Each week I scour Ebay looking for the hot Tolkien items up for sale. I post the most interesting here for you to bid on. [More]

Take a look at all the goodies you can catch on the small screen! [More]

Ringer Spy Glaurung sends along these scans from the latest issue of the NZ In-Fligh Magazine (perhaps from the Sam and Frodo plane we posted about a while ago?). Take a look! [More]

dvdanswers.com writes: We've managed to get hold of the official region 2 releasedate of Two Towers. I know you had a news article mentioning a July release but the region 2 disc will be available from the 30th June. Virgin Megastore are already taking pre-orders as are a couple of other leading retailers. All state the same date.

According to the latest issue of Blade magazine, the LOTR swords are a smash hit. Blade's latest issue, March 2003, features weaponry from the film trilogy. The article features exclusive comments from United Cutlery's Kit Rae. When the collection is complete, Kit said, "it will be the largest movie-sword collection in history" [More]

I thought y'all might like to hear about the District of Dark Whispers Tolkien Birthday Gathering which happend last night (a lot of people from the Uptown Theatre Line Party came to party with the DODW). [More]

Sarumann sends in this scan from the latest issue of Variety Magazine, take a look! [More]

Nurindel writes: I thought you would be interested in seeing this- my local paper (The Albuquerque Journal) printed a review of Two Towers, but directly below that was an article on our beloved Figwit! Hope you enjoy! [More]

nationalreview.com writes: I wanted to write about the latest Lord of the Rings movie today. But as I scoured the web reading what other people had to say, I realized I had nothing new to offer. I love Tolkien. It's a good movie. A bit too long, I thought, but I will see it again, regardless. [More]

Designing Games has its perks. As The Two Towers - the second feature in The Lord of the Rings trilogy - hits the theaters, the game makers at Electronic Arts are already reviewing footage from The Return of the King. [More] [Gaming Havens]

The good folks at IGN have compiled a nifty list of observations they (and random fans) have made about The Two Towers. Thanks to Barlimaniac Scorpio for the tip! [More]

Erica writes: In Pittsburgh, PA, USA the state highway department has one of the big electronic LED signs above one of the major throughways into Pittsburgh reading: "Cleaveland Browns: Welcome to Mordor" In relation to the football playoff game on Sunday.

While Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers breaks box-office records in America and Australia, it has generated the first Big Question of 2003: should Gollum get an Oscar? There's no doubt he's the most intriguing little freak since ET, and a nearly perfect representation of the character described by J.R.R. Tolkien in the book of The Two Towers. But is he a human performance or just a pattern of pixels? [More]

The Lord of the Rings movies are fast becoming smash-hit classics, with The Two Towers having surpassed $200 million in its first 12 days of release. "To say it's this generation's Star Wars is almost an understatement," says Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations Co., which tracks box-office totals. And it's not the only movie based on serious theology to come out of Hollywood this season. [More]

This is Oscarwatch's 4th year monitoring the Oscars from the beginning of the year through year's end. Usually, a frontrunner has clearly emerged as we head into the Guild Awards (DGA, WGA, PGA, SAG) in January and February. They either confirm or deny what the critics have hailed as the best of the year. This year, a few clear frontrunners have emerged, if you go by critics (see below) but Best Picture seems still up in the air, with many critics groups divided on which film should emerge in March. [More]

Argentinian Strider writes: Just wanted to tell you that LotR:TTT has beaten all historic records of movies in Argentina. The movie was premiered last Wednesday in only a few theaters with 66.130 spectators (Fellowship got 84.454 people in its offcial release), while on Thursday reached 73.607 viewers. With a total of 139.737, TTT has beaten the heck out of Titanic, Star Wars, and any movie released in the country.

Well, better late than never... ShowBiz Ireland managed to snap some great pictures of Bernard Hill whilst attending the premiere of The Two Towers at the Savoy Cinema in Dublin two weeks ago. Check them out! [More]

Peter Jackson has received a nomination for Best Director by the London Film Critic's Circle. Jackson faces some tough opponents in the form of Perdro Almodovar, director of Talk To Her, and Phillip Noyce, director of The Quiet American and Rabbit Proof Fence. The LFCC Awards will take place on February 12th. [More]

Few award ceremonies determine their winners based on who the public want to see win.. however the Empire Awards are not like any other awards ceremony. One of the premiere functions in the UK film year, last year saw Elijah pick up Best Actor, Orlando Best Newcomer and FotR Best Movie - and this year you can ensure that LotR's success continues! Go to Empire's website and vote for your choice; TTT for Best Movie; Peter Jackson for Best Director; Andy Serkis for Best Newcomer! [More]

