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Looks like jack Chick came in for a pop at Potter too lol:

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From The Nervous Witch it's mostly pretty boring, apart from the panel where someone says "Get that robe off Samantha, I'll put the rug over the pentagram" :shock:
 
From Publisher's Weekly's daily newsletter (the kidlit issue, always the good one in the week - but I'm biased)
http://www.publishersweekly.com/eNewsle ... l?nid=2286>

Live on Stage: J.K. Rowling


©Scholastic
"It was more like a rock concert than a book reading," said one enthusiastic fan, and indeed, if someone had stumbled into Radio City Music Hall on Tuesday or Wednesday night and heard the high-pitched screams from the audience, it would have been easy to assume that the latest teen sensation was appearing on stage. Which, in fact, was the case. J.K. Rowling, in her first visit to the U.S. in six years, took part in a benefit reading along with Stephen King and John Irving, billed as "An Evening with Harry, Carrie and Garp." Proceeds from the two sold-out shows went to Doctors Without Borders and the Haven Foundation.

Rowling read last, after King and Irving (who had their own legions of screaming fans). When she took the stage to a standing ovation, one audience member yelled out, "Don't kill Harry!" To which Rowling replied, as she took her seat, "No pressure there!" Seated on an oversize throne, she read a passage from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and then fielded pre-selected questions.

A few of her answers yielded new information. In reply to a question from surprise guest Salman Rushdie and his nine-year-old son that involved an elaborate theory about how Professor Dumbledore comes back to life in
Book 7, Rowling said, "I feel I have to be explicit. Dumbledore is definitely dead. You shouldn't expect Dumbledore to pull a Gandalf." A cry immediately erupted from the crowd, to which she commented, "All of you definitely need to move through the five stages of grief and get past his death." She added that she'd heard about a Web site, dumbledoreisnotdead.com, which is devoted to conjecture similar to Rushdie's theory, and said, "I imagine they aren't happy right now." (Of course, over at dumbledoreisnotdead.com, a post later that evening speculated that her statement was likely a red herring.)

Rowling also told the audience that people often think she has planned out the Harry Potter storylines much more than she actually has. For instance, she said, "This afternoon in the shower I believe I changed the title of Book 7," after thinking she'd definitely decided what it would be.

A clear high point of the evening for Rowling was when an audience member asked King which literary characters scare him, and in his answer he said, "Frankly, I was surprised by how scary [Rowling's] Death Eaters were," to which Rowling replied with pride, "I scared Stephen King!"

Addressing the question of what the future holds for her, post-Harry, Rowling said that she had a book for slightly younger children that was half finished, and that she would "probably go back to that. But I think I'll need a little mourning time." To which the questioner replied, "So will we."-Diane Roback

"I scared Stephen King." Now there's a career boast worth making!
 
Dracorex Hogwartsia - a new dinosaur! well, new-ish. Forgive me if this has already been posted. Picture on link.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0, ... 27,00.html


Dinosaur is dead ringer for Potter dragon
By Jack Malvern
A new species discovered in the US has been named Dracorex hogwartsia, much to the delight of the author J. K. Rowling

A NEW species of dinosaur has been named in honour of J. K. Rowling and her Harry Potter books.

The 66 million-year-old dragon-like monster has been given the title Dracorex hogwartsia because it resembles the kind of fantastical creature encountered by the teenage wizard.

The nearly complete skull of the previously unknown dinosaur was found by three friends during a fossil-collecting trip in South Dakota in the United States.

The dinosaur’s name comes from the Latin words Draco, meaning dragon, Rex, meaning king, and hogwartsia for the fictional Hogwarts School created by Rowling.

The author said that the honour had brought her new credibility with her children who are passionate about dinosaurs. “The naming of Dracorex hogwartsia is easily the most unexpected honour to have come my way since the publication of the Harry Potter books,” she said.

“I am absolutely thrilled to think that Hogwarts has made a small mark upon the fascinating world of dinosaurs. I happen to know more on the subject of palaeontology than many might credit, because my eldest daughter was Utahraptor-obsessed.”

She added that the dinosaur, which has gone on display at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, reminded her of one of her own creations, “a slightly less pyromaniac Hungarian Horntail”.

The dinosaur was little more than a box of parts when it was found and it took two years of painstaking research to piece it together.

Robert Bakker, a well known palaeontologist, agreed that the new beast would not look out of place in a Potter book. “Honouring an author with a species name is rare. But it should be done more often,” he said. “The creature is a very special dinosaur that seems at home in a Harry Potter adventure. It was a plant-eater, about as heavy as the warhorse of a medieval knight.

