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September 30, 1999 - October 06, 1999

News for Oct. 06, 1999

Chat Log Online

10/06/99, 11:16 pm EST - Xoanon

The log trascript from our recent chat with Gillian Flynn is now available. Gillian was a wonderful guest with some great insite and a love for the project! Towards the end she asked me if we can turn the tables around and ask the chatroom folks some questions! It was really fun and informative!

A big thank you to Gillian Flynn for her time and insite, you're welcome back anytime!

Click here to read the chat log.

Oh No, Not Again!

10/06/99, 10:51 pm EST - Xoanon

What can only be described as the most annoying rumor in the unvierse has reared it's ugly head again. Is Sean Connery in NZ? Sean, buddy, listen to me, if you are in NZ drop me a line ok? 514.947.5221 ok? Just do it! Just say 'yesh' or 'no' and that's it ok?

From the cool dudes over at CHUD

From 'Ash':


"I can 100% guarantee that Sean Connery was in New Zealand as I followed him around the shopping mall. I first heard rumors that he was in the area when a friend reported that he had been seen in a Cafe near where Peter Jackson's headquarters are based in Miramar, Wellington. Anyway walking through North City Plaza in Porirua City, Wellington, New Zealand I spot this gentlemen dressed as a Arab Shiek two body guards in front, two to the side and two behind. I decide to follow and find out more. On entering a bookshop the said fake Arab lifts his head dress away from his face and in a voice that only a deaf person wouldn't recognise asks for todays paper. God I wish i had a camera. So any of those rumors about Sean being in New Zealand can be given a big tick of true."

So is Connery narrating the films? Is he playing Witchking? Is he just on vacation and dressing up
like an Arab for pleasure? Only time will tell, but he is in the country and his agent must have reason to deceive, unless he really didn't know where his client was. The Sean Connery rumor mill begins to turn yet again.


Brian @ CHUD

Tehanu's Eighth Note

10/06/99, 10:42 pm EST - Tehanu

Tehanu discusses the Kalevala and Egil's Saga, and tries to make a start on the Silmarillion. It's in the "Features" section as usual.

The Testimonials section is now open!

10/06/99, 10:34 pm EST - Tehanu

Our first contributor to this section is Ursula K Le Guin, one of the most influential writers of fantasy and science fiction for the last thirty years. She kindly allowed us to reprint parts of an essay she wrote recalling her response to "The Lord of the Rings" and the impact it had on her as a young writer.
Check it out in "Green Books"

Live Chat Tonight

10/06/99, 10:18 am EST - Xoanon

Live Chat's return to Barliman's! Tonight's guest, Gillian Flynn, reporter from Entertainment Weekly, one of the best movie mags out there.

Gillian recently did a piece on LOTR and the internet buzz, she is an avid fan and would love to chat with you guys! Ask her your Hollywood, Mainstream Media, Internet, Magazine questions!

Be there at Barliman's, Tonight 7 pm et, 4 pm Pacific.

Do you have MIRC? Why not join us from there! Server: www.theonering.net, Room: #theonering.net

Get MIRC FREE: www.MIRC.com , easy to download, no more java crashes! Do you live in a far off land and don't know what 7 pm et is for you? Click here at CNN Worldtime to find out, see you there tonight!

Arwen Audition Script!

10/06/99, 10:02 am EST - Xoanon

While I cannot post it up, due to the fragile nature I recieved this info. But I will summerize what I have read from Arwens' Audition Script.

While it was only a very short scene, (most audition scripts are) it deals with Arwen and Aragron. They are about to enter battle, and Aragorn does not want Arwen to fight.

She surprizes him by pulling back her hood to reveal who she is, he tells her:

This is madness! Your immortality will not save you from an Orc blade.

They argue abour her staying, Aragorn tells her that this place will be filled with Orcs in an hour.

Arwen claims:

I have lived through worse.

While I have read many audition scripts, I find that the actual text changes when I finally see it on the screen. This script did not surprise me, we've all heard about 'Arwen: Warrior Princes', I'm hoping Liv Tyler can hold back on the killcrazy blood and guts that everyone is worried about.


News for Oct. 05, 1999

Bree Details!

10/05/99, 4:37 pm EST - Xoanon

Xoanon here,

Super Ringer Spy 'Micheal Delving' sent me this info regarding the Bree shoot!

