A "The Hobbit" Movie Review

On Sunday December 23rd, I got to see the new movie "The Hobbit" by Peter Jackson at the Arundel Mills Mall Cinemax Theater. I'd been looking forward for some time to this movie. I expected it to be excellent and, it was. The movie is taken from the book "The Hobbit" written by J. R. R. Tolkien in 1938 though the movie does have some changes from the book.

For starters, the character of Thorin Oakenshield is developed far more. We see him as a brave and inspirational leader determined to reclaim his lost home. Also, we learn more about the Necromancer who turns out to be Sauron who hides in the fortress of Dol Guldur. Another change is the introduction of Radagast the Brown who is living what would become Mirkwood. It's Radagast that discovers the Necromancer and informs Gandalf of it. Another change is the orc Azog. Azog was the orc chieftain living in Moria who started the Dwarf-Orc war that culminated in the battle of Azanulbizar. We see the battle in the movie BUT, the battle takes a different turn from what Tolkien told. Tolkien has Azog killed in the battle by a young (32 years old) Dain Ironfoot. In the movie, Jackson has Thorin cut off part of Azog's arm and, Thorin assumes he dies of his wounds. Azog doesn't and hunts down Thorin and his company with the intent of killing Thorin.

None of these changes hurt the movie and may enhance it. I suspect we'll end up caring more for the character Thorin and his death scene with Bilbo in the 3rd movie will be far more poignant. Also, the movie helps tie in some of what we see in Lord of the Rings. We see where Gandalf got the Elven blade Glamdring and the petrified trolls we see briefly in The Fellowship of the Ring.

Concerning the 3D technology, I saw the movie in XD 3D. I didn't feel any nausea. I did notice that the images were sharper and, I think the colors were brighter. Those helped make the breathtaking outdoors scenes even more stunning. There are scenes that will knock your socks off in that way.

The movie itself is nearly 3 hours long but, it never drags. At the end, I found it hard to believe I had sat for nearly 3 hours in the theater. It didn't feel that long. There is lots of action with some humor thrown in to keep the movie from being too dark. We start to see Bilbo develop discover things about himself he doesn't know are there though I think Gandalf can see them. The movie ends at a good point with the band looking across Mirkwood to the far distant Lonely Mountain which is their ultimate objective. Jackson pans into the mountain and gives us a look inside where we see a huge eye open in a tantalizing glimpse of Smaug.

Overall, I'd definitely recommend this movie. Any fan of Middle Earth should be delighted with it. It is so believable and well done. Howard Shore does another fine job score wise with the movie which helps create the appropriate moods. New Zealand itself shows its best in the movie and will tempt lots of people to visit this stunning country. Hopefully, by now, the theaters won't be so jam packed though the movie still pulled in over $35 million this past weekend. It wasn't when I saw the movie though I attended the 11:35 a.m. showing. Folks may be even tempted to see it a 2nd time as I am because, there is a LOT to take in. Happy viewing all!

John Howe Autographed Books

Yesterday, I received my latest order from WETA, the folks that create the sets for the Hobbit movies as well as the costumes, swords, armor and special effects. WETA does some incredible stuff. My order consisted of 3 books of maps that John Howe illustrated - The Road Goes Ever On and On which contains the map of Tolkien's Middle Earth, West of The Mountains East of the Sea which contains a map of Tolkien's Beleriand (a land that existed in Middle Earth's 1st Age) and There and Back Again which contains the map for Tolkien's The Hobbit. All 3 books were autographed by John Howe. Howe and Alan Lee are the 2 artists that have really defined how people envision Tolkien's Middle Earth. When Peter Jackson decided to do the Lord of the Rings movies, he hired these 2 artists to help him show what Middle Earth looked like. I think you can say that Jackson's vision of Middle Earth really is what Howe and Lee imagined it as. Howe is the artist who created the image of Bilbo Baggin's home at Bag End. The rooms that viewers saw of it in the Lord of the Rings movies and will see in The Hobbit movies were created by Howe. His vision of Middle Earth is beautiful and stunning. I wish I could afford to buy a work of his of Middle Earth. I remember seeing one at the Lord of the Rings film exhibition in Indianapolis, Indiana many years ago. It was gorgeous. Unfortunately, it had an $800 plus price tag with it which terrified my wallet. For now, I'll content myself with these 3 neat books. FYI, WETA sells the 3 book set for approximately $84 U.S. Shipping from their New Zealand warehouse was an additional $17.88 U.S. You'll earn 8 WETA dollars with your purchase. The WETA dollars are a nice bonus from shopping at WETA. They can save you real money. I used 32 of mine which knocked the price down to approximately $51 U.S. Remember too, if you spend $500 in 1 year at WETA, they upgrade you to Gold level which gets you an extra 10% more WETA dollars getting you an even better deal. Happy reading all!

