I've always said Smaug "smog." The "ow" sounds wrong to me, too.

Me too- and I always said "Saw-ron"

I've always said Smaug like "smog". However, I really don't mind over much them changing it to "smowg". Pronunciation changes aren't that bad. I get used to them. There was one thing I changed the pronunciation of after watching either Narnia or LotR. I can't remember which character it was though.

I think I've pretty much always said it Suron. Oops. And I guess I've said it a little more like Smog, without the ww.
(off subject, but LOVE your graphics, nah!

The Hobbit turned 74 today!!!

from the OneRing.net:

It was on 21 September, 1937 that the first copies of this now-famous fantasy tale rolled off the presses and into the shops.

Allen & Unwin printed “only” 1,500 copies in the first impression of the first edition. It proved an immediate hit. By December, that first run had entirely sold out.

Since then, it’s estimated that the tale of Bilbo’s heroic quest defeat the dragon Smaug and reclaim the birthright of Thorin has sold somewhere between 35 million and 100 million copies. It’s also been translated into more than 40 different languages.

Numbers alone can’t tell its importance and influence on the fantasy genre. In 1937, heroic fantasy tales involving dwarves and elves barely existed. Taking inspiration from his love of fairy tales and sagas, and the work of proto-fantasists such as William Morris, Tolkien inadvertently developed and legitimised an entire genre of writing.

For, without the famous line “In a hole in the ground, there lived a hobbit”, there would almost certainly be no Lord of the Rings.

So johobbit and I have been talking about how we really want to see The Hobbit together, so we've already started planning a line party for December of next year, and we would love to see it with as many of you hard-core Middle Earth fans as possible!!

Here are the loose details thus far.
Place:
Warren Imax Theatre in Wichita, KS. This theater currently boasts the largest IMAX 3D theater in the USA. But if you don't like seeing movies in 3D, it has plenty of other theaters that will be showing it in 2D.
Approximate Date and Time:
Friday, December 14, 2012 · 12:00pm - 11:30pm (the range is because I have no idea what kind of line to expect or what time we'd be seeing the movie). Time and date subject to tweaking. Shoot, we may like it so much we'll go back for a second, even third time.

We do have a Facebook event page started, but I have it set to private to keep it from getting out of control. If you wish to view it, you'll need an invite from someone who is attending.

Obviously, this is ridiculously early, but I figure for anyone who can consider coming will need to know about it this early. I'm hoping that we can get a really good turnout.

And what a grand time to announce this, fk ... on the honourable occasion of Bilbo and Frodo's birthday! (Happy Birthday, dear hobbitses!) And a day after The Hobbit turned 74!

Shoot, we may like it so much we'll go back for a second, even third time.

Love it, yes!!!

Nothing like now to plan for 15 months away, wooooot! So excited for this ... not only for the movie, but seeing it first with NarniaWebbers/Middle-earth fans!

Okay, so maybe that's a wee bit too hyper.

Happy Birthday Bilbo and Frodo! And The Hobbit too!

I would love to come to a Hobbit line party with Narniwebbers. But I don't know when finals weeks one year from now will be.

Shoot, we may like it so much we'll go back for a second, even third time.

I suspect we would want to see it multiple times even if we didn't like it just to tide us over until the next movie.

guess what? I am on the Gandalf World Tour!
I get to take pictures of a Gandalf Statue and submit them along with many other people http://www.theonering.net is putting on
to find out more, see this site: http://www.gandalfworldtour.com

So I'm not the only one here that remembers the most awesomest Hobbit birthday...

I'm really not THAT into it yet. Give me time. Maybe when there are 3 months left to wait and I see an epic trailer- with Frodo in it.

I would love to come to a The Hobbit viewing party but it's pretty much out of the question.

Living in Alaska, it's simply too expensive for a poor college student to travel all the way down there.

Although, I do have cousins who live in Wichita. However, the likelihood of me being down there at that time is about .001%. Only if something really strange* happened would I be down there.

*strange as in someone gives me a free plane ticket or I scored an awesome internship down there for fall semester or I was randomly teleported.

Popping in here to scream- HAPPY BIRTHDAY BILBO AND FRODO!!! Balloons! Confetti! Cake! Dancing! Fireworks! Mushrooms!!!

Bilbo and Frodo!!

A LoTR movie party sounds really cool! It's a little far for me to go to it though, I wish all a very fun party!
I'm just over halfway through another reread of the books. I was starting to get a little rusty on my knowledge of middle earth.

Wow that fine print is fine.

Here is an interview with Evangeline Lilly, she speaks some Elvish and if you listen carefully gives a clue as to where her character will be in the film.

Here is the link:
http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=82871

Hey all. My theater class is coming up on our poetry presentation and I decided I wanted to do something Tolkien wrote. So any suggestions or personal faves from Tolkien's poetry?