- 
You should be able to follow their journey on Twitter with the hashtag #thehobbit, Tumblr and Facebook.
Posted in Hobbit Movie, The Hobbit, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug on April 11, 2014 by DemosthenesSmaug the Magnificent indeed! We had some incredible entries to our ‘Show us your passion for Smaug’ contest – it was as difficult to pick winners as we expected it to be. The panel of TORn staff judges really enjoyed seeing entries from all over the world; we received art work from countries such as Serbia, Australia, China, Slovakia, and Thailand, to name but a few! The dragons came in all shapes and sizes; as well as beautiful paintings and sketches, we received photographs of sculptures, decorated cakes, costumes, LEGO creations, knitted and sewn wyverns, and even a candle holder, a carved pumpkin and a jewelry Smaug!
Ten judges thought long and hard, and awarded points based on factors such as skill, originality, design, and what made us smile! We finally narrowed it down – and then had a tie, and had to vote again! At last we can reveal the winners. [Drum roll...]
Runner up in the Youth Category is Mya, with her Erebor diorama. Check out the tiny Bilbo in the bottom right corner!
Mya wins the Thorin bookmark and pen set from The Noble Collection, plus the regular DVD/Blu-ray combo pack of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.
The winner in the Youth Category is Grace, with her beautiful sculpture. Several staffers said they’d like to have this amongst their collectibles!
Grace wins the Smaug pendant and necklace from The Noble Collection, plus the regular DVD/Blu-ray combo pack of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.
Special mentions in the Youth Category go to Anne B, Margaret D and Sian C, for their original and stunning entries. (Margaret’s was made from aluminium foil!)
In the Main Category, the runner up is Collette, with her incredible, dynamic image.
Collette wins a copy of the Limited Collector’s Edition DVD and Blu-ray of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Finally – the Main Category first prize goes to Natalie’s splendid beast!
Natalie wins the Orcrist replica from The Noble Collection, and a regular DVD/Blu-ray combo pack of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.
Special mention in the Main Category goes to Jeremy S, with his amazing flying Smaug, which we couldn’t resist showing you here:
Many thanks to ALL who entered the competition – we loved seeing your work, and choosing just a few winners was harder than taking on Gollum in a riddle contest… Congratulations to all the winners – don’t forget to respond to the emails which have been sent to you, to claim your prizes!
Stay tuned for another contest coming SOON from TheOneRing.net, with a spectacular prize - this one is for those of you who are handy with a camera…
Posted in Blu-Ray, Collectibles, Contests, Creations, DVDs, Events, Fans, Hobbit Movie, Merchandise, Studios, The Hobbit, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, Warner Bros. on April 14, 2014 by greendragon
Pre-order the brand new, custom designed t-shirt from TheOneRing.net and avoid the lines! This shirt was created specifically for our TORn Bookclub live show, hosted by Sarumann. This whimsical design incorporates all the best things about Tolkien’s rich world and comes on a 100% pre-shrunk cotton, cream colored shirt.
We sold out most conventions last year and wanted to give everyone the opportunity to get a Con shirt.
NOTE: This is for PICK UP only at WonderCon Anaheim. Currently NOT AVAILABLE FOR SHIPPING.
It will go on sale for non-attendees at a later date. Fear not!
TORN Book Club T-Shirt 100% Pre-Shrunk Cotton
Posted in Books, Books Publications, Clothing, Clothing, Conventions, Merchandise, Shop, TheOneRing.net Community, WonderCon on April 13, 2014 by Justin Sewell
Joining him is an amazing collection of 12 star guests that includes actors from The Hobbit film and Royd Tolkien, great-grandson of J.R.R. Tolkien. The lineup of special guests includes Sir Richard Taylor, some fan films and other prominent figures from the world-wide Tolkien community. Tickets are no longer on sale online but day or weekend tickets can be purchased directly from the event at the Maritim Hotel If you are in Europe this is an event without peer.
WONDERCON
We also will have a table on the sales floor to get exclusive TORn t-shirts and talk to staffers about all things Middle-earth. Our all-volunteer staff has an abundant representation in Los Angeles, making this a way to meet our friends.
MORE CONVENTIONS
CALGARY EXPO: April 24-27, Calgary. Staffers greendragon and Deej join a powerful Middle-earth lineup of guests that includes Sean Astin, Billy Boyd, Jed Brophy, Manu Bennett, and Dean O’Gorman. Also featured is Weta’s incomparable Richard Taylor. TORn will sell our exclusive convention shirts and meet fans and friends face-to-face!
FANTASYCON July 3 – 5, Salt Lake City. This show, focused on fantasy, has a heavy Middle-earth influence with celebrity guests and rumor has it they will add several others to a lineup that includes Sean Astin, John Rhys-Davies, Sylvester McCoy, Ken Stott and Graham McTavish. TheOneRing.net is partnering with the show and will be present at the celebration of all things fantasy with a booth, panels and some surprises.
SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON The grandaddy of pop-culture events in the world will once again feature Hobbit content from Warner Bros. and TORn. Director Peter Jackson is a likely candidate to be here and as well as a list of celebrities from the film to make their “Hall H” appearance. Plan to wait or camp in line. Our own panel is also in high demand and while nobody can camp overnight, we fill any room the SDCC hands us. This is Mecca for pop-culture. See you there!