...they plan to shoot the Bree Street Scenes at the end of October, it will be a 10 to 12 hour night shoot, and likely to be with rain.

...I passed through a set where they appeared to be making some test shots with Hobbits. Prostetic feet and all.


'Michael Delving' also told me that he/she/it/they saw some scetches of Gollum and The Orcs and they are fantastic.

So it appears that at Bree it'll be a rainy night! Sounds good to me!

Thanks to 'Micheal Delving' for the scoop!

Bean News - Extremely Dangerous

10/05/99, 4:28 pm EST - Xoanon

While a few LOTR stars are knee deep in Kiwi land, some people are still working, noteably Sean Bean. Sean's next project is Extremely Dangerous, a four part series for British television which will be broadcast this autumn.

'Nona' paid a visit to the set. This is what she had to say:

So what is Extremely Dangerous all about? Judging by this morning's action, it's about Sean Bean, wearing green overalls, a purple shirt and workboots, fiddling about with some electrical wiring under the road, then sauntering over to an outdoor café to have a word with Ron Donachie, who is sitting at a table having a quiet drink. Which is where the Range Rover with the spotless windshield comes in. As Sean's character (Neil Byrne)and Donachie's character (Gebbert) chat, the Range Rover drives ominously down the road towards them.

Visit The Compleat Sean Bean page to find out more.

Christopher Lee on SFX

10/05/99, 3:41 pm EST - Xoanon

Saruman


Xoanon here,

The cool dudes at SFX have sent me the latest issue of their movie mag. In it Christopher Lee (Saruman) speaks about his role in the Trilogy.

I've always said since first reading the three books, and I've always felt this, that I was born to be in it. And now I can say I am! I'm very happy. And Saruman, he's the head wizard. An enormously important role. Saruman goes over to the enemy, he's a Valar, an immortal, and if he'd have remained benevolent it would have been a very different story'

Lee also coments on the script,

'Well, I've only read the first one. But they've done a splendid job, to condense this colossal epic, as big as The Odyssey or The Illiad, to the point where you can make it and present it to the public. I think a very large number of people are very excited, because, like Gormenghast (A TV project he is working on), they said it couldn't be done. All praise to Peter Jackson. Now it will be done'

To read the rest of the article, in which Lee talks of his role in Gormenghast, get the latest issue of SFX!

SFX Magazine, November 1999

News for Oct. 04, 1999

Barliman's Tolkien Trivia Contest Winners

10/04/99, 8:21 pm EST - Corvar

The Barliman's Tolkien Trivia Contest is done. The winners are as follows:

1) Gwaihir 484 Sat Oct 2, 1999
2) JonCannon 477.42 Mon Oct 4, 1999
3) Aragorn283 475.24 Thu Sep 30, 1999
4) JonCannon 475.2 Mon Oct 4, 1999

They will be contacted on how to recieve their prizes. It has been a great contest with great participation. Thanks to everyone who made this possible.

A special thanks to AllPosters.com, and Houghton Mifflin for the prizes.

Full Crew List Online Now!

10/04/99, 8:07 pm EST - Xoanon

After some serious reconstruction surgery I'm back to type up this update! Thanks to Tehanu, the complete crew list has now become a reality, and we have it!

From Stuntmen to Catering, Horse Wrangling to 3D Animation it's all here!

Thanks to Tehanu and NZ Onfilm

A note to other websites: Please do not copy and paste the list, it took 4 hours for me to type. Simply link to the page, thanks :)

See the COMPLETE crew page here now!

Stuntlords!

10/04/99, 7:05 pm EST - Tehanu

Tehanu's had a look at a great article in the October OnfilmNZ magazine. David Gapes interviewed the stunt co-ordinator for "The Lord of the Rings" and he had a lot to say. It makes fascinating reading. If you're not in NZ and can't buy your own copy of the magazine, (which also has the crew list) check out Tehanu's article "Stuntlords" in the "Features" section.
Yes we know we promised you the cast list, precioussss. But this is pretty good stuff too.

Full Crew List Available!! - Updated!

10/04/99, 4:11 pm EST - Xoanon

Well, not just yet, while the entire 400+ crew list is right before my eyes, it will take time to type it all down. But here is a sneek peek at a few key jobs that are of some interest!

