Every Waking Notion

vanevanfuller:

When Peter Jackson was preparing his Lord Of the Rings trilogy, I was an active member of the online Tolkien community that eagerly tracked and reported every detail of the films’ progress. I met a good number of interesting people, and I even had the pleasure of exchanging emails with Sir Ian McKellen.

As we imagined what the finished film would be like, I began to write satires and parodies mocking our own obsession. I wrote a bizarre piece called Orc Feathers, which was a version of the drama intended for the Marx Brothers. I also wrote songs for The Elven Maiden, a Tolkien operetta in the style of Gilbert and Sullivan. I’m sure I wrote well over a dozen pieces as the months and years passed.

The shortest and simplest of my parodies was also the most popular, and here it is with an accompanying illustration. It’s the first scene of the drama as supposedly written by Dr. Seuss. Years after the fact, this silly thing is still circulating all over the web, usually with no attribution and sometimes with “improvements” by strangers. Run a search on Google and see what happens.

For those of you who are not Tolkien fans, the term lembas applies to the semi-sacred elven bread that sustained our heroes on their quest. Tolkien never mentions whether it was green.

 

* * * * * * * * * *

 

Excerpt from a screenplay for THE LORD OF THE RINGS

By Dr. Seuss

 

(Scene: Bag End, after Bilbo’s party)

 

GANDALF:
That Samwise-Sam! That Samwise-Sam!
I do not like that Samwise-Sam!

 

FRODO:
Would you like some bread and jam?

 

GANDALF:
I do not want your bread and jam.
I’m busy being mad at Sam.
He likes to sneak. He likes to spy.
I’ll grind him up for hobbit pie!

 

FRODO:
Oh, do not grind him up for pie!
He is a pretty handy guy.
He cuts my grass. He paints my gate.
He is my friend. We both are straight.

 

GANDALF:
Well, then, I will not grind up Sam!
Bring me bread, and bring me jam!
We’ll talk about another thing.
Tell me, do you have the Ring?

 

FRODO:
I have the Ring. I have it here.
But, mercy me! Oh, dear! Oh, dear!
I fear the Ring is very bad,
The golden ring that Bilbo had!
Tell me, will you take the Ring?

 

GANDALF:
I will not take that evil thing!

 

FRODO:
Would you, could you, by the fire?
Would you, could you, in the Shire?

 

GANDALF:
I would not, could not, by the fire.
I would not, could not, in the Shire.

 

FRODO:
Would you, could you, in a tree?
Would you, on the road to Bree?
Would you, with an orc or troll?
Would you, in a hobbit-hole?

 

GANDALF:
I would not, could not, in a tree.
I would not, on the road to Bree.
I would not, with an orc or troll.
I would not, in a hobbit-hole.
I will not take it here or there.
I will not take it anywhere!
For it is bad. It’s as you say.
You’ll have to take that Ring away
And throw it in the Cracks of Doom!

 

FRODO:
I’ll need a friend. But who—or whom?

 

(Gandalf produces Sam, who has been spying)

 

SAM:
Oh, Master! Master! Sam is here!
He’ll wash me down with beer, I fear!
I do not wish to be a pie!

 

GANDALF:
I will not eat you, little spy!
But I will send you far away.
You both will go away today.
You’ll go to Bree. A man is there.
The man looks foul. The man feels fair.
He’ll lead you both, if all goes well,
To meet the elves in Rivendell.

 

SAM:
Oh, Master! We will meet the elves!
We’ll get to meet the elves ourselves
And hear them sing their elven songs!
We’ll hear them bong their elven-gongs
And strum their elven loola-lutes!
They’ll hoot their elven hooty-toots!

 

GANDALF:
I hope you’ll hear those loola-lutes
And hear the hoots of hooty-toots!
But go with care. To be a pie
Is better than to meet the Eye!
The Eye is mean. The Eye is red.
He rules nine Riders. They are dead.
They’ll try to make you dead, as well.
But will they catch you? Time will tell!

 

FRODO:
Oh, dear! Oh, dear! This is a mess!
We’ll have to fix this mess, I guess.
So we will go, just Sam and me.
And what will happen? We will see!

(Fade)

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(via barefootrunaway)