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers has received eight nominations for the International Press Academy Awards, better known as the Golden Satellite Awards. The nominations, which include Best Motion Picture (Drama), Best Director and Best Supporting Actor (Drama) come one short of the nine nominations received by The Fellowship of the Ring last year, however this year The Two Towers has already received a special award for Oustanding Motion Picture Ensemble Cast - meaning the possibility of coming away from the awards with nine Golden Satellites is still a possibility. [More]

The Fellowship of the Ring DVD (no distinction made between Extended or Theatrical edition - though I assume the former) has been nominated for 2 awards at the International Press Academy's Golden Satellite Awards. FotR has been nominated for Best Extra for a DVD and Best Overall DVD, two of this year's new Interactive Media awards, and comes up against stiff opposition from Minority Report in both categories. [More]

Just like we did two weeks ago, IGN have compiled a list of missing scenes (with pictures) which could feature in The Two Towers Extended Edition later on this year. [More]

Thanks to mscbuck for the link!

G sent in a scan of a recent article from the UK's The Sun tabloid newspaper detailing a recent pheasant shoot that Elijah Wood, Billy Boyd and Dominic Monaghan embarked on in the Lake District on New Year's Day. [More]

For all fans of Howard Shore's soundtrack, Camillu has compiled a fantastically detailed cue-by-cue analysis of the score for The Two Towers, accounting how the music ties in with the movie from the opening shot of the Misty Mountains to Gollum's song playing over the closing credits. [More]

Once Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings project was announced in 1999, any fan with a keyboard and the energy could chip in their two cents on who they thought should be cast in the movies. Soon the Internet became host to a frenzy of casting rumours, as every day a new actor was linked to one of the most exciting film projects in production. Three years on, it's clear now what stories were lies and what were truth, but as we enter the home stretch and less than 12 months until the release of The Return of the King, it seems appropriate to reflect on what could have been... [More]

Come One Come all and join in Toasting the Professor, yes thats right today being Tolkien's 111th Birthday, the members of TolkienForever, some familiar faces here at TORn, to raise their glasses in a Toast. Tonight at 9pm at the Cat & Fiddle here in Hollywood California! Come and toast a great man, with a great crowd!

CJAD 800 will be talking Tolkien today at 5:45PM (ET) on CJAD 800 Montreal. You can listen in online at the following link. Just head on over and click on 'Listen Live!' at the top left. [More]

Here's the latest from the desk of our hard-working Green Books staffer Quickbeam: 'Greetings - Quickbeam here. One man from Germany writes in to argue with me about TTT. Here is a full-fledged Pro and Con debate about whether the film can stand as a successful translation of Tolkien.' [More]

Though The Two Towers has been in the most part a greater success commercially for Peter Jackson et al. than The Fellowship of the Ring, there is no doubt that the second film in the trilogy has attracted greater criticism from Tolkien fans and purists, particularly on the Internet. This weekend, the Hall of Fire crew invite you to join your fellow purists in arms as we rant and rave about the changes made to The Two Towers in what we call The Second Annual Tolkien Purists Whine and Cheese Party™. [More]

One of TORn's helpers, Josh Rubinstein, talked about TheOneRing.net Oscar Party (Two Towers - One Party) in a recent CNN and Variety article on Tolkien's 111th Birthday. [Toast Event] Since then all morning we've been getting emails and phone calls from interested folks about the party. As of right now all the details are being kept under wraps. We can tell you a few details however. [More]

Melissa writes: Sean Astin was interviewed on LA radio this morning (Friday, January 3). He talked via phone with the Kevin & Bean morning program on KROQ-FM. [More]

SooozleQ writes: Here is a set report and pics of Liv Tyler's next project "Jersey Girl." (wach out for poopy language on this site -Xo) [More]

Take a look at this LOTR themed motorcycle (we've posted about this in the past) up for sale on eBay! Come on folks! My birthday is only 197 days away! [More]

Ringer Spy odile sends in these images from Jane Magazine, Liv's own pictures are credited as: Photography: Liv Tyler for "Free Arts for Abused Children of NYC.". "Even Bebe [Liv's mother] didn't recognize her in the beard." That's Liv as Saruman?!?!? Whoah. [More]

TheBlueKat writes: Video Pipeline is reporting the release date The Two Towers to be in July!