1st Assistant Director - Caro Cunningham

Previously worked on 'No Escape'

2nd Assistant Director - Guy Campbell

Prevously worked on 'Moby Dick'

3rd Assistant Director - Jo Pearse

Director of Photography (Cameraman) Andrew Lensnie

Previously worked on 'The Delinquents', 'Babe', 'Two if by Sea', 'Babe: Pig in the City'
Updated


As I get more of this stuff down on the computer, I keep stumbling opon some jobs I'd DIE for!

Horsemaster - Harley Young

Horse Wrangler/Falling Horse Stunt Person - Adam Slade

Location Scouts - Dave Comer, Brian Pratt

Make up Designer - Peter Owen

Previously Worked on 'The Portrait of a Lady' 'The Birdcage'

Chief make-up - Jose Perez

Physical Effects Supervisor - Steve Ingram

On Set Physical FX Co-Ordinator - Richie Cordobes, Blair Foord

Physical FX Technicians -Darryl Richards, Dave Booth, Dean Powell, Geoff Curtis, John Mowat, Carl Chisolm, Peter Zivkovic, Scott Harens, Steven Norfolk, Warick Yin

There is so much more (400+ names) all the names, plus their bios (thanks to IMDB) will be online shortly!

News for Oct. 03, 1999

Last day for Barliman's Tolkien Trivia Contest

10/03/99, 11:55 pm EST - Corvar

Monday 10/4/99 at 7PM EST the Barliman's Tolkien Trivia Contest will end. You can see the available prizes and read the rules at our Contests page. And you can go play Barliman's Tolkien Trivia Contest with a chance to win here.

Media Watch: (again) Details Magazine

10/03/99, 11:55 pm EST - Xoanon

Alvie send along this info, thanks to Jincey for the heads up!

You ever hear of Details Magazine? It has a section called Hot/Cold Meter saying what is currently hot and what is not. On the hot side it has this part that says *quote*:

HOBBIT-FEVER-CATCH IT

Jar Jar vs Gollum, with memories of the Phantom Menace fading fast, the geek rumor mill has reason to go on: Peter Jackson's LOTR is now in production. Will Gollum be the media's next computer-generated punching bag? Oh, my precious, no!

This can be found on page 103 of the October issue of Details Magazine.

WETA is recruiting for LOTR like mad!

10/03/99, 7:25 am EST - Tehanu

WETA effects hardly needs me to do their advertising for them, but some of you might be interested to go and look at their website (www.wetafx.co.nz) They are recruiting armourers,sculptors, designers, prosthetics technicians, all sorts of digital effects experts, even plain old software engineers, and dozens of other jobs too numerous to mention. So if that's your dream and you want to follow it, go have a look.
Maybe now I won't get people asking ME how they can get a job with WETA.

News for Oct. 02, 1999

Media Watch: Ethan & Uma on E!

10/02/99, 11:31 am EST - Xoanon

Ringer spy 'Telos' sent me this bit of news. While I can guarrantee that it's not acurate about Uma being cast, it's interesting to see the mainstream media turning towards Middle-earth.

This morning while watching E! (The Entertainment channel) a show confirmed that not only Ethan Hawke but his "co-star/girlfriend" Uma Thurman will BOTH be appearing in LotR at the end of the first movie (and in the subsequent sequels).

Telos

Media Watch: Liv on Leno

10/02/99, 1:11 am EST - Xoanon

Liv Tyler (Arwen) will be on 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno' on Thursday, October 7th. No doubt she is promoting her latest film Plunkett & MaCleane.

Liv plays Lady Rebecca, who is 'beautiful and rebellious' according to the tedious and totally out of place film website (sorry, 210 in the am!).

Be sure to check it out!

Tonight Show: 11:30pm ET NBC
Do you have any bit of news about LOTR or any of the cast members? Send it along!

Thanks to Gandalf for the tip!

News for Oct. 01, 1999

The Starlit Jewel

10/01/99, 3:04 pm EST - Xoanon

Starlit Jewel


Xoanon here,

Well, I learned this news a while ago, but didn't think there was a need to post it up. Then I started getting a million letters from you guys saying how disheartening it was to hear about the death of Marion Zimmer Bradley, So here we go.

On September 25, Marion Zimmer Bradley, author of 'THE MISTS OF AVALON' died of a heart attack. While I have never read her books, I'm told they are one of the greatest works of modern fantasy.