Hobbit Update

If you haven't heard already, Guillermo del Toro was officially signed to direct The Hobbit and the link movie between it and The Lord of the Rings. Here is the press report on the news: http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4496833a1870.html. Peter Jackson will be producing both movies. As Jackson used multiple directors during the Lord of the Rings trilogy, I suspect he'll still have a big part in the films so they should have the same realism and magic that was seen in the Lord of the Rings movies. Also, WETA will be responsible for all the special effects and costumes so there'll be continuity there. Sir Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis have signed up to do their parts in the movies again. (Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4501827a1870.html) McKellen was an awesome Gandalf and it'll be great to see him play the role again. My only complaint about this news is how long I'm going to have to wait for the movies to come out. I believe The Hobbit will come out in 2011 and the follow-on movie in 2012. That's a LONG time. Sigh. Oh well, at least it'll happen. I can't wait to experience the magic of Middle-Earth again.

Hobbit Update

If you haven't heard already, Guillermo del Toro was officially signed to direct the movie version (there was a cartoon version) of The Hobbit and a movie that will link it to the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Here is the link to the press article about it: http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4496833a1870.html. Peter Jackson will still produce the two movies. Considering that Jackson used multiple directors when he made the Lord of the Rings trilogy, I think the two movies will still have Jackson's imprint on them. Also, Jackson will be very involved in the two scripts I suspect. WETA will be doing the special effects for the movies so there'll be continuity there as well. My only complaint about this news is how LONG I'll have to wait to see the movies. I suspect The Hobbit won't be released until 2011. That's a long time. Still, it'll be awesome to get to experience the magic of Middle-Earth again. I continue to marvel over the Lord of the Rings films. They were so well made. The Hobbit should be equally great.

Candy Minas Tirith

Today, I read about this initially on the Council of Elrond webpage. It seems some very creative people with time on their hands (7 days worth) created a candy Minas Tirith. I checked the pictures of it and it is very impressive. Take a look at it yourself at this link Candy Minas Tirith.

Hobbit Update

This is a bit late but, I figured I'd post it any way. If you haven't heard, Peter Jackson settled his lawsuite with New Line Films out of court. He also signed a deal with New Line and MGM to produce "The Hobbit" and a film linking it to the Lord of the Rings films. Folks from New Line have stated that it is Jackson's project. One big question a number of people are asking is who is going to direct "The Hobbit." Jackson's schedule is very full right now. He finished shooting the movie "Lovely Bones" and he committed to making the first Tintin movie. MGM announced a release date for "The Hobbit" of Christmas 2010 with the follow-up movie coming out a year later. Jackson reportedly plans to shoot both movies in sequence one after another.

One potential big problem for "The Hobbit" is the screenwriter's strike. This needs to be resolved so that they can come up with a script for "The Hobbit." Another question is where are they going to shoot it. Supposedly, this is up in the air too though I can't imagine them shooting it any where else but New Zealand. One advantage they'll have if they shoot it in New Zealand is they'll be able to re-use the area outside Mata Mata where they shot the Hobbiton scenes. While they removed a lot the sets from this location, the Hobbit holes are still there. It shouldn't take them that long to make them usable again. Also, they could re-use the sets they had for Bilbo's home at Bag End.

I'm delighted that Jackson will be producing and hopefully directing "The Hobbit." It'll be awesome to return to Middle-Earth again. I still watch parts of the Lord of the Rings films and marvel at what Jackson did. They are film making at its best. Bring on Christmas of 2010. I definitely have a present to look forward to that year. Cheers all!