DRAGON CON The annual event in Atlanta, Georgia is something of a home for all things Tolkien with the Tolkien Track of programming that definitely features TheOneRing.net and always includes some celebrities from the film world. This focuses on books, film, pop-culture, costuming, dancing, music and everything else you can think of. TORn staffers attending include greendragon, Deej, MrCere, Thorongil, often Quickbeam and usually a few more.
More conventions are likely including the New York Comic Con so expect lots more convention updates.
Posted in ComicCon, Conventions, DragonCon, Events, FantasyCon, HobbitCon, NYCC, WonderCon on April 14, 2014 by sandwitchking
In the Reading Room, poster demnation continues the discussion from the chapter in Unfinished Tales: The Istari. This sparked a great conversation about Wizards. Poster Dame Ioreth shared a wonderful interpretation of the colours of Wizards as seen here.
On the Main Discussion Board, poster Aunt Dora Baggins found a fascinating and curious tidbit. See for yourself here.
Also on Main, poster BlackFox found a fun Middle-earth title game. Check out your real identity here.
One more thing on Main, poster Matthias132 asked a great question that’s had an equally great response. What vague info or mysteries in Professor Tolkien’s works have kept you wondering? Tell us yours here.
Finally, on the Off Topic Discussion Board, poster demnation gave us all a chance to express why Tolkien and TORn mean so much to us. If you’ve ever been curious about fandom in general, here’s a heartfelt reference.
Want Hobbit Movie News? TORn poster DanielLB bravely ventures into the very rich and fast-moving Hobbit Discussion Board to collect The Hobbit Headlines of the Week. Check out the last 2 week’s action here.
We’ll share more topics next week and hope you join in on the conversation! Don’t forget, TheOneRing.net’s Message Boards have over 10,800 registered Tolkien fans, just like you. Let your voice be heard!
Posted in Fans, Hobbit Movie, Other Tolkien books, The Hobbit, TheOneRing.net Announcements, TheOneRing.net Community, Tolkien on April 6, 2014 by grammaboodawg - 
‘…I am frightened. Something terrible may happen up there. The Lord is out of his mind, I think. I am afraid he will kill himself, and kill Faramir too. Can’t you do something?’
Gandalf looked through the gaping Gate, and already on the fields he heard the gathering sound of battle. He clenched his hand. ‘I must go ‘ he said. ‘The Black Rider is abroad, and he will yet bring ruin on us. I have no time.’
‘But Faramir!’ cried Pippin. ‘He is not dead, and they will burn him alive, if someone does not stop them.’
The Return of the King: Book V, Chapter VII: The Pyre of Denethor
Fearing Denethor is about to act rashly, Pippin has sought out Gandalf at the Great Gate of Minas Tirith. As the battle teeters and rages without, Gandalf faces a desperate choice: leave his key foe the run of the field and face down Gondor’s Steward or abandon the ill and helpless Faramir to the vicissitudes of luck.
Meanwhile in Rath DÃnen, Beregond fights Denethor’s servants to a standstill over the life of Faramir.
How has the use of the Palantir poisoned the Steward’s mind? How does Gandalf try to win Denethor back to reality? What do you think about Denethor’s end?
Loyalty to and obedience of authority are key virtues in The Lord of the Rings. Yet in this chapter Tolkien examines the price of uncritical obedience. How do you compare Beregond’s acts with those of Denethor’s personal servants? And what about the murder of the porter, can that be justified?
These are just a few of the questions we’ll ponder this weekend as we explore The Pyre of Denethor in the Hall of Fire.
Upcoming topics
April 19: Morgoth and Sauron: similarities and differences
April 26: ROTK: Bk V, Ch VIII: The Houses of Healing
The Pyre of Denethor by Robert Chronister.Time zone conversions
Not sure what time the chat will be where you are? Check this little conversion table out for some help. Alternatively, check our handy Event Announcer over on Time and Date for the correct time in your area.
America:
6.00pm EDT (New York)
5.00pm CDT (Chicago)
4.00pm MDT (Denver)
3.00pm PDT (Los Angeles)
Europe:
11.00pm BST (London)
Midnight CEST (Paris)
1.00am EEST (Helsinki)
Asia-Pacific
8.00am AEST (Sunday) Brisbane
9.00am AEDT (Sunday) Sydney, Melbourne
11.00am NZDT (Sunday) Wellington
How long do your topic chats go for?
Our chats usually last from an hour to ninety minutes, and are very newbie friendly. Simply drop in and join the conversation! However, our main room, #theonering.net is open 24 hours a day. We don’t always talk Tolkien there, but if you have a burning question, you’ll usually find one or two of “the regulars” up for a chat!
Where — connection details
Chat happens on #thehalloffire on irc.theonering.net — the TORn IRC server. You can connect instantly via our embedded Mibbit client that works inside your web browser.
Alternatively, you can install a dedicated chat program such as mIRC on your computer and just plug in the following connection details.
Server: irc.theonering.net
Port: 6667
Channel: #thehalloffire
Just a little reminder that as of now, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is available nationwide (and few other countries) in multiple different formats without that Star Trek crap that Paramount pulls on their releases where special features vary from store to store and format to format. Nope, here it is thankfully the same. In this case the special features are a behind the scenes look at the film based mostly on Jackson's video blogs and music video. The real goodies are being saved the Extended Edition due sometime around Christmas. Hit the links to order from Amazon, with note on average price for each format. Versions: BR + DVD + Ultraviolet ($23) | 3D BR + BR + DVD + Ultraviolet ($25) | 2 disc DVD ($17) | Limited Edition Book Ends + 3D Combo Pack ($80)
