"This will be a night to remember." -Bilbo, The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring "I think my two new favorite words are 'clean sweep'." -Cliff Broadway, aka Quickbeam of TheOneRing.net A personal account by Stephanie Newsome ( Stef, aka Estella Brandybuck) Click on the thumbnails throughout the report to see images from the events.

FRIDAY, 27 February 2004

The memorable journey for Rachel and myself started with an evening of travel from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Los Angeles, California. The flights were smooth, and ironically they played Master And Commander: The Far Side Of The World during the second flight, but not having checked the in-flight movie information to see what was playing before we committed to using the portable DVD player instead, we missed most of it and filled the time with plenty of Monty Python.

I was so happy to be back in Southern California I didn't think anything could go wrong. However, when we attempted to pick up the rental car my card didn't approve for the $300 they require of available credit. It didn't seem to matter that the total rental cost wouldn't have been but just over $100, which I had credit available for. Because of this, and because I didn't have any other resource to apply to this, Rachel stepped in to help out with her own account. Unfortunately, though, the name on the reservation would have to match that of the credit card, and that meant that in her state of being under twenty-five we had to pay an additional $25 per day for a rental that was only going to be $16.99 per day. It was frustrating to say the least, but once it was over, we decided we would address the issue constructively later and try to enjoy the trip. We didn't get settled into the Holiday Inn on Highland in Hollywood until about 1 AM, so we decided not to bother crossing the street to the Comfort Inn where many of my dear fan friends were having a small party. It was the equivalent of 4 AM back home by then, and we wanted to see the costumes the next morning, so we curled up in our beds and slept for a while.

SATURDAY, 28 February 2004

Rachel and I, along with our roommate Erin, managed to make it to the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM) to see the costume display including items from The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King, Master And Commander: The Far Side Of The World, The Last Samurai, The Pirates Of The Caribbean, X-Men, The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and many others. I was excited to see the size-double costumes of the royal ceremonial uniforms for Merry and Pippin, the one they used for the scenes of riding into the Shire at the end of ROTK. They also had Eowyn and Faramir from the coronation scene which was also exciting. In addition the M&C costumes included Jack Aubrey's full uniform and my favorite ensemble of Stephen Maturin whose coat was quite elegant. It seemed most of the LOTR fans, though, skipped straight into admiring the Barret Bonden costume instead. Billy is so tiny!

The three of us had lunch at In-N-Out at the corner of Sunset and Orange in Hollywood. It was a good lunch, and Sarah D, aka Sammy, met up with us there on a break from her walking tour of Hollywood Blvd. As we ate and talked and had an awesome time, Karen Madsen, aka Des, arrived with her wonderful husband and LOTR Fan Club founder Dan Madsen. It was so good to see the two of them again and to hear that they would be coming to the events on the big night.

After lunch, Erin decided to do some local exploration and Rachel and I headed out to Santa Monica for a while. We parked in the same deck I always park there, and then we walked out to the pier from there. It was quite windy and chilly, though, so after standing out and watching the waves for a little bit, we headed back to the Third Street Promenade for a bit of window shopping. We ate a quick and light dinner at the Wolfgang Puck Express in their little food court, then decided to head back to the hotel.

We debated on attending the Into The West party as it was $20 admission and I wasn't sure exactly what to expect. However, a number of my friends were going to be there and I would have a better opportunity to socialize with them then instead of waiting until the larger party Sunday night. Also, Donna, aka Dandy, was going to be there and would be heading out the next day, and The Brobdingnagian Bards were going to play and thanks to my friend James I have become quite a fan of their performances. It was a good decision on all accounts for all these reasons and more. I saw many folks I hadn't seen in a long time, and it was good to spend time with them in person for a little while. Jason, aka Icarus, and Nan, aka Rosie, announced they were pregnant and we all shared their excitement for the news. In addition, Sara, aka Sarielou, did a reading of her mom's, aka Shelob's, poetry in her absence and there were other memorable and entertaining performances by fans in and out of costume.

