News & Updates
Quick news briefs, updates, and new books that will be of interest to Tolkien fans everywhere.
- Tolkien Estate Sues New Line Cinema
From Reuters
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The estate of author J.R.R. Tolkien and Rupert Murdoch's HarperCollins Publishers sued the producer of the "Lord of the Rings" movies, New Line Cinema, on Monday in a fight over profits from the blockbuster trilogy.
The trustees of the writer's British charity, and News Corp's HarperCollins cited a failure to pay a contractually agreed 7.5 percent of gross profit for the three films based on the "Lord of the Rings" novels.
The suit follows "Rings" director Peter Jackson's lawsuit against New Line for underpayment that was settled in December. When that deal was finalized, Jackson signed on to be executive producer of "The Hobbit," also based on a Tolkien novel.
New Line, a division of global media conglomerate Time Warner Inc, declined to comment on the new suit.
The trustees and HarperCollins are seeking in excess of $150 million in compensatory damages, unspecified punitive damages and a court order giving the trust a right to terminate New Line's rights to make more films based on the author's writings, including "The Hobbit," according to the statement.
"New Line has not paid the plaintiffs even one penny of its contractual share of gross receipts despite the billions of dollars of gross revenue generated by these wildly successful motion pictures," the trustees's UK lawyer Steven Maier said in a statement. "To make matters worse, to date New Line has even prevented the plaintiffs from auditing the last two films of the series."
The trustees were paid an upfront fee of about $62,500 in an "upfront sequel fee" and nothing more, trustee spokesman Lonnie Soury said.
The three movies: "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," "The Lord of the Rings: The Twin Towers" and "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" took in nearly $3 billion at worldwide box offices.
- Guillermo del Toro Officially Directing "The Hobbit"
From The Guardian
Guillermo del Toro has officially signed up to direct The Hobbit, according to reports leaking out from a film premiere in France. The Pan's Labyrinth creator will oversee a double-bill of films based on JRR Tolkien's fantasy adventure, which paved the way for The Lord of the Rings. Peter Jackson, director of the Oscar-winning Rings trilogy, will serve as executive producer.
The announcement was made at last night's French premiere of The Orphanage, a Spanish horror film that Del Toro helped produce. Introducing the film-maker, the host told the audience: "Today is a big day because we are announcing what everyone wanted to hear, which is that he will be directing The Hobbit." Del Toro had previously been reported to be in negotiations to take charge of the project.
The Hobbit charts the adventures of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, who joins a band of dwarves on their mission to liberate their treasure from a dragon's lair. Along the way, Baggins takes possession of a magical ring of invisibility. The ring is later revealed to be the chief weapon of the dark lord Sauron. The author devised this twist after completing the original tale, laying the ground for his famous Lord of the Rings trilogy of novels.
The Hobbit films will be backed by New Line with a reported budget of $150m (£78m). Production begins next year, with the pictures following in 2010 and 2011.
- Peter Jackson to Produce Two Hobbit Films
From Reuters
By Gina Keating
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The makers of the smash hit "Lord of the Rings" films said on Tuesday they settled a legal dispute and agreed to make two movies based on J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit," but most likely without Peter Jackson directing.
Oscar winner Jackson, however, has signed on as executive producer along with his wife and producing partner, Fran Walsh, who also was instrumental in making the three "Lord of the Rings" films that earned $3 billion at global box offices.
In recent months, loyal "Rings" and Tolkien fans loudly proclaimed on Internet sites that they would not support a Hobbit movie without Jackson's involvement, and Tuesday's announcement brought them some welcome relief.
"Fist in the Air! YEEEEESSSSS!!! ... "TRUST PETER!!! THE MASTER, THE COMMANDER, THE WIZARD!," one person posted at fan site, theonering.net.
New Line co-chairman Bob Shaye said no decision has been made about who will direct the Hobbit movies, but Jackson, Walsh and the studios share approval on major creative elements and will start considering writers and directors in January.
MGM Chairman Harry Sloan, who was credited by all parties for bringing about the deal, said Jackson found it "impossible" to direct the films and meet proposed release dates in 2010 and 2011 due to other projects in the works.
"He can't get it scheduled and he doesn't want the fans to have to wait for the next two movies," Sloan said. He said the studios might postpone the films if Jackson changed his mind.
Ken Kamins, manager for Jackson and Walsh, said it was "highly unlikely" Jackson would write or direct, but he would insure their quality by keeping creative control.
Kamins pointed out that George Lucas had ceded director's duties to others for "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi" without damaging the "Star Wars" franchise.
Jackson was unavailable for comment.
JACKSON'S VISION
Fantasy novel "The Hobbit" tells of a world inhabited by wizards, dwarves, elves and little people called hobbits, including the central character, Bilbo Baggins. "The Hobbit" preceded Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy.
The Ring films were released from 2001 through 2003.
Jackson and Walsh envision the first film covering the events of "The Hobbit" and the second bridging the 80-year gap between that novel and the first book of the trilogy.