The Hobbit

Entertainment Weekly within the past week rehashed a lot of information on what has been going on between Peter Jackson and Bob Shaye, the CEO of New Line Films. The two of them have been having a battle over New Line's books. Jackson claims he found discrepancies in the books from the film The Fellowship of the Ring and wants to see the books for the other movies. Shaye has refused. The bad feelings got so bad that Shaye said Jackson would never work for New Line again and was off The Hobbit. Now, things may be changing. Jackson's lawsuit in finally making progress in court. New Line was fine $125,000 for failing to comply with orders by the judge. New Line could've appealed the ruling. Surprisingly, New Line has said it will accept the ruling. This is one of the indications that something of a thaw is happening and there may be hope for a Jackson version of The Hobbit.

Entertainment Weekly has a webpage where readers of the article could voice their opinions on whether Jackson should make The Hobbit or not. Based on what fans have been saying, there is overwhelming desire for a Peter Jackson version of The Hobbit. I have to concur with them. Jackson's vision of Middle-Earth is stunning. I very much want to see him make the movie. If anyone else makes the film, people are going to have a hard time with that director's vision of Middle-Earth. There won't be the continuity and it's doubtful that WETA Workshop and WETA FX would do all the props, costumes and special effects. WETA did an absolutely phenomenal job with all of those. I've bought a number of the Lord of the Rings swords and their designs are stunning. Any other shop would be very hard pressed to equal their work. Considering the guaranteed blockbuster that New Line would have on its hands, it would behoove New Line to settle with Jackson so they can finally The Hobbit and fulfill the wishes of fans all over the world.

Gandalf Staff

One of the items that I had in my Lord of the Rings collection was a Gandalf Staff by United Cutlery. It's a replica of the white staff that Gandalf uses after he returns in The Two Towers. It's a very pretty staff and I was delighted to own one.

While working at Medieval Times, I took various items of my collection in to show them to my co-workers. They were equally appreciative of the beauty or the coolness factor of getting to see some of the items. Accidents happen and my Gandalf Staff was damaged. It was accidentally knocked over and broken by Mike Vertelli, the head of Sound & Lighting. He very kindly offered to replace it. I wasn't worried about the matter and didn't press him to replace it. Then, I had my falling out with him over the castle guard thing and the staff was never replaced. Part of that was because I didn't care to talk to him after the way he told me when my last day was at the castle.

So, I needed to replace my broken Gandalf Staff. Things have changed since I bought that one. United Cutlery went bankrupt and lost the license to make any of the Lord of the Rings items. Once something is no longer made, the price tends to go up on it and that was the case concerning the Gandalf Staff. I went in search of one on Ebay, found one and managed to win the bid on one. It ended up costing me $50 more than my first one. Oh well. I knew it wouldn't be cheap but, I wanted one for my collection. Now, my only concern is getting it before I leave for my Scandanavia trip. I emailed the seller and told him when it had to arrive by. If it can't arrive by that date, I asked him to hold it till I return. We'll see what happens there.

New Line's Greed Strikes Again

New Line Films, the folks who produced the Lord of the Rings films, has struck again. A number of lesser known actors and actresses who had minor roles in the Lord of the Rings movies are suing them over royalty issues. It seems that New Line has made a good bit of money on lunch boxes, posters, toys, etc. but claims that after all the various charges are made, they don't owe the actors and actresses anything. In one case, New Line reportedly took in over $9,000,000 from the marketing of the Gil-Galad character alone but, after all the various charges were taken out, it supposedly posted a $400,000 loss! Something doesn't sound right here. Plus, with the way they've treated Peter Jackson, New Line is showing itself to be one of the greediest film companies out there. I definitely don't plan to see any of their movies. Also, I hope they lose the film rights to The Hobbit. If they do, and Jackson finally makes the film, they'll have mud on their face for their greed as the film will be a monster hit. Bob Shaye, the CEO of New Line, has shown himself to be a conceited jerk. Best of luck to the actors and actresses in their lawsuit with New Line.

Source of information: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10443373&ref=emailfriend

The Hobbit Update

I saw on http://www.rottentomatoes.com the latest comments made by director Sam Raimi about making The Hobbit. Raimi has been rumored to New Line Films choice to direct the movie since their falling out with Peter Jackson. According to the Rotten Tomatoes site, Raimi said in an upcoming interview in Entertainment Weekly that if Jackson didn't want to do the film and Bob Shaye (CEO of New Line Films) did and both men gave him their blessing, he'd be happy to make the film. Considering that these two men can't agree on any thing now a days, Raimi would do well to work on other potential projects in my opinion.

