The Eightieth Roving Ranger
Life and Works
Feb 11, 2008. The Tolkien Estate (Opens in a new window), The Tolkien Trust (Opens in a new window) and HarperCollins (Opens in a new window) file a lawsuit (Opens in a new window) against New Line Cinema (Opens in a new window) and the Saul Zaentz Company (Opens in a new window).
Feb 14, 1896. Five-year-old J.R.R. Tolkien (Opens in a new window) wrote a letter (Opens in a new window) to Arthur Tolkien (Opens in a new window).
Feb 15, 1896. Arthur Tolkien (Opens in a new window), Tolkien's father, dies.
Feb 16, 1974. On the advice of Christopher Tolkien (Opens in a new window), The Tolkien Society (Opens in a new window) appoints J.R.R. Tolkien as Honorary President in perpetuo.
Feb 18, 1937. "Knocking at the Door (Opens in a new window)" is published in The Oxford Magazine.
Feb 20, 1938. Tolkien's answer (Opens in a new window) to questions from the Observer is published (#25 in Letters.)
Feb 23, 1961. Tolkien’s reaction (Opens in a new window) to Åke Ohlmarks' "nonsense", i.e., the Swedish LotR translation.
Research has shown that Tolkien quite often took the time out of a busy schedule to write to his avid readers and in a recent BBC Repair Shop (Opens in a new window) episode this again became clear. [BBC]
Events & Shows
The world's longest-running fan-based event for the Middle-earth CCG and LotR LCG, the Lure of Middle-earth (Opens in a new window) at Castle Stahleck in Germany, has some amazing special guests. [Feb 24-26, '23]
A Q&A with illustrator Liz Danforth is happening on Feb 10, 06:00 PM UTC+1 [use this Zoom link (Opens in a new window)]
BBC Evil Genius - a show you may love or dislike but they certainly did J.R.R. Tolkien (Opens in a new window)! [You have been warned! 😅]
The First Stage (Opens in a new window) rendition of The Hobbit in Milwaukee does sound intriguing. Some production photos (Opens in a new window) are available. [Broadway World]
(...) Frank will direct the 90-minute Greg Banks adaptation of The Hobbit with only five actors in a “a fast moving, highly theatrical show that invites audiences into the journey in a simultaneously surprising yet familiar way" (...)
Tolkien’s Middle-earth will not be conjured through CGI or techno-flash of any sort but will be set inside the war-ravaged ruins of a library.
Lewis & Tolkien, of Wardrobes & Rings is coming to Erskine College (Opens in a new window) on March 3rd.
On a similar note, The Most Reluctant Convert (Opens in a new window) is now available on several streaming platforms. See the official website (Opens in a new window) for more info on this C.S. Lewis 'biopic'.
The BBC Mastermind episode #20 (Opens in a new window) of the 2022/2023 season has The Lord of the Rings as a subject. [BBC, paywall]
Scholarship and Fandom
If you happen to be in the US, US dependencies or Canada you should check out Princeton University Press's sale (until Feb 14) to get yourself a copy (Opens in a new window) of John Garth's excellent The Worlds of J.R.R. Tolkien.
John Garth is always worth a listen (Opens in a new window) - another time as a guest with the Prancing Pony Podcast.
John D. Rateliff gives some insights on a new biography of Warnie Lewis (Opens in a new window).
Calling Robert Plan of Led Zeppelin (Opens in a new window) part of the fandom may sound a little odd but when asked about his choice of song for Nerdiest song for Tolkien lovers (Opens in a new window) the answer is not that surprising. [Vulture]
The German Tolkien Society is now offering an online regulars' table (Opens in a new window).
If you know of other similar online meetups from Tolkien societies, smials, regulars' tables please do leave me a note in the comments below to this edition of the Roving Ranger.
What to look forward to in 2023 (Opens in a new window) if you like Tolkien and all things Tolkienian [TheTolkienist.com]
Franchise and Merchandise
The most streamed shows of 2022 (Opens in a new window) - overall/ Original Streaming Service Series. [NME]
Tourism in Middle-earth is a billion dollar industry and it is growing - in Wales additional 'hobbit homes (Opens in a new window)' have been approved for Hobbit Huts Wales (Opens in a new window). [BBC]
The One Hobbit Home to Rule Them All is the film set of Hobbiton, of course, and it is now available for booking via AirBnB (Opens in a new window).
Brighton bin firm (Opens in a new window) told by Middle-earth Enterprises (Opens in a new window) to change name. [BBC]
If you feel like reading up a little on Amazon as a company Amazon's Endgame (Opens in a new window) will offer some insights. [American Prospect]
It’s Time for Amazon to Embrace the Obvious (Opens in a new window) offers additional insights into possible future ventures. [Variety]
Kiwi Stephen Gallagher (Opens in a new window) has been confirmed as composer (Opens in a new window) to Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim.
Trevor Hogg offers insights on The Massive Creative Fellowship Behind RoP (Opens in a new window) [AWN]
Midwinter in Middle-earth (Opens in a new window) sale is happening with Lego and Shadows' titles until Feb 13. [Steam]
German satire magazine Postillon (Opens in a new window) is... weird.
Someone from Saxony travels to Middle-earth on vacation plane. [dialectal pun]
Inter alia & Back in the day
Kelly Link in Praise of Ursula K. Le Guin (Opens in a new window) on the new edition of The Lathe of Heaven (Opens in a new window). [LitHub]
A very lovely find on Spock: Star Trek: Leonard Nimoy explains How Television Works 1977 (Opens in a new window). [Youtube]
Avatar: The Way of Water is breaking records (Opens in a new window) - and at the same time shows the increasing dangers of blockbuster film-making. [Forbes]
NPR has an interview with Black Nerds Create (Opens in a new window) on Black Magical History Month (Opens in a new window); do also have a listen to Tolkien Black Folks (Opens in a new window) and their episodes on the recent series.
David L. Ulin has a bone to pick with estimated reading times (Opens in a new window) on the internet. [L.A. Times]
As usual it is better to read things directly from the horse's mouth instead of some gossip outlets: GRRM has posted a few things on his blog (Opens in a new window), including a new Patreon venture.
John Scalzi is rather hilarious in reminding people 'on ze webz' about his Refresher Course On What I’m Obliged to Write About (Opens in a new window).
WorldCon 2024 at Glasgow has delivered PR #1 (Opens in a new window), including a look back at WorldCon 1957, the first - iirc - to have a Tolkien-inspired cosplay, a Nazgûl.
Ansible 427 (Opens in a new window) has been published.
Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro respectively have suffered from their D&D plans (Opens in a new window) which have now been revoked.
What TikTok Has Done To Internet Videos (Opens in a new window) has me wholeheartedly agreeing. [Ryan George]
The Tolkien Quiz Book (Opens in a new window) was originally published Feb 13, 19179.
According to German law I have to infom you all links to enterprises, artists, products etc. are [unpaid advertisements.]
If you are interested in my other Tolkien-related work please have a look:
The Tolkienist Blog (Opens in a new window) : Facebook (Opens in a new window) : Twitter (Opens in a new window) : Instagram (Opens in a new window) : Tolkien-Discord (Opens in a new window) [de/en]