“It carried an armour-plated head of almost magical configuration, covered with knobs and spikes, horns and crests. I was staring at the skull last summer and the name just popped into my head, hogwartsia.”

Rowling, whose Harry Potter series has sold 320 million copies worldwide, has populated her books with a host of weird and wonderful creatures. There are at least ten species of dragon, including the Peruvian vipertooth and the Ukrainian ironbelly. Non-dragon creatures include the mackled malaclaw, which is described as “a creature of the shore and coastline, resembling a lobster. The malaclaw’s bite gives the victim bad luck for up to a week.”

The name Dracorex hogwartsia will remain as a permanent addition to palaeontological records unless scientists prove that it belongs to the same species as a previously identified specimen.

MONSTROUS NAMES

Masiakasaurus knopfleri
Two-legged predator named after Mark Knopfler, the guitarist and singer from Dire Straits

Guanlong wucaii
“Crowned dragon of the five-coloured rocks”, a forerunner of T-Rex

Dilong paradoxicus
“Paradoxical emperor dragon”, feathered dinosaur with a dragon-like snout

Paralititan stromeri
“Tidal giant of Stromer”, a giant herbivore named after Ernst Stromer von Reichenbach, a noted paleontologist
 
Of course it's dumb, Kondoru. Fossils have been dead far too long to speak!

Coat? It's home in my closet, where it belongs. Who wears a coat in August?
 
Harry's books are about a young 11-year-old generational wizard, Harry Potter, who attends the prestigious 1000-year-old occult boarding school, Hogwart's School of witchcraft and Wizardry. All his teachers are practicing occultists, and tutor their students in the dark arts of sorcery and divination: fortune telling, astrology, potion mixing, spell weaving and curse casting. Harry's world says that drinking dead animal blood gives power, a satanic human sacrifice and Harry's powerful blood brings new life, demon possession is not spiritually dangerous, and that passing through fire, contacting the dead, and conversing with ghosts, others in the spirit world, and more, is normal and acceptable.
Caryl Matrisciana
CEO, Jeremiah Films

Source from the Chick tracts website above

Yoikes I had no idea, I think I'll burn my copies right now. :shock:
 
I know! Predicting the future, waking the dead, demons, passing through fire, human sacrifices and curses.. oh hang on, that's the Bible.
 
I know! Predicting the future, waking the dead, demons, passing through fire, human sacrifices and curses.. oh hang on, that's the Bible.

lol the sad thing is chick obviously hasn't even read the hp books before he started to slag them off. I don't recall tarot cards or ouija boards being in any of them, and as for crystal balls, well the divination teacher is a complete flake lol

I'm sure it's about time someone did a chick skit about the 'evils' of the bible :D
 
BlackRiverFalls said:
I'm sure it's about time someone did a chick skit about the 'evils' of the bible :D

How about thisone on the advantages of praying to Cthulhu?

With thanks to Hamster for finding this....
 
personally i liked the speculative title 'graveyard of memories' better, bu Rowling's now announced the official one:

Title of Harry Potter 7 revealed

Author JK Rowling has revealed the title of the seventh and final Harry Potter book.

It will be called Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The announcement was made on the writer's official website.

Despite the publication date not being known, the book is tipped to be a big seller, like the rest in the series.

Speculation about the plot has surrounded the book after Rowling admitted two characters will die - some think it could be Harry Potter himself.

'Elated and overwrought'

The title has certainly got some fans excited.

Harry, 13, from Leicestershire emailed BBC Newsround and said: "It sounds interesting, but a bit sinister."

Book chain Waterstone's children's buyer, Sam Harrison, said the announcement had been greeted with "huge excitement" among Potter fans.

"This is a wonderfully intriguing and ominous title, with all the sense of magic and adventure that any true Potter fan has come to love and expect," Harrison added.

The last book, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, broke UK records by shifting just over two million copies on its first day of release.

Sales of all Harry Potter titles now total more than 52 million worldwide.

This week Rowling revealed how she has gone back to writing in cafes - as she did 13 years ago when starting to write about the boy wizard.

She has also admitted how she has been dreaming of the character.

Writing on her website she described it as an "epic dream" where she was Harry and the narrator simultaneously.

In a recent web posting, she said she has been working hard on the last book.

"I'm now writing scenes that have been planned, in some cases, for a dozen years or even more," she said.