Honestly, I don't think The Hobbit will be made until New Line Films loses the rights to it. Saul Zaentz owns the rights permenently from what I understand. He sold them for a set time to New Line. New Line must make The Hobbit in that set time frame. If New Line fails to make the film in that time frame, poo on them. Once that time frame is up, the rights revert back to Zaentz. Zaentz has supposedly shown sympathy to Jackson's beef with New Line and it sounds like he'd be willing to do a deal with Jackson. For your information, Jackson claims there were accounting irregularities with the Lord of the Rings and he wants an independent audit of the movies. New Line has refused to do this and accused Jackson of being greedy i.e. we paid you a quarter of a billion dollars and now you want more. Bob Shaye has said for effective purposes that he has blacklisted Jackson from making The Hobbit. This is where Raimi comes in. It has been rumored that Raimi was approached by New Line about making the film. Considering the enormous differences between Shaye and Jackson, it is extremely unlikely Jackson will make The Hobbit for New Line Films. I've heard the rights will go back to Zaentz sometime in 2009. New Line must start production on the film before then. I haven't heard any word that New Line even has a completed script for the film. If they haven't, the chances of them making the film are very remote.

It is annoying that I'll have to wait till probably 2010 or later to see The Hobbit made by Peter Jackson. Hopefully, Sir Ian McKellen will still be alive then to play the role of Gandalf then. Also, I hope Hugo Weaving will be able to play Elrond. Barring that, none of the other actors actresses will need to return. You can point out there is Sir Ian Holm who played Bilbo but, in my opinion, he'll be way to old to play Bilbo. I think they'll have to get someone else for the part.

If you need a Tolkien fix, there is some good news. Christopher Tolkien finished putting together what will be the last work ever done by J. R. R. Tolkien. Over the years, Tolkien wrote a number of stories about the First Age. The First Age was age when the elves first appeared and created a number of kingdoms. It is also the age when one of the Gods of Middle-Earth rebelled against the supreme God Iluvatar and carved out his own kingdom in Middle-Earth. The novel "Children of Hurin" tells of one man who fought against the dark God and a terrible curse the God laid on him. By all accounts, it isn't a very cheery story. Still, it is previously unpublished Tolkien. The novel also has some outstanding illustrations by Alan Lee who worked on the Lord of the Rings movies and has a number of outstanding illustrations for The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. It's in book stores now if you're interested. Cheers all!

Elessar's Crown Review

Elessar's Crown

Recently, I decided to buy the Noble Collection's Elessar's Crown. The crown is supposed to be an exact replica of the one used in the movie "The Return of the King." I found the crown I ordered to be very solidly made and very beautiful. It very much looks like the one they used in the movie and according to the Noble Collection, it's overlaid with silver and 24K gold. The crown has the gull wings which represents the seafaring history of the men of Numenor (Numenor was an island kingdom) with the tree which was descended from the great tree Telperion which Numenor had a seedling from and which we see in the movie.

 

The collection also supplies a nice stand for the crown. The stand has a nice dark brown wooden varnished base with images of the tree printed on each of its four sides. The flat area where the crown is placed with covered with royal blue felt and has a bronze plaque stating that this is the Crown of Aragorn which I think is a little gaffe on the part of the Noble Collection. To protect the crown, a clear plastic cover is provided that slips over the crown and fits well into the wooden base. The stand really complements the crown.

Overall, the crown is wonderfully made and would be an excellent addition to any Lord of the Rings fan's collection. The stand that comes with the crown enhances the crown. It does an outstanding job of displaying it. I would definitely recommend this product to any Lord of the Rings fan.

Lord of the Rings Update

I found out about two interesting webpages. The first has five pictures of the new Lord of the Rings film exhibition in Wellington, New Zealand. What is particularly noteworthy about the pictures are the ones showing the Umbarian corsair ship and the model of Minas Tirith. It would be so cool to get to see those models close up. The link to the page having the pictures is: http://www.theonering.net/scrapbook/group/1888/. 

The second noteworthy webpage is one that has a short interview with Sir Ian McKellen. McKellen reveals in the interview that he initially thought Peter Jackson was over his head with the Lord of the Rings movies and he expected them to flop spectacularly. This page can be found at: http://breakingnews.iol.ie/entertainment/story.asp?j=179288700&p=y79z894x6.