Much of the plot for the second film would be gleaned from footnotes in "The Hobbit" that address that gap, Kamins said.
It was that vision that led MGM, which holds film rights to the book, to insist Jackson and Walsh make the movies.
"Once (they) played out their vision for 'The Hobbit' as two movies ... MGM just took the position that we wanted to deal with Peter and it was not an option to do it with anybody else," Sloan said.
He added the studios "would welcome as much of the original ('Rings') cast as possible," adding that "some of them have even said they are interested."
For years, the making of a Hobbit movie had been delayed while Jackson and New Line wrangled over profits from the "Rings" films. The director had sued New Line claiming it owed him money. Jackson and New Line have now settled that suit.
MGM and New Line, a unit of Time Warner Inc, will co-finance the films, with New Line distributing in the United States and MGM internationally. MGM is a closely held company owned by private equity firms and media divisions of Sony Corp and Comcast Corp.
- "The History of The Hobbit"
"The History of the Hobbit" presents for the first time, in two volumes, the complete unpublished text of the original manuscript of J.R.R.Tolkien's "The Hobbit," accompanied by John Rateliff's lively and informative account of how the book came to be written and published. As well as recording the numerous changes made to the story both before and after publication, it examines—chapter-by-chapter—why those changes were made and how they reflect Tolkien's ever-growing concept of Middle-earth.
"The Hobbit" was first published on September 21, 1937. Like its successor, "The Lord of the Rings," it is a story that "grew in the telling", and many characters and story threads in the published text are completely different from what Tolkien first wrote to read aloud to his young sons as part of their "fireside reads."
As well as reproducing the original version of one of literature's most famous stories, both on its own merits and as the foundation for "The Lord of the Rings," this new book includes many little-known illustrations and previously unpublished maps for "The Hobbit" by Tolkien himself. Also featured are extensive annotations and commentaries on the date of composition, how Tolkien's professional and early mythological writings influenced the story, the imaginary geography he created, and how Tolkien came to revise the book years after publication to accommodate events in "The Lord of the Rings."
Like Christopher Tolkien's "The History of The Lord of the Rings" before it, this is a thoughtful yet exhaustive examination of one of the most treasured stories in English literature. Long overdue for a classic book now celebrating 70 years in print, this companion edition offers fascinating new insights for those who have grown up with this enchanting tale, and will delight those who are about to enter Bilbo's round door for the first time.
"The History of The Hobbit" (Three-volume 'Boxed' Edition)
Includes the '70th Aniversary' Edition of "The Hobbit"
"The History of The Hobbit Part One: Mr. Baggins"
"The History of The Hobbit Part Two: Return to Bag-End"
- "The Hobbit" (70th Anniversary Edition)
A really nice new edition of "The Hobbit," featuring an introduction by Christopher Tolkien, reset text incorporating the most up-to-date corrections, and all of Tolkien's own drawings and color illustrations, including the rare "Mirkwood" piece.
- The J.R.R. Tolkien Deluxe Edition Collection
NOTE: This edition is reported to be limited to only 500 sets.
A unique set of never-before-collected deluxe editions.
Since the 50th anniversary of "The Lord of the Rings" in 2004, HarperCollins has published a series of new deluxe editions of the principal Tolkien works. The series was completed in November this year with the release of "The Silmarillion" to commemorate the 30th anniversary of that book's original publication.
For the first time ever, you can buy the complete collection of four books as a set.
- All four books are quarterbound in textured paper in a slipcase with a curved edge and are embossed with Tolkien's own motifs on the books
- The books have sewn bindings, silk ribbon markers, and include a number of exclusive features unique to these editions
- This collection is double-slipcased: a matching slipcase houses the four individual slipcased editions
The books that make up the collection:
"The Hobbit" (Published in 2004)
Features Tolkien's drawing of the dragon Smaug embossed in gold and red foil on the case. This is the only edition of "The Hobbit" to feature all 13 of Tolkien's own illustrations for the book reproduced in full color, together with his original maps reproduced as he originally intended but not previously achieved in nearly 70 years.
"The Lord of the Rings" (Published in 2004)
This 50th anniversary edition is embossed with Tolkien's "Eye of Sauron" design in two foils and features for the very first time the pages from the "Book of Mazarbul," illustrations done by Tolkien and intended for inclusion in the famous "Bridge of Khazad-dum" chapter but previously never used. Also appearing are previously unpublished family trees and the two original fold-out maps by Christopher Tolkien. For this edition and for "The Hobbit," the text was checked by Tolkien experts against the original first editions and manuscripts, and more than 400 corrections were made to make this the most accurate and definitive version ever published.
"The Children of Húrin" (Published in 2007)
Matching "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings," this first edition deluxe printing of "The Children of Húrin" includes a ninth color plate by Alan Lee not featured inside the standard hardback, with Húrin's golden helm designed by Alan Lee embossed on the cover.