She also described feeling "alternately elated and overwrought" at writing it and joked she cannot decide if she wants to finish it or not.

The first four novels in the series have been turned into films, while the fifth, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, is currently in production and is due for release in July 2007.

Helena Bonham Carter joins the cast as the evil Bellatrix Lestrange and Imelda Staunton will play the part of dark arts teacher Dolores Umbridge.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6200745.stm
 
Various entertaining 'making of' video clips are up on mugglenet, including quite a few short scenes from Order of the Phoenix, sans special effects.

Helena Bonham Carter is looking splendidly deranged as Bellatrix. And watch for the bit where Neville's about to practice a stunning spell and everyone behind him hits the floor!
 
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - a bit cumbersome as a title?
 
Who knew Bellatrix lestrange was a Sisters of Mercy fan?
Umbridge is just right, a sort of evil 50s housewife.
 
i was rather hoping bellatrix wouldn't end up being all gothy... sort of a bit cliched for mad/bad guys... but it sort of works ok, i guess...

...don't think we see tonks in any of the clips... rather curious about what they've done with her...
 
Thanks for the link, by the way. I just wasted three hours of my life on an HP fansite after that :p
 
The official teaser trailer for Order of the Phoenix is apparently released and up on youtube... beware of imitations as there are some bloody awful 'fan trailers' out there...

...and, um, if you want to see how someone's wasted their time in the most cringeworthy way possible, check out the submissions from whoever's attempting to make their own Order of the Phoenix movie (in installments) using The Sims game engine :?
 
Rowling unveils last Potter date

The last instalment of the Harry Potter saga will be published on 21 July, author JK Rowling has announced.

She confirmed the date fans will be able to get their hands on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on her website.

Rowling has said two characters die in the final book and fans are wondering whether Harry is one of them.

The Potter books have sold 325 million copies worldwide, have been translated into 64 languages and spawned five blockbuster movies.

This is the 10th anniversary of the first book of the hugely successful series being published.

Page from Rowling's website
The release date was announced on Rowling's wizard-themed website
Shops opened at midnight and queues formed when the last book, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, was released.

It sold 2,009,574 copies in Britain on the first day of its release, publisher Bloomsbury said.

The firm said it would publish a children's hardback edition, an adult hardback, a special gift edition and an audio book on the same day.

As well as making Rowling a dollar billionaire, the books have been credited with bringing children back to reading and reviving the British film industry.

When asked about Harry's fate, Rowling has said she could understand authors who killed off their characters, to stop others writing new adventures.

'Much anticipation'

But she admitted being worried about the reaction from fans if the boy wizard came to a sticky end.

Rowling always made it clear the series would be in seven parts and much of the plot was almost set in stone.

In a recent web posting, she said: "I'm now writing scenes that have been planned, in some cases, for a dozen years or even more."

The latest film based on the books, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will be released in the UK on 13 July 2007.

Wayne Winstone, children's manager for Waterstone's book store, said: "Not only will this be the biggest selling book, it will also break all records to become the fastest selling book of all time."

"There are not many people who want to wait to find out what happens and risk hearing the news from their friends."

Head of books at online retailer Amazon, Christopher North, said: "It may be a long time before we see another book that commands as much anticipation, attention and demand as this final book in the Harry Potter series."

E-mails sent to the BBC backed up this sense of excitement.

"Heck, yeah! The party to end all parties - I am NOT missing that, I've been imagining the moment since I was eight!" wrote one fan.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6320733.stm?ls
 
not really weird enough to put in strange crimes so i'll drop it in here... pity they couldn't have left a few dementors guarding it :twisted:

Youngsters vandalize Hogwarts Express

A gang of six youngsters recently caused £50,000 worth of damage to the Hogwarts Express used in the Potter films. The group, some as young as 10, broke into the West Coast Railway depot at the former Steamtown site in Carnforth, England and destructed the train's windows using its emergency hammers.

Patricia Marshall, managing director of West Coast Railway, said: "It will take at least a month to repair, because so much damage was caused."

http://www.mugglenet.com/app/news/show/741
 
Pity they couldn't use a reporter who speaks English. "Destructed" omigawdwhatzthematterwithpeople...(wanders off muttering).
 
Its great how steam trains bring out the worst in people.

<Kondoru blames Thomas the tank engine for the decline of BR>
 
Zygon~ said:
Sure Harry blunders along, but the point of talent is that the things that should be difficult simply aren't. Look at all the grown ups impressed by his stag ('animus' IIRC, Christ don't tell me I'm gonna have to read them again already): common comment "Impressive in one so young" or words to that effect.

