The Eloquence of Tolkien
J.R.R. Tolkien is known for the eloquence in his writing. To demonstrate this, Cliff Quickbeam Broadway of TheOneRing.net has taken the time to compile some memorable passages from The Lord of the Rings. “Tolkien’s Greatest Hits – The Most Impressive Wordplay from our Favorite Author,” posted online May 8, 2013, lists tidbits such as
“And he took her in his arms and kissed her under the sunlit sky, and he cared not that they stood high upon the walls in the sight of many.”
and
“Do not meddle in the affairs of Wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger.”
Fans would later expand upon the last quote as “Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.”
How did Tolkien achieve his literary greatness? Broadway quotes Tolkien from a letter to Milton Waldman in 1950, regarding his epic saga:
… It was begun in 1936, and every part has been written many times. Hardly a word in its 600,000 or more has been unconsidered. And the placing, size, style, and contribution to the whole of all the features, incidents, and chapters has been laboriously pondered.
To achieve excellence, one must pursue it. And that’s what Tolkien did.
Mark Hamill 30 Years After Jedi — and Beyond
May 4, 2013. Nearly thirty years after Return of the Jedi premiered at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, the theater screened the film again, four times during the day. This was sponsored by Entertainment Weekly during its CapeTown Film Festival. Patrons were surprised when, at the final two screenings, Mark Hamill appeared for a Q & A session. WalkingCarpet.net was among those who video’d one of the sessions, and placed it online here (Disclaimer: Profanity):
Mark discusses working on the original Star Wars trilogy, his appraisal of the prequels, his surprise upon learning that Star Wars would continue, defending Jar Jar Binks, mimicking Harrison Ford, voicing The Joker, and his hopes for the future of Star Wars.
Darren Franich of Entertainment Weekly posted coverage here.
Wil Wheaton: Why It’s Awesome to be a Nerd
Following the first Hobbit panel at Calgary Expo 2013, game developer and actor Wil Wheaton, star of Stand By Me and Star Trek–The Next Generation appeared on stage and answered questions from the fans. FlipOnTV video’d his presentation and made it available for viewing here. Disclaimer: Wheaton utters a couple obscenities.
At the end, a young woman, Jennifer Black-Moir, asked him to tape a message to her newborn daughter, Violet. She wanted Wheaton to explain why it’s awesome to be a nerd. Her recording is here (which is also included at the above link):
Wil’s message:
Hi, Violet. My name is Wil Wheaton. It’s 2013 and you’ve just recently joined us on planet Earth, so welcome. I’m an actor and I’m a writer and I’m a dad and your mother asked me to tell you why it’s awesome to be a nerd and that’s an easy thing for me to do because that’s who I am. I don’t know what the world’s going to be like by the time you understand this, I don’t know what it’s going to mean to be a nerd when you are a young woman.
For me when I was growing up being a nerd meant that I liked things that were a little weird, that took a lot of effort to appreciate and understand. It meant that I loved science and I loved playing board games and reading books and really understanding what went on in the world instead of just riding the planet through space and when I was a little boy people really teased us about that and made us feel like there was something wrong with us for loving those things.
Now that I’m an adult I’m kind of a professional nerd and the world has changed a lot and I think a lot of us have realized that being a nerd or being a geek is another word you’ll hear and I sort of use the terms interchangeably, it’s not about what you love it’s about how you love it. So there’s going to be a thing in your life that you love and I don’t know what it’s going to be. It might be sports, it might be science, it might be reading, it might be fashion design, it might be building things, it might be telling stories or taking pictures, it doesn’t matter what it is. The way you love that and the way that you find other people who love it the way you do is what makes being a nerd awesome. The defining characteristic of us, the people in this room, and I’m going to ask your mom to turn this camera around in a minute. Go there, go mom.
[Jennifer Black-Moir turns the camera to the audience.]
The defining characteristic that ties us all together is that we love things and some of us love Firefly, and some of us love Game of Thrones and some of us love — these are things you’ll be able to go see, they’re in your history book — and some of us love Star Trek or Star Wars or anime or games or fantasy or science fiction. Some of us love completely different things but we all love those things so much that we travel of thousands of miles, which is probably easy for you but we’re still on fossil fuels I don’t know what you’re going to be on, but it’s difficult. We come from all over, in some cases all over the world, so that we can be around people who love the things that we love the way that we love them and that’s why being a nerd is awesome. And don’t ever let anybody tell you that that thing that you love is a thing that you can’t love. Don’t ever let anyone tell you you can’t love that, that’s for boys, you have to love this because you’re a girl. You find the things that you love and you love them the most that you can.
And listen, this is really important: I want you to be honest, honorable, kind, I want you to work hard because everything worth doing is hard, and I want you to be awesome. And I’m going to do my very best to leave you a planet that you can still live on. Have a great life.
