The Hall of Fire

This came up in my recommendations tonight ... the NYT apparently has a series called "Overlooked" where they publish belated obituaries "about remarkable people whose deaths, beginning in 1851, went unreported in The Times". It's behind a soft paywall (I have better luck gettin...

When Frodo, Sam, and Pippin met high elves in the Woody End of the Shire, the first thing Frodo asked was, “Who are you, and who is your lord?” The response was “I am… Gildor Inglorion of the House of Finrod.” The first and most important thing to know about a person was who their lord was (what cu...

Was Frodo wrong to say that an "invasion of dragons" might do the Shire some good?

Wonderful thoughts, and much food for further thought. Thank you! But I'm inclined to interpret such sentiments figuratively, indicating a belief that evil ultimately stems from Morgoth but not that he's actively involved in every bad thing that happens. In most circumstances I would agree with you...

For a long time my favourite single film scene was the dueling songs from Casablanca . Recently, though, I re-watched Kenneth Branagh’s Henry V (in itself a very fine film) and I was struck by the power of the aftermath of the Battle of Agincourt. I know we had a thread a while back on the best bat...

I don’t know if anyone is interested in hearing from HoF’s resident square, but here’s my list… 6. Claudio Monteverdi – What, I can only choose one of his madrigals? How is that even possible? Okay, how about “Io mi son giovinetta” from Book 4? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lSYV7JfwkY The bit ab...

Ah, but that definition of Patrick McGoohan presupposes that The Children of Húrin is a fairy story, in which case: what is the tale's eucatastrophe?

That part of my response was meant to rule out nos. 1 and 2 in your list. I think no. 3 is right except for the word "deliberate," because almost all of us are unknowingly in league with Morgoth -- just ask Mablung -- but no. 4 overstates Morgoth's power or maybe I should say misrepresents...

What's the name of the place that Niënor dies? Cabed-en-Aras, which means "The Deer's Leap." Christopher notes in a footnote in UT that this was the original name of the place, (e.g., it was not named that after Nienor leapt there). I think that having Niënor die at a place called "T...

What's the name of the place that Niënor dies?

And what has Túrin done to her that causes her death?

And what specifically does Túrin threaten to do to Sareos that results in Saeros meeting a like end?

What an irony that the joint performance happened the same game as the brawl, which I understand was caused by the Michigan players attempting to plant a Michigan flag pm the OSU field after their victory. Do you know what inspired the joint performance? As a result of the brawl, the Big Ten confer...

What an irony that the joint performance happened the same game as the brawl, which I understand was caused by the Michigan players attempting to plant a Michigan flag pm the OSU field after their victory. Do you know what inspired the joint performance? It was apparently suggested to the two bands...

One of the fiercest rivalries in American college football is that between the Ohio State University and the University of Michigan. That was evident again today when Michigan again upset Ohio State in their annual matchup. (Michigan had a middling record, having lost five gives, but Ohio State had ...

...I am considering writing something up about the birds of Arda... I plan on taking yet another adventure through all of the works, inc HoME, and writing something up about the birds I encounter along the way. Thoughts? I think that would be cool. About six months ago I briefly found myself a bunc...

From Randall Munroe:

Just yesterday on the radio I heard Johnny Cash's hit 1970 recording of Kris Kristofferson's "Sunday Morning Coming Down." I suppose it's fitting this news broke on a Sunday: " Kris Kristofferson, Country Music Legend and 'A Star Is Born' Leading Man, Dies at 88 " ( Variety ). (A...

Oh cool! After a seven-year hiatus, Every Frame a Painting is (temporarily) back!



The channel was one great video essay after another on the craft of moviemaking.

As far as I can see from the table of contents, the collection is missing "Monoceros" (the unicorn) and "Reginhardus" (the fox), two bestiary poems reportedly in the spirit of "Iumbo" (the oliphaunt) and "Fastitocalon" (the turtle) -- the latter two reworked f...

Last week Monday, having just returned from Mythcon in Minneapolis, I paid altogether too much money to take my sister and nephew to see his first drum and bugle corps competition, down in Canton, where among the ten contestants we saw was the local corps, the Bluecoats, who won that night's event. ...

Shane (1953 U.S., dir. George Stevens). I've seen that movie at least twice before on TV, but this was the first time at the movies. It was screened to a nearly full house tonight at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque, the local foreign and revival theater that was founded in 1986 by John ...