At the risk of spoiling it for other readers it is explained at some point that many of Harry's talents (ie, his skill at DADA and his ability to speak Parseltongue) are a result of Voldemort's attack on him as a baby. The fight somehow swapped some of their essences, for want of a better phrase.

Stormkhan said:
Harry Potter isn't exactly an unusual name, so it wouldn't surprise me if more cases of 'real life' Harry Potters emerge.

There's a Harry Potter on the local news here. And a reporter (possibly on the same channel) called Jonathan Creek - which I thought was great.

And I am looking forward so much to this new book. I agree that she's not that fantastic a writer, but the plots, although unoriginal, are just so fun to watch unravel. And I get to escape to somewhere more interesting than Sydney.
 
the cover art for Deathly Hallows has been released... personally i think the US childrens edition is way the best (and it's got lord v on the back), the UK childrens looks like a leftover from terry pratchett, and the adult edition is just dull...
 
Kondoru said:
Its great how steam trains bring out the worst in people.
Apparently, steam trains are infesting this region this week...

..might explain a lot!

(including this - "HAYLE MAYOR 'CHEESED OFF' BY UNLUCKY TRAIN OF EVENTS" - http://tinyurl.com/2uczgm )
 
now this is interesting news

OOTP to have 3D finale

Warner Bros. has announced that the last 20 minutes of the Order of the Phoenix movie will be three-dimensional when it appears in IMAX theaters this July. This is exciting news for fans, as the closing scenes of the film will be of the thrilling Ministry of Magic battle.

WB says, "The last 20 minutes in IMAX 3D will add a new element of excitement to the Harry Potter experience, making this a must-see for fans of all ages. We're looking forward to a long and very successful run."

The IMAX Co-Chairmen mentioned, "We couldn't be happier to help bring this Harry Potter film to life in a new way. IMAX theatres are the only place to experience this year's most anticipated movies in the world's most immersive format, and we anticipate that moviegoers will want to enjoy Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix featuring scenes in IMAX 3D more than once."
 
JK Rowling has made it into University work, next year i'm going to be studying a module called:

Narritives of Witchcraft and Magic

Before Cornelius Fudge and the Ministry of Magic . . . this module traces the rise of the concept of the witch in medieval thought and literature. The module begins with the history of magic in the Middle Ages and its association with witchcraft; introduces students to the vexed question of the use of evidence in cases of alleged witchcraft; and examines the emergence of the witch as a specifically female category. Seminars will address the Christian concepts that lay behind the persecution of witchcraft, and above all explore the connections between literary narrative and medieval historical records of witches and sorcerers, including Joan of Arc, Eleanor Cobham, and the Irish noblewoman Alice Kyteler, all of whom were accused of witchcraft. The terminus date for this module is 1486, when the discourse of European witchcraft was codified in the text Malleus Maleficarum (The Hammer of Witches), but one week of seminars will be dedicated to a discussion of modern narratives of witchcraft and magic typified by the work of J.K. Rowling.

I can't wait.
 
caught HPatOOTP earlier today...

...imo this one is a bit of a mess... the plot was always going to have to be simplified down for the movie, but it's done in such a way that with so many threads and pivotal events gone, things happen and people come and go for not much apparent reason, and some key events are actual replaced with total contrivance (the discovery of the room of requirement, and it's later breeching, is murderously bad)... and sometime it just plain feels like you're watching a series of disconnected scenes :(

...not too keen on the cinamatography either... everything seemed too dark like it was never quite daytime there, in a way that wasn't for me atmospheric so much as drab and dull... and actually made me wonder for a while whether there was something wrong with the projector!

...what's good about it... luna lovegood rocks, the extendable ears and sciving snackboxes are hilarious, and fred and georges departure is great fun... and umbridge is splendidly overdone... even if you'll want to strangle her after about 5 minutes...

...what's bad, um, well most of the ongoing characters seem to have such small parts that they're practically reduced to cameos, but the film still keeps up a pace where there's little sense of the interaction/tension between the characters that made the earlier movies fun and kept things moving forward... draco and his inquisitorial squad flit in and out of existence without there ever being any feeling of menace... dunno... somehow this is more what i'd expect of a harry potter clone movie with most of the redeeming features removed...
 
Is Bellatrix good? She's one of my fave characters and I've always been quite a fan of Helena Bonham-Carter
 
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