The One-hundred and seventh Roving Ranger
Have a look at all Roving Rangers published so far. (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)
Events & Shows
You can have a quick look at scenes (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) from the Chicago version of the musical. [TheaterMania] | See also this Chicago Tribune review (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [region-walled]
The Exeter Phoenix and Exeter City of Literature will celebrate both book and films on August 17 (Öffnet in neuem Fenster). And you can still vote (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) for The Lord of the Rings as Exeter‘s favourite book.
A number of Tolkien-inspired events (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) are up with the Story Museum in Oxford.
The Marquette exhibition and research project Affirmation/Transformation: Fandom Created (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) is on-going at the Haggerty Museum and online.
You can now have a look at this year’s Oxonmoot’s schedue with Sched.com (Öffnet in neuem Fenster).
An exhibition on Sir Gawain & the Green Knight (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) is on in Wirral, UK. (h/t Tim Bolton (Öffnet in neuem Fenster))
For all events (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) check out the International Tolkien Fellowship (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [FB] and the Tolkien Guide Calendar (Öffnet in neuem Fenster).
Scholarship & Fandom
Women In Middle-earth SDCC 2024 Panel ft EA, Magic, Weta, Middle-earth Ent & more [Youtube (Öffnet in neuem Fenster); TORn]
The 2024 Mythopoeic Awards (Öffnet in neuem Fenster). [File 770]
Jeff LaSala has Van Helsing and The Rings of Power (Öffnet in neuem Fenster).
A lovely chat with collector Trotter (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) via Tolkien Talk [Youtube]
The latest version of cite.tolkien (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) is out.
A review of the Aubusson exhibition catalogue (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [in French; Tolkiendil]
Spanish football players have been known to be Tolkien fans; there is now another (Öffnet in neuem Fenster). [Twitter]
Tolkien scholar Douglas A. Anderson spotted one of his books (Öffnet in neuem Fenster).
Bulgarian LotR translator Lyubomir Nikolov has passed away. (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)
Given the political situation in the US right now and the fact that ‘Tolkienian rhetorics’ have become part of everyday political interaction here are a few links.
MAGA misunderstands the fellowship of the ring (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [New York Times] | Reaction No Surprise, David French Completely Botches J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord Of The Rings (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [Federalist]
Whose ‘Lord of the Rings’ is it anyway? (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [Boston Globe]; If ‘The Lord of the Rings’ Is a Cautionary Tale, It Was Lost on JD Vance (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [New York Times; paywall]
Peter Thiel’s influence over a network of Lord of the Rings-inspired companies (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)[Disconnect Blog]; JD Vance’s investments reveal potential contradictions with his political persona (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [Guardian]
Franchise and Merchandise
Cate Blanchett Says ‘No One Got Paid Anything’ to Film ‘Lord of the Rings’: ‘I Basically Got Free Sandwiches’ (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)[Variety; Youtube] Please note: This is NOT a surprise, see Kristin Thompson’s ”The Frodo Franchise”.
New Edition of Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game Coming Soon (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [Warhammer Community]
A LotR:RoP featurette (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) makes the - certainly not new - connection between heavy metal and the series. [Youtube]
Lord of the Rings: Online takes you on a stroll through Mordor (Öffnet in neuem Fenster). [Youtube]
Interested in buying Tolkien items? Have a look at some amazing specimens with Bayliss Rare Books (Öffnet in neuem Fenster).
This is one of the most hilarious examples (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)for auction site abuse you will ever find. PSA: Please inform yourself on reliable sites like TolkienGuide.com (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) whether the things you want you buy are genuine.
Inter alia & Back in the Day
Ellen Kushner noted in her recent newsletter:
I Bear Witness to an Ancient Time. It is the time that Fantasy as a Genre was invented, actually. Before LOTR had become a massive enough hit to engender an entire commercial genre of fantasy novels for Not Children, virtually all contemporary fantasy was published as Children’s Books. [Substack (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)]
Is romantasy killing Australian literature? (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)[Arts Hub]
Princess Leia’s Star Wars gold bikini fetches $175,000 at auction (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)[Guardian]
If you feel like using legendary WordStar to write your books - it’s online now (Öffnet in neuem Fenster).
Tiny arm bone unlocks mystery of Indonesia's extinct 'Hobbit' people (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [Reuters]
The Micro Golden Age of Mid Eighties Fantasy Films (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [Arts’ Desk]
‘Inside Out 2’ is a blockbuster. It doesn’t solve the animation business’ biggest problem (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [L.A. Times]
Ansible 445 has been published (Öffnet in neuem Fenster).
A new game with an interesting background - Tales from the Mabinogion (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) - has a reveal trailer. The BBC and others are using a supposed Tolkien link, i.e. Sindarin, in reporting.
D23 2024: First Look at Skeleton Crew, News on The Mandalorian and Grogu, and More (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) [Star Wars]
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