If it is accurate then you can certainly expect a TTT: Special Edition out in November/December 2003! - Xo

LONDON, England (Variety) -- It's a clear sign that a movie has passed from mere entertainment into the realm of cultural phenomenon when it starts spawning theme parties. Such is the case with "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy. [More]

It's a special one because he would have been the same age as his original little, hairy-footed character Bilbo Baggins. [More]

The new year is ringing in much the same way as the old one -- with a "Lord of the Rings" movie atop the box office and showing no signs of budging. New Line's second installment in the action-fantasy trilogy is likely to three-peat this weekend, with no other wide releases set to unspool. "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" towered over competition last weekend with $48.9 million in ticket sales compared with $30.1 million for runner-up "Catch Me if You Can" from DreamWorks. [More]

He sounds like a creep. He moves like a ghoul. So even though Andy Serkis doesn't actually appear in the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy, the 38-year-old British actor is still generating buzz as the human model for the CG-eye-popping character Gollum. Here's how Serkis and director Peter Jackson created the loathsome creature by mixing real-life acting and digital wizardry. [More]

Australia's Lord Of The Rings star Miranda Otto married actor boyfriend Peter O'Brien as celebrity wedding bells marked the new year. The pair's wedding had been planned under a veil of secrecy and went mostly unnoticed by the local showbiz industry preoccupied with the New Year's Eve marriage of Australian Golden Globes contender Rachel Griffiths. [More]

Take a listen to Dr Lavinia Byrne: JRR Tolkein born on this day in 1892 (RealPlayer needed) [More]

Just a quick reminder to catch Sean Astin (Sam) on Conan O'Brien tonight, Conan airs right after Jay Leno at 12:35AM (ET). Check your local listings! (and Sean..mention TORN!!!)

Olivia Tennet will not be driving her new Mercedes around town. After all, she's only 11 years old and can't even see over the steering wheel. [More]

Yes indeed it would have been Tolkien's 111th birthday today, January 3rd, 2003. Tolkien was born in South Africa on January 3rd, 1892.

Many MANY people have written in wishing to mention his would-be birthday. Why not post something up in our message boards about it! [More]

The future of one of Tolkien's Two Towers, which inspired the famous book, is hanging in the balence (Read more about the tower here -Xo). While thousands of Brummies flock to see Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers at the cinema, conservationists and trustees are battling to save its inspiration - Perrotts Folly. [More]

Narawen Finally after weeks of waiting, The Two Towers will open on the 4th of January, here in the Philippines. E! Philippines' "Eksena" have interviewed people from the premiere night last December 18th. One of the ladies interviewed said that if one watches The Two Towers in any of the Ayala Cinemas, he or she will automatically get a raffle ticket and a chance to go to New Zealand with a friend for free.

The winners of the 6th annual Sierra Awards were announced December 31, 2002 LOTR wins 5! [More]

TORN Staffers Asfaloth & Quickbeam were on the red carpet for the Two Towers premiere in Los Angeles, they hooked up with Sala Baker (Sauron) and Billy Boyd (Pippin) in this first video segment from the event! Take a look! [More]

[Small] - [Med] - [Large]

CBC Radio show 'The Current' recently spoke to myself and Tolkien expert Kiyan Azarbar concerning all things rings! Listen to Kiyan sound a whole lot more 'with-it' than me! (RealPlayer needed) [More]

Lord of the Rings hobbits Frodo, Pippin, and Merry escaped Middle Earth to spend New Year in the Cumbrian countryside, the News & Star can reveal. [More]

Hannah writes: The London Film Critic's Circle have nominated PJ in their Director category! The awards have a very Brit-centric feel about them so it's very nice to see PJ in the list. He's only listed for 'Lord of the Rings', whether this is for FOTR or TTT is unclear. [More]

JRR Tolkien was not a professional author nor, for much of his life, even a much-published one. He had a certain success with The Hobbit in 1937, when he was 45 - enough for his publisher, Stanley Unwin, to ask for a sequel. But though Tolkien dutifully began to write one almost immediately, it was 17 years before the first volume of The Lord of the Rings was published, by which time Tolkien had almost reached retirement. [More]

The new year is ringing in much the same way as the old one -- with a "Lord of the Rings" movie atop the box office and showing no signs of budging. New Line's second installment in the action-fantasy trilogy is likely to three-peat this weekend, with no other wide releases set to unspool. [More]

Many of you may not have noticed, but the trio of Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens had a little help from one man in writing the screenplays for The Two Towers and the upcoming The Return of the King; Stephen Sinclair. A long time friend and collaborator of Peter Jackson who worked on the screenplays for BrainDead and Meet the Feebles, expect to hear and see more of Stephen on The Two Towers DVD later on in the year. [IMDb Bio]

