lord of the Rings' is Really Samwise Gamgee
Most people think Frodo is the true hero of The Lord of the Rings. To put it another way: It is accepted by nearly all readers that the novel is about Frodo. It's his quest, his burden, he's the focus. The little blurbs in magazines that are designed for the non-initiate read like this: "The story of a hobbit, Frodo Baggins, who is sent to destroy an evil Ring of power..." Sound like a good pitch? Not quite. [More]

~Confirmed: 'Hobbit' filming resumes Monday
There have been a smattering of reports about when filming (actually there is no film, it is all digital these days) resumes for this set of pick-ups on "The Hobbit." TheOneRing.net can confirm (from the very best of sources) that work starts Monday, May 20 in Wellington. Everybody seems to know that a chunk of the work to be done is for the Battle of Five Armies but it seems likely there are other things to be done as well. [More]

~Questions and Answers -- Eagles, Sauron and Ringwraiths - Oh My!
It's been over 12 years since some of these common Tolkien-related questions have been answered, so what better time than now to repost some of them for the newbies? Contained in this post are some newbie classics...Why do the Eagles always show up at the last minute? Why did Sauron not just come forth to war? Why do the Black Riders seem to be so weak? Read on... [More]

Note from the Mods: We would like to invite the moderators of other fandom communities to become 'reporters' or 'scouts' for middleearthnews. All we ask is that you send us formatted updates on your own communities for posting here.

tolkien_weekly (drabbles) updates:

Foreboding (Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin, Aragorn; G) by engarian

Storm (Elendil, Isildur, Anarion; G) by necronomijon

Wild Child (Melian, Lúthien; G) by silverstarspray

Fatherly Concern (Imrahil; G) by curiouswombat

hobbitfilmfic updates:

Assorted Fics (Gimli/Legolas, Thorin/Bilbo, Kíli/Bilbo, Others; Gen to NSFW) by rata_toskr

sons_of_gondor updates from co-mod., caras_galadhon:
Friday, May 10 through Thursday, May 16 inclusive.

The Need of Comrades: Chapter 16 and Chapter 17 by splix
(Viggo/Bean; NC-17; In 1906, two young men from very different backgrounds meet and form a friendship.)

monologues for two (Part 22/?) by noalinnea and evocates
(Viggo Mortensen/Sean Bean, Melanie Hill/Sean Bean; G; Sean calls Mel.)

While these are the LotR FPF and RPF fics/art that have been posted to sons_of_gondor this week, the mods would like to remind everyone that the comm also carries other FPF/RPF featuring the Gondorian actors in non-LotR roles.

middleearthnews

- TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works
- Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
- The Hobbit - All Media Types
- Lord of the Rings RPF
- The Hobbit (2012) RPF

~Hall of Fire chat log: The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen
During Barliman's Chat last weekend, the Hall of Fire crew examined the Tale of Aragorn and Arwen. Belatedly, for those who couldn't attend, here's a log. [More]

~Hall of Fire tomorrow: The King of the Golden Hall
This weekend Hall of Fire is returning to The Two Towers, focusing on the events of "The King of the Golden Hall" as Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas follow Gandalf to the seat of Rohan's kings to treat with Théoden. [More]

middleearthnews

From estelanui:

~Public Buildings
From The Thain's Books, An encyclopedia of Middle-earth and Numenor.

frolijahfan

HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY, dennib68 and summershobbit!

3rd Conference on Middle-earth gets a Part 2, calls for papers
Sometimes TheOneRing is viewed as a movie-only website and that just isn’t true. While we don’t write as much in-house material as we once did in our Green Books section (which is full of gold and mithril and worth mining) we still try to represent as much of the wide and far ranging J.R.R. Tolkien fandom as possible with our all-volunteer staff. [Read more]

WSJ: Enter the Dragon, Tolkien-Style
Mention Smaug, the classic storybook dragon of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit,” and a ray of delight flickers across Benedict Cumberbatch’s pale eyes. Smaug, “a most specially greedy, strong and wicked worm” of Tolkien lore, is for many children their first encounter with fire-breathing, scaly dragons. “First one for me,” Cumberbatch is quick to add. [Read more]