I recently discovered that she had plans to release an album of LOTR songs called 'The Starlit Jewel'. The company involved 'Flowinglass Music' recently sent me some info regarding the album.

Some of the artists involved are:

Margaret Davis, Kristoph Klover and Deirdre McCarthy.

Songs included will be:

Elvish Lullabye - Hobbit: ch. 19
Song of the Eldar in Exile- Bk. I: ch. 3
Hobbit Walking Song - Hobbit: ch. 19
Merry Old Inn - Bk. I: ch. 9
Children's Song From Dale - Hobbit: ch. 10
In Western Lands - Bk. VI: ch. 1
Galadriel's Lament - Bk. II: ch. 8
Troll Song - Bk. I: ch. 12
Lament for Boromir - Bk. III: ch. 1
Bath Song - Bk. I: ch. 5
In Durin's Day - Bk. II: ch. 4
Lay of Nimrodel - Bk. II: ch. 6
When Spring Unfolds - Bk. III: ch. 4

Visit the Flowing Glass Web Site.

3 more days to enter!

10/01/99, 11:24 am EST - Calisuri

Hey folks, don't forget to enter the Barliman's Trivia Contest! The contest ends Monday at 8pm ET!

See the rules in our contest section, or take the trivia challenge now in Green Books

News for Sep. 30, 1999

Another Soundtrack Myth

9/30/99, 3:28 pm EST - Tehanu

There's been some wishful thinking around the Web that NZ band The Muttonbirds were going to be involved in the LOTR soundtrack. (Now, remember PJ saying he was tending towards using an orchestral score for the film? I contacted The Muttonbirds' manager and he said this:

'yes i am the manager of the mutton birds i can tell you that neither don or the mutton birds or preparing music for peter jacksons movie of lotr'

Their manager is a Tolkien fan, I gather, and hastens to add that they wouldn't turn it down if it was offered.

Connery: 'Just A Rumor'

9/30/99, 12:18 pm EST - Xoanon

Sean Connery in NZ? Not likely says his agent's office.
TheOneRing.net placed a call to Sean Connery's representatives asking that exact question:

'It's just a rumor, he is nowhere near NZ'

When asked if they are talking

'Not that I know of'

Can we finally put this rumor to rest?! I know it was us who first reported all these Sean Connery sightings again. But this seems to be a flat out 'no' to any of that :(

More on this Digi Stuff

9/30/99, 8:58 am EST - Xoanon

Told you I don't know much about computers and the like. Super Ringer spy that I cannot even name for sake of his life! (but remember thoe bits of the script and Character breakdowns? this is the dude). He sent me some info regarding what will be done with LOTR after it's in the can, take a gander:

Regarding the item about LOTR being shot digitally... The trilogy is being originated on film, shooting in what is called "Super 35", a non-anamorphic method of capturing a widescreen image, by utilizing the entire width of the 35mm film frame from sprocket hole to sprocket hole, while cropping vertically to produce a 1:2.35 image ratio. All of James Cameron's widescreen films have been shot in Super 35, for example.

I guess the confusion with the article came from the massive amount of footage that will be digitized and processed in the CG realm. However, production footage isn't being shot on electronic digital cameras; as George Lucas is planning to do with the next installment of the "Star Wars" prequel (and as he semi-successfully experimented with for a single sequence in "Phantom Menace", in the night time scene when Qui-Gon test Anakin's blood for midiclorian content).

Even though 80 computer artists working sounds like a handful to manage, this is entirely routine on all contemporary major effects and animated films at the various effects houses and studios where they are produced(Pixar, ILM, Dream Quest, Dreamworks, Disney Animation, Digital Domain, Pacific Data Images, etc.) and Weta should do very well.


Cool tech stuff, thanks!

Now What?

9/30/99, 8:53 am EST - Xoanon

This, I cannot believe, but Ringer spy Paul C claims that he heard this on the local radio. I will place another call with Seans camp to clear this all up later today. For now, read this:

Further to the report from Keef and Kaz, I heard on local radio this morning (Radio Forth in Edinburgh) that Connery had signed to play the part of 'Witchking'(?), the leader of a vast, evil, undead army. Whether this makes him the ghost king Aragorn subborns prior to the final battles I don't know, but that was the report I heard this morning.

Confirmation or denial will be sorted out soon.

Do you have something to send me? See your name on the site! Click here to send me a scoop!

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