Tolkien Estate Sues New Line

LOS ANGELES (AP) The estate of 'Lord of the Rings' creator J.R.R. Tolkien is suing the film studio that released the trilogy based on his books, claiming the company failed to pay a cut of gross profits for the blockbuster films.

The writer's estate, a British charity dubbed The Tolkien Trust, and original 'Lord of the Rings' publisher HarperCollins filed the lawsuit against New Line Cinema on Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court.

Fox sues over 'Watchmen'

Well, now, isn't this fun...

20th Century Fox has initiated a legal battle against Warner Bros. over the rights to develop, produce and distribute a film based on the graphic novel 'Watchmen.'

On Friday, the studio sued Warners, claiming it holds the exclusive copyrights and contract rights to 'Watchmen.'

Warners plans to release next year a big-screen version of the popular comic book written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. The cast includes Jackie Earle Haley, Billy Crudup, Patrick Wilson, Carla Gugino and Malin Akerman. It is the studio's policy to not comment on pending litigation.

Steve Gerber, 1947-2008

Steve Gerber, a leading light in 1970s American comic books, a singular writer of odd and affecting comics for mainstream publishers, an advocate for and icon of creators rights, and the creator and co-creator of several characters including Howard the Duck and Omega the Unknown, died Sunday in a Las Vegas hospital. The cause of death is believed to be pneumonia, although he had been suffering from a long-term illness, pulmonary fibrosis. He was 60 years old.

Gerber was born in St. Louis in September, 1947. A comics fan as a youth, he began to correspond with legendary fanzine figures Roy Thomas and Jerry Bails at an early age. He participated even more directly in the early fanzine movement, by creating the publication Headline as a young teen. He attended at school as the University of Missouri -- St. Louis and the University of Missouri, finishing his degree and doing some graduate work at St. Louis University. He found early employment as a copywriter for a St. Louis advertising agent and wrote short stories at night.

When Geeks Attack

George Lucas is claiming that a 'Star Wars' convention has moved over to the dark side.

In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in nothern California, LucasFilm says that Gen Con, a company that puts on gaming conventions, failed to uphold a contract to deliver proceeds from a 'Star Wars' memorabilia auction to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

According to this complaint, Gen Con owes almost $1 million to the charity and to LucasArts for proceeds from an auction held at last May's Gen Con convention in Los Angeles. LucasFilm says it undertook expenses to advertise the auction to increase participation.

Las Vegas Is The Second Life LARP

DSCN1110, originally uploaded by Cleveland Desolation.

I posted the pictures that I took while in Las Vegas for my birthday. All that I kept thinking was that the city was like a giant, open air, LARP version of Second Life.

Veggies a 'perversion of nature'

We know how you lot like your scientific analysis: adequately researched, well-balanced and backed with solid evidence.

You'll doubtless enjoy this piece down at Pravda, then, which confirms what the nutritionally-savvy among us have known all along: that vegetarianism isn't actually an informed lifestyle choice, but rather a 'perversion of nature' pursued by protein-starved fanatics whose self-deception will surely drive them to an early grave.

Dwarves hidden in sports bags target Swedish coaches

Swedish police are quizzing 'people of limited stature' with criminal records following a spate of robberies from the cargo holds of coaches - possibly carried out by dwarves smuggled onboard in sports bags.

According to the Sun, the gang responsible pack their vertically-challenged accomplices into bags and stick them in with other passengers' luggage. The undercover operatives then rifle the hold for valuables before resealing themselves in their hiding place, to be extracted later by another gang member at the coach's final destination.

Denny O'Neil To Teach Comic Writing Course At NYU

Dennis O’Neil, prize-winning comics writer and editor, will offer a 10 week course in writing comic books and graphic novels at New York University’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies. The course will begin on February 13th and end on April 23rd. Classes start at 6:20 in the evening and end about two and a half hours later.

For more information, see the university’s home page.

For over 30 years, editor and writer Dennis O'Neil put the 'dark' in the Dark Knight and was the guiding force behind the Batman mythos. He has been called a living legend, a master of the comics form, a visionary, the thinking man’s superhero writer, the dean of American comics writers, and--his favorite--an erudite hippie. He prefers to think of himself as, simply, 'a working professional storyteller.'

Dennis, a native St. Louisan and graduate of St. Louis University, began his writing career as a newspaper reporter in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, over forty years ago. Intrigued by the creative revival of comics in the mid-60s, he came to New York as Stan Lee's editorial assistant at Marvel Comics. Next, he did freelance writing at Charlton Comics under editor Dick Giordano. When Giordano moved to DC Comics in 1967, he brought Dennis with him. There, Dennis scripted such titles as Wonder Woman, The Justice League of America and, notably, 13 issues of Superman, a run some aficionados say is a high point in the character's long history. In 1968, following the cancellation of the Batman television show, editor Julius Schwartz asked Dennis to revamp DC's Dark Knight. Dennis and artist Neal Adams took the character back to his roots and, adding sophistication and their own unique vision, created the version of Batman which has been an inspiration for the Emmy-winning Fox cartoon series, the mega-budget Warners movies and, of course, the current comics. In 1970, Dennis again collaborated with Neal Adams and Julius Schwartz to produce the Green Lantern-Green Arrow series that first brought him into national prominence. This series earned praise, awards and media attention for its ground-breaking combination of flamboyant fantasy with genuine social concerns such as racism, drug addiction, environmental dangers and Native Americans' problems.

Figures: Steampunk Justice League Modded Action Figures

Inspired by the comic book, Gotham by Gaslight by Mike Mignola and Brian Augustyn (Batman vs. Jack the Ripper set in the late 19th century), the modder behind these action figures sought to place the members of the Justice League in the Victorian era.

Inside the Monkeysphere

What do monkeys have to do with war, oppression, crime, racism and even e-mail spam?