When Erin, Rachel, Donna, and I left to head back to the hotel room we all agreed it had been a great time. We took a few minutes to speak to the Bards outside as they were about to leave, and Donna entertained them with placing neatly folded one dollar bills into interesting places on their outfits. As we began to leave, I debated on whether I should find out where Andrew was the Bards were staying and see if they wanted to hang out with us, but I chickened out in my exhaustion. After walking for a bit, we finally were able to hail a taxi to take us the remaining half of the way back to the hotel where the four of us crashed and slept nicely.

SUNDAY, 29 February 2004

Donna headed out early to catch a flight, and after saying a thousand good-byes and exchanging at least four hugs, it was hard to see her go. I crawled back into the bed when she was gone and slept on for a while longer. When Erin, Rachel, and I finally got up and ready to go, we headed to Subway for a brunch. Rachel and I also made a drugstore trip for a few last-minute things, and that seemed to take forever with Highland already being blocked off for the arrival of the stars to the Kodak Theatre. Alison drove in from having stayed with friends in San Diego, and the four of us managed to get ourselves all prettied-up for the big event without too much difficulty.

The line was already wrapped around the block when we walked over to the American Legion building, but the doors were just opening and the line moved at a decent pace considering there were major security checks going in. Once inside, Rachel and I along with Alison found some seats about halfway the floor level from the large screen in the large hall. The broadcast was preceded and followed by some entertaining performances by costuming group of TORn (TheOneRing.net) folk calling themselves The One Ring Circus. I wish I had a video or some pictures of their performance as the musical numbers were amusing, fun, and very memorable! Be sure to see their site, though, to see the hard work they put in to these awesome costumes. Cliff Broadway, aka Quickbeam from TORn, was the MC for the evening once again, and throughout the broadcast he also donned costumes of Elrond, Aragorn, and Dernhelm/Eowyn. He made sure to credit the lovely and talented Garfeimao for helping him get suited up in each costume.

And the broadcast itself? Incredible! Billy Crystal delivered a beautiful opening sequence honoring all the Best Picture nominees and other films of this past Oscar season, and his hosting was brilliant and entertaining as usual. We had the unfortunate situation of being seated in front of and behind some very rude fan girls that would scream if any member of the LOTR cast was even in the distant background of a split-second camera shot, so unfortunately I missed some of the pre-broadcast interviews and half of the acceptance speeches for their screaming and carrying on. However, when it was appropriate to cheer, we were all on our feet and showing full appreciation for every award received. A "clean sweep" Cliff called it, and a clean sweep it was! Our film made Oscar history by being the first nominated film to win all of its nominated categories and for tieing with Ben Hur and Titanic for eleven total Oscars as being the most received by any film in a single Oscar season. We couldn't be more proud of every individual who made ROTK a success both at the box office and in award recognition.

After the broadcast there were a few special recognitions in addition to The One Ring Circus. Following was a few minutes for chairs to be removed from the dance floor and for Emerald Rose to set up on the main stage in that same room. There were a couple of groups performing in the room downstairs where the food was served, and cake later in the evening, but we did not go back there to stay after having had our meal just before the broadcast. The food was delicious, though, and there was plenty for everyone. Once Emerald Rose began to play, we went to the dance floor where the whispers of VIP arrivals floated about in the crowd packed close by the stage and those who truly enjoyed the and were dancing and socializing. I tried to do a few clogging steps in my heels, but my feet were already quite sore, so I finally resolved to keep them still, especially when the VIPs began to take the stage.

VIP stage appearances started with the handsome and ever-appreciative John Rhys-Davies. As Emerald Rose left the stage for a little while another band that I had not seen on the previous itinerary began to set up, and I was a bit confused. Before long, though, Elijah Wood came out on stage to introduce the band World Without Sundays. They rocked! As I was about to move them to the top of my must-get-cd list, they pulled out another pleasant surprise backing Dom Monaghan in vocals for a song. It was a fun an memorable moment for all of us who have been fans of Dom to share his enjoying a bit of a rock star dream.