UPDATE 12/30/12: The t-shirts mentioned in this last paragraph aren't available anymore from Sir Ian McKellen's website sadly. Nor did my order go through for reasons I forget now.

Lastly, I finally ordered two Gandalf t-shirts. Sir Ian is something of an artist and did a self portrait of himself as Gandalf. This drawing was made into something that could be pressed onto a t-shirt. I thought it was neat looking plus I really liked the fact that McKellen was willing to answer questions from fans about the Lord of the Rings movies. Today was the day I finally got around to ordering a couple of the t-shirts. I plan to keep one for myself and put one in the family Christmas grab bag. The Christmas grab bag is a family tradition whereby everyone buys stuff during the year for the grab bag. On Christmas day, when we get together, we dump all the stuff into the bag. Then, the bag is dumped out and the fun begins. Each member of the family gets a turn taking something from the pile. It gets interesting when there is an item that two or more members of the family want. If you might be interested in the t-shirt, it can be found at: (DELETED).

The Lord of the Rings Sketchbook

I believe it was last month that I heard that Alan Lee was coming out with a book called "The Lord of the Rings Sketchbook." He was reportedly travelling to various bookstores across the country and signing the book in efforts to promote it. I sorely wish I could've met him and got an autographed copy. As it is, I had to settle with buying the book. Yesterday, I bought it.

I expected the artwork to be breathtaking and it is. Alan Lee is a phenomenal artist. He and John Howe are the two most responsible for giving Peter Jackson an idea of what Middle-Earth could've looked like. Their visionary drawings are incredibly beautiful and make one wish such a world had really existed. The book contains over 150 drawings showing how artistic work on the Lord of the Rings movies went from start to finish. It also tells some stories of Lee's involvement in the movies, a project that would involve him for over 6 years.

To complement the incredible artwork in the book, the publishers Houghton Mifflin used high quality paper, good quality binding, and even included a ribbon book mark. It is a high quality book. The only down side in my opinion is the high quality price. My copy cost me $30. Still, you get what you pay for. This is a fantastic book that would make a wonderful Christmas present for any Lord of the Rings fan. I highly recommend it. I feel it will give you or someone you give it to as a gift many hours of pleasure looking at the incredible pictures and dreaming of a world that never was but we might wish had been.

Australia Tour and Lord of the Rings Sketchbook

To be more accurate, I dug out my 2004 organizer. One of the main ways I keep track of things I've got to do or have done is by keeping them in my organizer. This has been priceless later when I've needed to check on them. The only fault with this system is I'm not the most ardent chronicler when it comes to entering stuff into it. As an example. From mid-May to mid-June of this year, I stopped making entries. I was still busy doing things but I suspect I was so caught up with various problems and I didn't feel like making entries. Fortunately, for the Australia trip, I was very accurate recording what I got to do.

Corrections on the Sydney leg of the adventure. First, I arrived in Sydney at 10:50 p.m. I believe we arrived at the hotel at 11:45 p.m. Then we had to up around 6 a.m. Surprisingly, everyone managed to get through the day fine.

We also did a one hour boat cruise of the harbor where we got to see some of the expensive homes on the harbor. And they were expensive though I think that is typical of any place. Waterfront property is never cheap.

On my own, I took a taxi to the Sydney Hard Rock Cafe where I bought myself, my sister, and a friend a city specific t-shirt. What these are are shirts that show highlights of that particular city. In Sydney, it was the opera house and the bridge. In Paris, it is Arc de Triomphe and the Champs de Elysees. They are pretty cool t-shirts, especially compared to the standard ones with the Hard Rock Cafe ball and the name of the city under it. I've heard they've finally come out with one for London and I hope to get it when I visit there next summer.

Lastly, the restaurant we had our welcoming dinner is called the Waterfront Restaurant.

On a totally different subject, yesterday I found out that the artist Alan Lee will be doing a quick book signing promotion tour promoting his new book "The Lord of the Rings Sketchbook." Alan Lee and John Howe had enormous influence on Peter Jackson's movies. The grey hat that Gandalf wears came out of a drawing John Howe did. Also, the appearance of Bag End was heavily influenced by him. Alan Lee had enormous influence on the scenes of Rivendell and in the extended version of The Fellowhip of the Ring, you can see him touching up the set with paint. Below are the cities, dates, bookshops, and times when he'll be at them. I sorly wish he would make a stop in Baltimore or Washington D.C. so I could get a book signed by him and get to meet him. He is an awesome artist and fascinating person. Cheers!

