Hear rare recordings from some of the world's most-respected poets reading their own works: J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hoard; ee cummings, Prose Jottings; Archibald Macleish, The Old Man To The Lizard; Ted Hughes, Six Young Men; May Swenson, Naked In Borneo; Marilyn Hacker, The Dark Twin; Kenneth Patchen, 23rd Street Runs Into Heaven; Edith Sitwell, An Old Woman; Theodore Roethke, The Bat. Recording obtained and published by Rick Sheridan.

This exciting look at the genius of Tolkien shines a light on all the heroes and villains of the The Lord of the Rings and how Tolkien's life experiences helped shape the story and characters that have become giants in fantasy fiction.

For over fifty years, J.R.R. Tolkien's peerless fantasy has accumulated worldwide acclaim as the greatest adventure tale ever written. No other writer has created a world as distinct as Middle-earth, complete with its own geography, history, languages, and legends. And no one has created characters as endearing as Tolkien's large-hearted, hairy-footed hobbits. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings continues to seize the imaginations of readers of all ages,...

Discover why J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings has become an icon of 20th century culture. This program features 3D computerized animations of Middle Earth, illustrations by the Brothers Hildebrandt, rare archive footage of the author, and analysis by Tolkien scholars.

In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-Earth still it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell, by chance, into the hands of the Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins. On his eleventy-first birthday, Bilbo disappeared, bequeathing to his young...

It is well known that J.R.R. Tolkien published The Hobbit in 1937 and The Lord of the Rings in 1954-5. What may be less known is that he continued to write about Middle-earth in the decades that followed, right up until the years before his death in 1973. For him, Middle-earth was part of an entire world to be explored, and the writings in The Nature of Middle-earth reveal the journeys that he took as he sought to better understand his unique creation....

Christopher Tolkien chronicles his father's creation of the novel "The Lord of the Rings," presenting early drafts and showing how the cast of characters grew after the first stage of writing. Also discusses Tolkien's changing map of Middle-earth, and the runic alphabets.

Explores the formative years of the renowned author's life as he finds friendship, courage, and inspiration among a fellow group of writers and artists at school. Their brotherhood strengthens as they grow up and weather love and loss together, including the author's tumultuous courtship of his beloved Edith Bratt, until the outbreak of the First World War which threatens to tear their fellowship apart. All of these experiences would later inspire...