Getting to know Magnus Hjert
Welcome to the latest “Getting to know” – questions that need answering. It’s based on the old Getting to know you threads that I occasionally post on the message boards here on TORn, so those familiar with them will know that the questions can be a little crazy and the answers even crazier. [Read more]

Our Own Documentary RINGERS: Lord of the Fans Now on iTunes!
In 2005 we premiered our very own documentary feature film RINGERS: Lord of the Fans at the Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, where it was quickly snapped up by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment for worldwide distribution on DVD and cable! It is finally available on iTunes after 7 years of hopeful waiting. [Read more]

Pick up filming has begun! And – might we get to see Aragorn…?
Our good friends over at our partner site Tolkiendrim.com reported here that shooting of pick ups for the next two Hobbit movies begins on May 15th - that's already today in many parts of the world! And a good part of 'today' has already passed in New Zealand - so we're assuming that filming is already underway. Shooting is scheduled to continue until the end of July. [Read more]

Note from the Mods: We would like to invite the moderators of other fandom communities to become 'reporters' or 'scouts' for middleearthnews. All we ask is that you send us formatted updates on your own communities for posting here.

* tolkien_weekly (drabbles) updates:
Flowers Like Stars (Thingol, Melian, Lúthien; rated G) by silverstarspray
He's Got The Look (Éothain; rated G) by curiouswombat
On Your Guard (Aragorn, Frodo, Sam, Merry & Pippin; rated G) by engarian
Dawns and Futures, a drabble pair (Young Aragorn and Young Halbarad; rated G) by kortirion

* heirs_of_durin updates:
Then and Now, part 19: Of Solstice Past and Yule Present (Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield; rated R) by eowyns_musings

The current challenge at tolkien_weekly is Grass: Clump

From hobbit_kink:
Prompt post #11
RPF prompt post #2

From AO3 - Archive of Our Own:
-- TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works
-- Lord of the Rings - All Media Types-- The Hobbit - All Media Types
-- Lord of the Rings RPF
-- The Hobbit (2012) RPF

* Via the TORn forums:
Middle Earth Origins stories
I haven't posted in a while, but I was thinking, if they decided to milk ME for all it's worth and make Orgins stories for some the characters from TH/LOTR, who might they choose, and what could you see the basic story being? What stories would you like to see?
Gollum would be a likely candidate, but there isn't really much to see of any real importance that we haven't already seen (the finding of the ring/murder of Deagol). I'd still like to see it though including "hunt for Gollum".
Aragon perhaps incl meeting Arwen, wedding? But it would be difficult to see anyone other than Viggo as adult Aragorn.
Alternatively Sil stuff, but that's less likely due to movie rights etc.
What would you like to see? I was thinking it might not be impossible as they're doing this for Star Wars.
Go!

Your fave characters in LOTR
Mine are (You've probably read this on my profile already)
Sam
Rosie
Merry
Aragorn
Eowyn

Your friendly middleearthnews mods are constantly on the lookout for all things LotR-related, from fics to fandom events, comics to current news. Make them happy by emailing them at middle_earth_news@yahoo.com.

Via oeam:
On Tolkien and Fairy Stories, by Terri Windling.
"I propose to speak about fairy–stories," begins a famous essay by J. R. R. Tolkien; and I can do no better than to echo the good professor's words today. I propose to speak about fairy–stories, and why these stories mattered to Tolkien. And why such stories, including Tolkien's own fairy–stories, have mattered to me.

Monday's BOOK question: Who said "A grim morn, and a glad day, and a golden sunset"?
Answer: Théoden.

rakshi, juliebeth, helenllama, msilverstar and lindahoyland answered correctly.

Today's MOVIE question contributed by special_majick: What department intrigued Peter Jackson the most when he visited George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch?

All comments are screened so that only the mods can see the answers. Comments will be unscreened when the next edition is posted. Any comments on a different subject will be unscreened ASAP.

The mods would like to wish anyone having a special day the very best. Please send your special wishes to middle_earth_news@yahoo.com.

(Link contributions are welcome)

From Set Phasers to LOL:
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Circulation: One thousand, one hundred and seventy-one. Welcome all!

Note from the Mods: Please encourage friends on your friends list to join and send their news. If you have an announcement you would like to make, a fic you’d like to promote, a question you’d like to ask, we invite you to simply format it according to the rules on the info page and email it to middle_earth_news@yahoo.com. You do not have to be a member to post but we are an open community and encourage everyone to join now. Only the mods may initiate new posts but comments are encouraged.

