The evening before the Academy Awards, fans of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings gathered in Hollywood to celebrate all-things Tolkien, and his stories brought to life by Peter Jackson and WingNut Films.
The “One Last Party” was the 6th and final Oscar event from the popular Tolkien fansite TheOneRing.Net, a tradition started with the 2002 Oscars and “The One Party to Rule them All,” that the site hosted that year with Weta and Sideshow Collectibles. A successful crowdfunding campaign, plus corporate sponsors, allowed this year’s grand event to take place. Held at the historic American Legion Hall in Hollywood, California, the beautiful venue was decorated in Middle-earth themes, complete with Gollum in the lobby, Rohan banners, the Green Dragon bar downstairs, and a barrel-riding photo op. The dress of the evening was formal, although many attendees came decked out in their finest Hobbit, Dwarf, Elf, and even Smaug attire.
Way back in 2004, TheOneRing.Net’s Oscar party took place on the same night as the Academy Awards telecast, where The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King was nominated for 11 (Eleven!) awards. That evening, party attendees watched in awe as the film won every single one of those Oscars. Later in the evening, also to our amazement, the cast and crew came by the Legion hall to greet fans with their awards, and suddenly the stage was full of glowing, gold statues.
Check out our exclusive photos from the 2004 “Return of the One Party:”
Much like how the 2004 Academy Awards celebrated the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy, this year’s event celebrated the whole of the LOTR and Hobbit franchise. This was also a celebration of TheOneRing.Net itself. The fan site got its start in 1999 by Tolkien fans who were excited for the upcoming films, and continues on today as a huge resource for film and book fans alike.
Below, find our video clips from the evening:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36k8c2FqGwg
Some social media captures from the night include Lord of the Rings trilogy Executive Producer, Mark Ordesky, wearing the pin originally given to him by TORN for the 2002 Oscars:
Actor Sala Baker, who played Sauron and several other characters in The Lord of the Rings, posted this selfie from the stage:
A video of Disco Thranduil, and his epic one-elf mosh pit, is especially one that can’t be missed:
TheOneRing.net also broadcast the party live online to those unable to make the festivities. The full stream, with seven hours of footage and interviews with attendees and special guests, is available on YouTube:
Also online is Peter Jackson’s message to the One Last Party. Thank you, Peter!
Did you attend this event or any of TheOneRing.Net’s other Oscar celebrations? Post about your experience in the comments below!