***
After Wil’s speech went viral on the internet, he posted a response on his blog, here. “As it turns out, I’ve been having that conversation with my sons for their entire lives,” he writes.
Alexandra Petri of The Washington Post praised Wheaton for his brilliant talk and wrote about it in her article, “Are Nerd and Geek the Same? Wil Wheaton’s Inspiring Nerd Manifesto,” posted on April 30, 2013 at 8:15 a.m.
Inspiring, indeed. Thank you, Wil.
Making Middle Earth: Calgary Expo 2013
What does it take to build Middle Earth? Fans at Calgary Expo 2013 found out at a panel featuring Weta Workshop co-founder Richard Taylor, actor Craig Parker (Haldir), Mark Ferguson (Gil-Galad), and Weta model-master David Tremont. Palomino A-E, April 27th, 2013 at 11:00 a.m.
FlipOnTV has posted a video of the panel here. Disclaimer: Profanity.
Watch and learn:
How did Richard Taylor remember all the dwarfs? Mark and Richard re-enact a centaur from Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Richard talks about preparing makeup and prosthetics in accommodating the 48-fps rate in The Hobbit films. Also, what is the importance in giving the armor, weapons and costumes great detail? What is it like wearing the armor? What is Richard’s favorite dressing story? How has technology impacted acting and hand-skilled work? What does it take to succeed–The passion of making: Passion, enthusiasm, tenacity and talent, in that order. Who does Weta turn to for their research? Craig answers the question, If Dumbledore got into a death match with Gandalf, who would win? Richard discusses the intimidation involved in adapting Tolkien’s work. David Tremont talks about working on his dream project, Thunderbirds. Craig imitates a Mysteron. And, David impersonates a Dalek. Scary!
The next day, Richard Taylor and David Tremont presented a behind-the-scenes look at The Hobbit and the history of Weta Workshop. Thanks again to FlipOnTV, their presentation is viewable online here: Palomino A-E, April 28, 2013 at 1:00 p.m.
John Rhys-Davies with Richard Taylor at the Weta booth at Calgary Expo 2013. Photo by David Tremont.
Smaug, Smauog or Smog?
How does one pronounce the name of the most terrifying dragon in all of Middle Earth? “Smauog” is enunciated by the characters in Peter Jackson’s Hobbit films. Is that Tolkien-approved correct or a writer-director’s whim? The intrepid fans at The Land of Shadow went on their own quest for an answer, and what they discovered can be learned here.
Wanted: A Home for Grandpa Dragon
After five months of construction, Wellington, NZ sculptor Kim Beaton and 30 volunteers have placed their creation, Grandpa Dragon, on display at Shelly Bay Wharf, after a debut last year at The Hobbit Artisan Fair at Waitangi Park. But they’re looking for a permanent home for him. Anyone want a 3-ton dragon?
Grandpa even has his own Facebook page. Here he’s being hosed down in December 2012.
The story continues here.
Reversal of the Heart — and Beyond
Reversal of the Heart is Carolyn Chrisman’s senior thesis film at USC, completed in 2011 after two years of production. This magnificent work of art was accomplished using Flash, After Effects and Photoshop. The story was done completely in pantomime–no dialogue, no song-and-dance routines, no butt jokes. How can such a thing be possible?
See for yourself. (Note: The video does contain mature subject matter.)
Chrisman discusses the making of this film here.
She is currently working on a feature-length animated project, Canary 751. She posted a teaser on February 17, 2013, here:
Chrisman says, “It’s going to be an independent feature-length film about two aliens who meet on a toxic planet, their struggle to survive, and the friendship that forms between them on their journey. Approximate release date is early 2014.” Learn more about Canary 751 here.
What Attracts Kids to Books?
Writer/schoolteacher Dianne K. Salerni gave her middle grade class some copies of some unfamiliar books. What made them decide whether or not to read them? Is it the first sentence? The cover? The summary on the back? Find out at The Project Mayhem.
The Emotion Thesaurus
One of the appeals of the children’s book community is that it offers support and encouragement to its members. Organizations such as the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), and consultants such as Emma D. Dryden of Drydenbooks, provide valuable services to newbies and professionals alike.
SCBWI-authors Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi offer tips on their blog, The Bookshelf Muse. They’ve also compiled The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide To Character Expression, which offers alternative ways of describing emotions, so writers don’t have to get stuck on using the same expressions over and over. As they put it, “This book comes to the rescue by highlighting 75 emotions and listing the possible body language cues, thoughts, and visceral responses for each.” Click on the links to learn more—then buy the book!
Five Writing Industry Trends
Emma D. Dryden is one of those generous publishing industry experts who continually provide advice to writers. In fact, she passes along info several times a day on Facebook. Today she calls attention to a blog post by Jane Friedman, web editor of the Virginia Quarterly Review. Friedman discusses “Five Industry Trends Requiring Every Writer’s Attention.” Read about it here.