• From TORn:
Analysis: just how big is Jackson’s Smaug? - Last night I stumbled on this very clever post on TheOneRing.net’s boards. In it, user Skaan suggested that the promotional picture of Bilbo sprawled atop Smaug’s hoard could offer a guide to the size of Jackson’s version of Smaug (the Magnificent). How? Well, we also saw Smaug’s head buried in that selfsame pile. So the…

Collecting The Precious – United Cutlery’s The Sword of Kili - The next great replica from our friends at United Cutlery is the Sword of Kili. This very detailed replica comes in at 28 3/8″ in total length, with a high quality steel blade. The sword will come to you aged and made to look as if it was used by Kili as we’ve seen him…

TORN Message Boards Weekly Roundup - Welcome to our collection of TORn’s hottest topics for the past week. If you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening on the Message Boards, here’s a great way to catch the highlights. Or if you’re new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the links to some of our most popular discussions….

Note from the Mods: We would like to invite the moderators of other fandom communities to become ‘reporters’ or ‘scouts’ for middleearthnews. All we ask is that you send us formatted updates on your own communities for posting here.

• heirs_of_durin:
-- Then and Now - Chapter 18 - Snow Comes to Erebor (Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield, Rating: RED, After Thorin and his nephews die in the Battle of the Five Armies, Bilbo lives in mourning for the rest of his days. But sometimes things aren't as hopeless as they seem...) by eowyns_musings

• oeam:
OEAM Archive Updates for the Week of May 10: OEAM News

• silwritersguild:
May 2013 Newsletter Posted

• From AO3 - Archive of Our Own:
-- TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works
-- Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
-- The Hobbit - All Media Types
-- Lord of the Rings RPF
-- The Hobbit (2012) RPF

• shire_icontest challenge:
Challenge Seventeen: Peregrin "Pippin" Took. Deadline: Saturday, April 20, 2013 at 11 [Pacific]

• rakshi The Offering (Sam and Frodo, no rating)

• iavalir King of Agony - Chapter 3: The Backbone of Erebor (Kíli, Kíli/Nrar (OC), Kíli/Bofur, Kíli/Others, Dain Ironfoot, Balin, Thorin's Company, Rating: Mature, Through an act of love Kíli was given a second chance at life, but it left him a shattered soul. He is left to face his greatest enemy, one he cannot beat unless he can first defeat himself. A tale silent among the dwarves, removed and changed from the Red Book of Westmarch, speaks of the trials and sins, and the love and bonds, which filled the life of the King of Agony)

• offski Just like old time (Frodo, Sam, Merry/Pippin, Rating: PG13, Sam suggests a visit to alleviate Frodo's boredom)

• Via TORn Forums: Movie Discussion - The Hobbit
Why do Fili and Kili Never Say "Uncle?" - Wondering why it was never clearly conveyed what the blood relationship is between F&K and Thorin? Rescued by the eagles and winging their way to the safety of the Carrock, Fili calls out Thorin, not Uncle. Is PJ waiting until DoS to make the family connection clear? I think it's important that it is established. Perhaps Bilbo will learn of it from Ori as he records their quest. (And did Bilbo get the idea for writing TABA from his Ori!) Or will Bilbo learn of this from Thorin as the two are now on more friendly footing. Does anyone else think that clarifying their relationship is important to the story?

• Our deepest modly thanks to those of you who continue to send in content for the newsletter. Thank you so much. We couldn't do this without you. ♥

From one of our dear reader:
My friend's post about the article "What Makes the Names of Middle-earth So Fitting? Elements of Style in the Namecraft of J. R. R. Tolkien" in Names: A Journal of Onomastics. His post includes the necessary links and other information.

Today's BOOK question contributed by elanorgardner: Who said "A grim morn, and a glad day, and a golden sunset"?

All comments are screened so that only the mods can see the answers. Comments will be unscreened when the next edition is posted. Any comments on a different subject will be unscreened ASAP.

HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY damodred and lost_spook!!!!!!</b>

The mods would like to wish anyone having a special day the very best. Please send your special wishes to middle_earth_news@yahoo.com.

(Link contributions are welcome)

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