New York - Saturday October 22nd

Books of Wonder - 12 noon

Philadelphia - Monday October 24th

Friends select school - 7 p.m.

Atlanta - Tuesday October 25th

Peachtree Battle - 7 p.m.

Austin - Wednesday October 26th

BookPeople - 7 p.m.

Denver - Thursday October 27th

Tattered Cover, LoDo - 7:30 p.m.

Salt Lake City - Friday October 28th

Borders Books, Murray - 7 p.m.

San Francisco - Saturday and Sunday October 29th and 30th

Saturday - Book Passage, Corte Madera - 7 p.m.
Sunday - The Booksmith - 2 p.m.

Seattle - Monday October 31st

University Bookstore - 7 p.m.

Portland - Tuesday November 1st

Powell's Books, Beaverton - 7 p.m.

My source for this information was the Aint It Cool website: www.aintitcool.com

I would call these book stores before you go to make sure there haven't been any changes since this post in order to avoid any chance of disappointment.

Lastly, it was reported in the press that the Ontario government has loaned the equivalent of nearly 2.5 million U.S. dollars to the stage version of the Lord of the Rings. (I'm still wondering how they're going to pull this off in just say 3 or 4 hours. Any longer and, they're going to lose their audience.) The government justified the action saying all the money the show would probably bring into the province when the show opens in Toronto in February 2006. That is dependent on the show being a hit. The government doesn't seem to think the show is going to be a stinker as so many other theatrical shows are. It remains to be seen if they are right. If they are, it will be a smart move; if they aren't, they'll take even greater heat then they're taking right now.

Lord of the Rings Stuff

This post will be a short one. I only have a couple Lord of the Rings items to mention.

First, while wandering through the internet September 30th, I discovered that Sir Ian McKellen has his own website (www.mckellen.com). For those of you who don't immediately recognize the name, McKellen played Gandalf in the three Lord of the Rings movies. I think he did an absolutely phenomenal job of bringing this great character to life. I fervently hope he gets to play Gandalf again when the movie studios and Peter Jackson can hopefully hash out a deal and they can remake "The Hobbit."

The reason I'm mentioning McKellen's website isn't because he played Gandalf but because, he did two noteworthy things on his website that I'd like to let people know about. First, Sir Ian kept a journal as he acted in the movies called "Grey Book" and a follow on journal called "The White Book." I've read some of the entries and they are really fascinating. If you want to know some neat stories or impressions from someone who actually starred in the movies or see some very pretty pictures of New Zealand you'll want to check them out. They're under www.mckellen.com/cinema/lotr/index.htm. The other thing he did of note was answered fans questions concerning the movies. I think it is really awesome of him to do this. Even more surprising is he continues to answers questions about the movies. The last FAQ he posted about the movies was dated September 14th. I suspect he'll be answering questions for years about the movies because I really don't see interest in the movies dying for some time. The FAQs on the Lord of the Rings movies can be found at www.mckellen.com/epost/lr.htm. One final note, you'll also be able to send your own question to Sir Ian. I don't know if he'll answer it or not but if you enjoyed his work in the movie or you have a question you'd like to ask him, it can't hurt to send an epost. Maybe you'll get to see your post on the next ones he answers.

One other Lord of the Rings item I'd like to mention is the Lord of the Rings Symphony. Howard Shore who wrote all the music for the movies decided to create a Lord of the Rings Symphony. It has six parts and shows music from the different cultures i.e. men, elves, dwarves, and hobbits. I actually got to see the symphony performed on May 14th, 2005 at the Landmark Theater in Richmond, Virginia by the Richmond Symphony Orchestra and Choir. I very much enjoyed the symphony and would recommend it to any Lord of the Rings fan. Currently, the symphony will be performed in Grand Rapids, Michigan on October 14th; Nashville, Tennessee on November 5th; and Spokane, Washington on November 12th.