"The Silmarillion" (Published in 2007)
Published for its 30th anniversary, this newly reset edition of Tolkien's masterwork "The Silmarillion" features an exclusive full color frontispiece "The Halls of Manwë" painted by J.R.R. Tolkien, the only scene from the book he painted, and is embossed with the delicate heraldic symbol he designed to represent Lúthien, The Silmarillion's greatest heroine, which is also reproduced inside the book in color. This edition also includes Christopher Tolkien's two-color maps, including a fold-out map of Beleriand, and as a Preface, Tolkien's original letter of 1951 containing his account of the mythology of Middle-earth.
- "The Essential (Complete) Tolkien Library"
Many decades ago in England, a highly respected professor at Oxford was correcting exam papers and, having a few minutes to spare, idly scribbled on a blank page in an exam book, "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." He didn't even know what a hobbit was, or why he wrote those words. But they were, nevertheless, the beginning of one of the most famous fantasy adventure tales ever written. The professor was J.R.R. Tolkien, and the book, of course, was "The Hobbit."
With the publication of "The Hobbit," and, later, "The Lord of the Rings," readers were introduced to Tolkien's unique creation, Middle-earth. No other writer has conceived a world as distinct as Middle-earth, complete with its own geography, history, languages, and legends. And certainly no one has created characters as endearing as Tolkien's large-hearted, hairy-footed hobbits. The hobbits and their fellow inhabitants of Middle-earth—wizards, men, elves, ents, dwarves, orcs, trolls, wargs, the Nazgûl, and others—continue to seize the imaginations of readers of every age.
In celebration of the publication of "The Children of Húrin," the first complete book by J.R.R. Tolkien in 30 years, Houghton Mifflin has put together an essential collection of Tolkien books. This set makes a great gift that every Tolkien fan should own. This collection includes everything from the first books that made Tolkien famous to the entire History of the Middle-earth to works indispensable in navigating Tolkien's great vision and creation.
- "The Silmarillion" (30th Anniversary Edition)
To celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of the first publication of "The Silmarillion," on November 5, 2007, HarperCollins will release a new deluxe edition of "The Silmarillion," featuring the revised, reset text, a color frontispiece illustration, quarter-bound in cloth and leather, and presented in a matching slipcase.
- J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Children of Húrin"
Houghton Mifflin has acquired U.S. rights to publish the first complete book by J.R.R. Tolkien since the posthumous "The Silmarillion" in 1977. HarperCollins UK acquired the project from The Tolkien Estate in a world-rights deal. Presented for the first time as a fully continuous and stand-alone story, the epic tale of The Children of Húrin will reunite fans of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings with elves and men, dragons and dwarves, and the rich landscape and characters unique to Tolkien.
"The Children of Húrin," begun in 1918, was one of three "Great Tales" J.R.R. Tolkien worked on throughout his life, though he never realized his ambition to see it published. Though familiar to many fans from extracts and references within other Tolkien books, it has long been assumed that the story would forever remain an "unfinished tale." Now reconstructed by Christopher Tolkien, painstakingly editing together the complete work from his father's many drafts, this book is the culmination of a tireless thirty-year endeavor by him to bring J.R.R. Tolkien's vast body of unpublished work to a wide audience.
Christopher Tolkien said: "It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of "The Children of Húrin" as an independent work, between its own covers, with a minimum of editorial presence, and above all in continuous narrative without gaps or interruptions, if this could be done without distortion or invention, despite the unfinished state in which he left some parts of it."
Having drawn the distinctive maps for the original "The Lord of the Rings" more than fifty years ago, Christopher has also created a detailed new map for this book. In addition, it will include a jacket and color paintings by Alan Lee, illustrator of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings Centenary Edition and Oscar®-winning designer of the film trilogy.
"The Lord of the Rings" was already acclaimed worldwide as the most popular book of the twentieth century before the blockbuster films in 2001 through 2003 broke new ground and inspired millions more to read J.R.R. Tolkien's books—an additional 50 million copies were sold, leaving new fans wanting more. "The Children of Húrin" will be published in the United States by Houghton Mifflin in April 2007, on the same day as HarperCollins' international editions.
Victoria Barnsley, CEO and Publisher of HarperCollins Publishers UK, said: "This epic story of adventure, tragedy, fellowship, and heroism stands as one of the finest expressions of J.R.R. Tolkien's skills as a storyteller. With a narrative as dramatic and powerful as anything contained within The Lord of the Rings, it can now be read and enjoyed as Tolkien originally intended, and will doubtless be a revelation for millions of fans around the world."
Janet Silver, Vice President and Publisher of Houghton Mifflin, said, "As J.R.R. Tolkien's original American publisher, dating back to The Hobbit, we are extremely proud to be bringing this project to Tolkien's devoted readership in the United States. Christopher Tolkien has done a great service in realizing his father's vision for "The Children of Húrin."
Note: HarperCollins also has an 'Unabridged' Audiobook of "The Children of Húrin," read by Christopher Lee.
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