World Without Sundays was followed by the entry of the Oscar recipients and other VIPs that were in attendance at the main event and shared in the special recognition given by the Academy that evening. The stage was buzzing with appreciation for the fans and amusing anecdotes to entertain the already heightened mood of every soul in the room. More details of these anecdotes can be found in Ian Smith's wonderful report. I hate I missed speaking to Ian that night, but seeing his report and the images he was able to capture I am grateful he concentrated on that during the evening to bring all the good stuff to everyone who anxiously await the reports online! The following fifteen images are from my own collection of not-so-great-but-memorable photos.

The LOTR Oscar Winners for 2004 were...
Grant Major, Dan Hennah, and Alan Lee won the Oscar for Best Art Direction.
Ngila Dickson and Richard Taylor won for Best Costume.
Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook and Alex Funke for Best Visual Effects.
Richard Taylor and Peter King for Best Makeup.
Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, and Hammond Peek for Best Sound Mixing.
Howard Shore won for Best Original Score.
James Selkirk won for Best Film Editing.
Annie Lennox, Fran Walsh, and Howard Shore won for Best Music (Song) for "Into The West."
Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson, and Philippa Boyens won for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Peter Jackson won for Best Director.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King won for Best Picture.

Not long after Emerald Rose retook the stage, Billy Boyd, who had made a trip to the New Line party before coming to our event, stopped in to say hello. As he was being applauded and began to make his way off the stage the crowd began to chant "Sing! Sing!" Billy paused a moment in contemplation, then turned to Emerald Rose guitarist Logan, agreed to borrow Logan's guitar, adjusted the mike on stage, and began to play and belt out "Oh Jean" which I haven't heard in years. He was great, and we were grateful. As Billy handed the guitar back to Logan and proceeded to leave, Dom and Elijah came in from off stage, knelt down in front of him, and proceeded to pay him homage to the amusement of all.

Beth, Rachel, and I were hot in the increasingly dense crowd that was pressing ever closer to the stage, so we took leave of the crowd not long after Emerald Rose continued their set. After making a round of the place again and checking to see if Rachel had won any raffles, she and I decided we were too tired to stick around any longer and really just wanted to rest. We apparently missed Bruce Hopkins (again) and Lawrence Makaore and Sala Baker who all came shortly after we had picked up our Goody Baggins and walked back to the Holiday Inn. However, I did hear that they were forced to shut the party down at 1 AM, so we didn't miss much else, apparently. We were so sleepy we didn't bother to go through out bags. Instead, we just changed into our jammies and crawled into bed. I hardly remember Erin and Alison coming in a while later.

TUESDAY, 2 March 2004

The day began with me waking up about seven minutes after the alarm was supposed to go off, it having not gone off, and then showering and packing. Once Rachel and Erin were packed and I had done some calculations for room costs and what we all owed, we headed down to check out of the hotel. At the front desk, we met the wife of Emerald Rose guitarist Logan and I expressed my appreciation for the band's performance and music. After we checked out and loaded the car, Logan passed us and commented on our well-packed trunk. I used that opportunity to congratulate him for that little stroke of fame in that Billy once again, for the second year in a row, held his guitar, and this time performed with it. Logan was excited to hear that Rachel and I were fans of the band and he let us know they had a performance in Asheville, NC, coming up soon.

We got back to the Thrifty car rental pretty easily, turned in the car, and boarded the shuttle to the LAX terminals. We said good-bye to Erin at the Canada Air terminal and unloaded ourselves at Continental. Rachel and I watched Something's Gotta Give on the flight to Houston and we both enjoyed it. Unfortunately, after boarding about fifteen minutes late in Houston, the wind direction because of the weather caused incoming planes to have to land opposite us on the runway, and it kept us on the runway another hour after that waiting in turn to take off round robin to the incoming flights. By the time we left there were probably about thirty planes lined up behind us to take off in turn after us, and we felt rather lucky to finally be headed home.

It was good to see the car again, and the NC weather has been quite mild since we came in last night. I stayed over at Rachel's in Chapel Hill to avoid driving in my exhausted and stuffy state. (Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that one of the souvenirs from the trip was a head cold.) Today, though, the weather was beautiful and actually warmer than any of the days we were in California during this trip. While this trip is an experience I will always treasure, it is good to be home again.