Salton Breadman Machine Review/Lord of the Rings Film Exhibition Information

I got to play baker today. Five months ago, I bought a Salton Breadman Ultimate machine while playing the either the airmile game with Northwest Airlines or the reward points game with Amtrak. I'm not sure which of their malls I used to buy the machine. The machine is a really nice bread machine. You can make 1, 1 1/2, or 2 pound loaves with it. You can also create customized baking cycles with it. Earlier this week, I decided I'd finally try it out. After spending $28 buying ingredients so I could make pumpernickel bread, I decided to make my first loaf of bread with the machine. I broke out the ingredients and managed to get them mixed all right without making too much of a mess. Then, I let the machine do its magic. The loaf of pumpernickel came out really nice. Taste wise, I think the next time I make it, I'm going to cut out the instant coffee granules the recipe called for. I think they added a slightly bitter taste to it I don't like. Interestingly, I found out the only difference between Caraway Rye bread and Pumpernickel is chocolate powder and instant coffee granules. I had no idea that rye and pumpernickel bread were so similar.

On a different note, I made an interesting discovery while checking out the Indiana Museum Lord of the Rings film exhibition film website. For those of you who don't know, on October 6th the doors will open at the Indiana Museum in Indianapolis for the Lord of the Rings film exhibition. This exhibition is traveling around the world and the Indianapolis stop is the last one in the U.S. As I'm a big fan of Lord of the Rings books and movies, I hope to go to this exhibition and check it out. While checking out the museum's website for the exhibition, I discovered they have a blog set up for the exhibition. It is: www.indianamuseumlotr.blogspot.com. The same company that helps publish my blog also publishes theirs. I found that after reading their blog, I REALLY wanted to see the exhibition. So read the blog at your own risk, it may cause you to suddenly want to visit Indianapolis. Concerning this exhibition itself, people in the United Cutlery forums I mentioned in my second post said that when the exhibition was in Houston, it was awesome. Tickets for the exhibition are $14. I believe you'll have to pick a time when you plan on entering the museum. I guess their trying to control how many people are in the museum at any one time. If anyone goes to the exhibition before I do, please post a comment to this post and let me know how it was.

Lord of the Rings Collection

After having a very nice chat with my step-mom Kay, I came up with a great idea for a new blog entry. One of my favorite hobbies is collecting Lord of the Rings swords and other assorted Lord of the Rings stuff. Besides swords made by United Cutlery, I also have Return of the King poster signed by 26 members of the cast and crew (this is an awesome poster though it has been a challenge matching some of the people with their autographs), a King of Rohan banner, a pair of Argonath bookends, a model of Minas Tirith, a set of New Zealand Lord of the Rings stamps, a calendar that has all of the Lord of the Rings posters, and a Gondorian shield and helm made by United Cutlery. I decided it would be fun to actually put on my Gondorian helm, my black cloak by Moresca (www.moresca.com), hold one of my Limited Edition Anduril swords, and have a picture taken. A good friend of mine, Harvey Yates, came up from Virginia where he lives so we could both go to the Maryland Renaissance Festival (www.rennfest.com). While I don't look the spitting image of a Gondorian soldier (I don't think they had blue jeans in Middle Earth), it was still fun.

Concerning the other stuff in my collection, below is a list of all the other blades I have in my collection. It's a respectable collection.

Anduril Scabbard
Boromir Sword
Eowyn Sword
Gandalf Staff
Glamdring Sword, blue scabbard, white scabbard
Hadhafang Sword
Herugrim Sword
Legolas Daggers and Scabbards
Museum Collection Sting Sword (Museum Collection swords are "functional" swords whereas the normal blades aren't)
Saruman Staff
Sting Sword and Scabbard
Strider's Elven Knife and Scabbard
Strider's Ranger Sword and Scabbard

I also have a fake copy of Glamdring which I bought not realizing there were fake copies out there. There are and you should make sure you get what you think you are getting. If you're going to buy a Lord of the Rings sword, make sure the seller includes the certificates of authenticity. If he or she doesn't have them, buy the item elsewhere.

One other note, to confuse matters further, New Line Productions licensed The Noble Collection to make a line of Lord of the Rings swords. I've never bought any of these and I don't have any idea how good they are. The Noble Collection does offer some items United Cutlery doesn't. If you want a copy of the crown used to crown Aragorn, you can get one from the Noble Collection (this statement does not imply indorsement of the product, merely that you can purchase one from them if YOU wish).

Also, if you want to find out what the latest unofficial word (United Cutlery doesn't officially sponsor this site) is with the United Cutlery Lord of the Rings collection, go to: www.ucforums.com. I'm a member of this site and I can attest it is a great place to find out what is happening with the collection as well as post with other avid collectors.