Attention Studios! One lesson to learn from 2002: Don't mess with The Lord of the Rings. No studio learned this lesson more than poor ole Paramount. In a blunder that could possibly mark the end of Star Trek films as we know them, they decided to release Star Trek: Nemesis a mere 5 days previous to TTT's release. As a result, Star Trek lost any buzz and to date has only made a disgraceful 36 million dollars. I saw it last night, and its actually my second favorite TNG Star Trek film (after First Contact), but I sure as heck had a hard time finding a theater that was playing it! Paramount, I hope you learned your lesson. (Please send responses to my rant to calisuri@theonering.net, as this is not necessarily a TORn sanctioned opinion..:))

Right now, if you live in Los Angeles, CA and happen to have a radio near, turn it to 640AM. The Bill Handel show will be talking about some of the technology used in LOTR in the 8 AM hour. You can listen through the internet if you are not in LA at the KFI website. [More]

Here's a chuckle for those of you who got all riled up about the anti-TTT protests a few months ago. (And before you start firing off those emails...yes, it is a joke!) Thanks to March. [More]

Paul sends in word that the Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards will be announced on January 17th. TTT is nominated for Best Picture, Best Composer and Best Digital Acting Performance (along with Dobby and Yoda).

Galenfuinion writes: After the cinema's in Holland booked a record with FOTR last Christmas, last weekend also was a record. About 250.000 saw TTT, with 2,1 million Euro's.

Nadine writes: There is a Liv Tyler interview in Jane Magazine, there are about 10 shots she took herself from the set.


Anyone with scans, send them along!

Even New Zealand isn't far enough away to escape some of Nebraska's most zealous "Lord of the Rings" fans. Fifteen-year-old twins Hannah and Sarah Koslosky loved Peter Jackson's first "Rings" movie so deeply, they tracked down the director in his home country to thank him. [More]

Pippin's Scarf writes: TTT was nominated for 12 Online Film Critics Awards, including Andy Serkis as Best Supporting Actor. [More]

I can tell you from years of experience, the one thing that can thrive outdoors in eastern Canada in January is ice...and we've got plenty of it! The folks at Scotiabank put on an ice sculpture exhibit every year in Toronto, and this year it was Lord of the Rings themed! [More]

Sci Fi Magazine has a very extensive interview with Elijah Wood about "the fun of being Frodo" for its February 2003 issue. Thanks to Daniel for the link. [More]

Yes, there is a new Tolkien book just out, but it's not by J. R. R. Tolkien but his grandson, Simon Tolkien, a barrister in London. It's a legal thriller called Final Witness, published as a hardcover at $24.95. [More] [Purchase at Amazon]

For the past three years WETA Digital, New Zealand’s foremost visual effects facility, has used Shake software as the primary film compositing system to handle the enormous visual effects requirements for the cinematic adaptation of Lord of the Rings. Thanks to Ringer Fan Larry for the link. [More]

Northwest Life and Seattletimes.com recently put out a call to local "Lord of the Rings" fans and asked them to prove why they were worthy of the just-invented title Most Fervent Fan. Seattle's Line Party co-ordinator gets a mention :). Thanks to Erin for the link. [More]

It's Poll time. Courtesy of Wizards of the Coast (owners of the D&D franchise) - "Who would win if Gandalf and Yoda played one-on-one basketball?" Go add your vote - the poll can be found at the bottom of the page. [More]

Australia's Lord Of The Rings star Miranda Otto (Eowyn) married actor boyfriend Peter O'Brien as celebrity wedding bells marked the new year. Congratulations and best wishes from all of us at TheOneRing.net, Miranda! Thanks to Eric for the link. [More]

Thanks to Hiram, Alex and Robby who all quite rightly pointed out that the Twilight Frodo action figure carries with it the sword given to Frodo on Weathertop by Aragorn rather than Sting, hence the figure is based on that scene from FotR, and does not hint at a bleak future for Frodo in RotK.

All of us here at TheOneRing.net would like to wish each and everyone of you a happy and prosperous new year. As we ride the wave of The Two Towers and look forward to the release of The Return of the King, we can count on a special year for Tolkien fans worldwide. It will surely be one for the history books. We hope you will continue to join us in making TheOneRing.net forged by, and for, fans of J.R.R. Tolkien.

Stuff.co.nz has quite a few new LoTR stories right now (no surprise there). First check out their films of the year here. There's also a story about the local impact of LoTR here as well as one about a few cast members wanting to buy houses in New Zealand here. Finally, read about Tolkien's rapidly approaching Eleventy-first birthday here.

Ringer Fan Aurinos writes: About a month or so ago, an interview (most likely this one from the Scotsman that we posted) was published where Liv Tyler spoke about recording a song for Lord of the Rings. It was assumed it would appear in The Two Towers, but it did not. However, it looks like her song will be used ... in RoTK! [More]

Ringer Spy Celebwyn sends in a translation of an interview Viggo Mortensen recently did with an Aergentinian newspaper. Mortensen speaks about Argentina, how he sees Aragorn, Peter Jackson, his impressions after seeing FOTR and TTT, his expectations for ROTK, how he deals with popularity, and he also explains his attitude on Charlie Rose. [More]

It's a bit of a slow news day, so here's a review from the New Yorker to occupy everyone for a while. Thanks to Opgirl for the link. [More]

Dark Horizons has a nice interview with David Wenham (Faramir) talking mainly about his role in Two Towers and a little about what can be expected from his character in RoTK. There's also a link to a Barrie Osborne interview, but it seems not to be working right now. Thanks to Nimrodel for the heads up. [More]

Here's an article from the Washington Post on both past and recent attempts to politicise Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings. Thanks to Ringer Fan Aethelthryth for the link. [More] Minor Spoilers

E! Online is running a poll for the top movies of 2002. Thanks to Ringer Fan Aldaron for the link. [More]

Ringer Fan Ethan put together this very neat compilation of pictures that illustrates and highlights the filmic transition of Smeagol into Gollum in LoTR. [More] Spoilers!!

If an actor can alter his face with makeup and still get nominated for awards, why can't someone who alters his appearance with digital pixels? (Thanks to Corsair of Umbar for the link!) [More]

E!Online is reporting that Michael Gambon, who has been seen in many recent high-profile films including Gosford Park, The Insider, and Sleepy Hollow, will replace the late Richard Harris as Professor Dumbledore in the next Harry Potter film. This puts to rest rumors that our very own Gandalf, Ian McKellen, would take over the role. Thanks to staffer Asfaloth for the update. [More]

peregrintook writes: There's an update to the official site. An 'Enter the Dead Marshes' section has been added the 'Explore the Epic' portion of the site.

TORn Staffer Mr Cere (and Line Party guru) checks in with a Line Party round-up of sorts, a horror story and some advice for next year. [More]

Tinidril sent in a note saying that a new action figure had been posted on Amoktime.com called 'Twilight Frodo'. Does this perhaps hint at a more sinister fate for Frodo in Return of the King? The Land of the Ringwraiths beckons... [More]

Towers has just recorded the biggest-ever opening weekend in Australian cinematic history. You can check out the figures here. The Age also has an article speculating on why fantasy has become the new big moneyspinner in filmland. [More]

I didn't think they were using any stock sound effects in LotR, but I could be wrong. Anders writes: I noticed that the famous movie scream "the wilhelm" was used in Two Towers, when an elf is shot and falls down to the orcs in the battle of helm's deep. The wilhelm is used in several big movies, most of them in Star Wars and the Indy films.

Update: TheForce.net has an extensive article on the history of this film phenomeon, plus a compilation of Wilhem screams (in Quicktime) from films down the years. [More]

Universal Studios have just opened the official website for Gregor Jordan's Ned Kelly film, set to be winging its way onto the silver screen in 2003 and in which Orlando Bloom stars. Visit NedKellyTheMovie.com to check the film's teaser trailer and sign up for notification on future updates.

Elijah Wood and Sean Astin are intereviewed by hollywood.com and tell us why hobbits are the best creatures in the newest installment of the fantasy trilogy. Plus: Viggo Mortensen, Dominic Monaghan, Billy Boyd and director Peter Jackson. Thanks to Ringer Fan Aleksandar for the link. [More]

I was fishing around our Discussion Boards and spotted this interesting story that suggested that films and books have a symbiotic link. Contrary to the traditional lament of high-culture fussbudgets - the silver screen lures people away from books - the literary world is reaping big benefits from movies. [More]

I guess New Line must be happy - Towers has become one of the fastest films to reach the US $200 million mark. (Of course, inflation makes this easier with new films - Dem). Thanks to Ringer Fan Perianwen for the link. [More]

Wisconsin Public Radio recently interviewed Alan Lee, the illustrator who worked as a conceptual artist on Peter Jackson's adapatation of Lord of the Rings. You can now listen to this clip in Real Audio (need Real Player). [More]

Elijah Wood made an appearance on Jay Leno on December 16. Most of you will have seen the program, but for those who don't get TV for whatever reason, this transcript - courtesy of lucy - might be handy. [More]

Plenty of folks have sent along these scans from Arena Magazine, featuring Orlando Bloom, Elijah Wood and Ian McKellen! Take a look! [More]