cleolinda | Sunday evening already?

So, here's what's new in the world of L'affaire Lexicon:

soleta_nf remembered Steve Vander Ark saying at Convention Alley 2004 that "his real reason for starting the lexicon was that he knew JKR would be publishing an encyclopedia someday, and he hoped that, by having already created one, he would be the person she approached to help her with it." Apparently this ambition goes back as far as 2000 as well. vorpal_blade at JF also recalled SVA saying at Prophecy 2007 that "Jo didn't know her world as well as the fans did and that they owned it now, not her," of which we also have video ("I'm going to teach you a spell: expelliepilogus!"). He's also on video comparing JKR to Umbridge. The reference on RDR Books' website to Hiroshima was removed, but not before it was screencapped. The book may have had a British publication date of tomorrow, November 5, but since I also read that the British publisher is cooperating with WB, it's unlikely that it'll go on sale tomorrow.

And then... Steve released a statement.

Meanwhile! Wearable Sculpture is now Wyrding Studios, Stardust illustrator Charles Vess needs your help proving that a statuette without "big muscles, big breasts or big guns" can sell, and we have a few reader requests:

foresthouse created a Flickr group for Neil Gaiman-inspired costumes and creations (which Neil himself mentioned on his blog).

unheardpublic: "Chipotle, the mexican fast food restaurant chain, hosted a 30 second commercial spot contest for universities around the nation and they just announced the 12 finalists. Well, I happen to be one of them. The rules are that the video with the most views on youtube wins, so if you could link my video in your spam, I would SO appreciate it (you have no idea how much more I will love you). Enjoy and thanks so much."

arielchan has one last sociology poll, if you could help her out.

Back at the ranch, an excellence of linkspam:

Shia LaBeouf arrested at Chicago Walgreens.

Teacher who ran away with student arrested in Mexico, boy released; Teen turns out to be illegal immigrant, stays in Mexico after teacher seized. "This was a mutual agreement to flee after the story came out that they were having sex."

Judge booted for flipping coin to decide.

Creature ID'd as coyote, not chupacabra. But did it have mange?

Face of King Tut unshrouded to public.

Autism ‘epidemic’ may be in label.

Not much left of Robin Hood's Sherwood.

What would you ask fantasy writer George R.R. Martin?

Several non-Lexicon HP stories: Confirmed: Dan Radcliffe, Richard Griffith in "Equus" Broadway Production Fall 2008; Dawn French talks to Daniel Radcliffe about his "lovely wand." Meanwhile, in book news: The Tales of Beedle The Bard!; J.K. Rowling Expands ‘Potter’ Universe For Charity. And back over on the filming front: Radcliffe on HBP: Gambon "Camping it Up." He means off-screen, fortunately: "Well, he's been camping it up around the set like nobody's business... Not in the film, though we did actually film a scene the other day, and I would like emphasise at this point that the script was written before this revelation and I don't think Steve Kloves had any prior knowledge, but there was a scene the other day when Michael had to come in and tell another character how much he loved knitting patterns! Which he just adored saying that." It kind of sounds like the scene where Dumbledore excuses himself from the room to let Harry and Slughorn talk at Slughorn's house--doesn't he come back from (ostensibly) the bathroom and say he was looking at something? Knitting patterns ring a bell for some reason. And we know they've been filming Slughorn's house, so it does make sense.

The Golden Compass Character Posters; Exclusive Photo: ‘The Golden Compass’; New Golden Compass Stills; “Film sells atheism to kids: Major protest launched”; ‘Golden Compass’ Author Starts Fantasy-Author Beef; Lord of the Rings ‘trivial’ says Pullman. Why? Whyyyy? Why do you make it so hard to support you against the atheism-panickers by attacking beloved fantasy writers? Whyyyyyyyyy?

(Also: Mrs. Coulter dolls are here!)

Two more costume pics from Keira Knightley's The Duchess.

New Joker pic revealed. (Ever so slightly related: Ledger Enters Gilliam's Imaginarium.)

New Watchmen Movie Updates.

Wolverine Story and Scene Spoilers.

Cinematical Exclusive: 'The Orphanage' Poster.

New Poster and Artwork for Gerard Butler's 'Game'; Now Gerard Butler Escapes the 'Escape from New York' Remake.

Donnie Darko's Richard Kelly Talks About 'The Box'; James Marsden Joins Diaz in Richard Kelly's 'The Box'; Kelly's Box Is '70s Piece.

James Marsden Has a Wicked 'Sex Drive.'

Paul Giamatti Blurs Reality For Philip K. Dick Biopic ‘Owl In Daylight.’

Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart" Being Reimagined Under Ridley and Tony Scott.

trailer_spot: Pride and Glory, There Will Be Blood, National Treasure 2, Kung Fu Panda, Cassandra's Dream, Alvin and ~~Why Hast Our God Forsaken Us?~~ the Chipmunks; Wanted, There's Only One Sun, Kung Fu Panda, Band's Visit, Untraceable.

'Jumper' Poster Features Exotic/Dull Cocktail.

Fans Choose Villainy for (The) Rock.

The Killer Graphic Novel Being Developed for David Fincher.

Natalie Portman Directing Love and Darkness.

First Lost Boys 2: The Tribe Photo.

"Shrek 4 Title Fills Me With Untold Rage."

Alan Cumming is One Matt Hatter.

Gillian Anderson Loves 'The Smell of Apples.' (Somewhat related: The X-Files 2 Set for July 25, 2008.)

Guy Pearce Hits The Road. Aww, not Viggo Mortensen after all?

Meryl Streep Wins Preemptive Oscar as Julia Child; Amy Adams to costar.

Julia Roberts and Clive Owen Re-Team for 'Duplicity.'

'Cloverfield's' Mysterious Title Revealed as ... 'Cloverfield'? The possibility of a last-minute fakeout is acknowledged, however.

Oprah Winfrey chops off Hilary Swank's hair.

From 1999: Kevin Smith Protests 'Dogma.'

Seriously, it's a really, really good linkspam. A five-day backlog'll do that for you.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

So, in other words, he's been hoping to get some fame/money out of the HP thing since the beginning. Charming.

Aw, I like Shia LaBeouf, even if I can hardly ever spell his name right without looking. I hope he doesn't turn into a crazy young diva-star. But then, it doesn't sound like that was anything crazy.

I'm so ashamed of VA for allowing that judge to stay on the bench for as long as he did.

Thanks for the mention of the Flickr site. There are a lot of pics already. :)

So, in other words, he's been hoping to get some fame/money out of the HP thing since the beginning. Charming.

That's a very blunt way of putting it, but it does put his ambitions for the project into perspective--this is something he's been wanting for seven years, and then it turns out that JKR actually uses the Lexicon herself and endorses it as a (NON-PROFIT) website, and then, suddenly--she's writing her own. And not letting him help. And not letting him do his. Someone on the new FW entry I posted is saying that he was really cranky at Prophecy about all the new post-DH info she was releasing, and they couldn't figure out why--you can update a website any time, right? Well, unless you're working on a print version. Then the prospect of JKR releasing new info randomly every few weeks is a problem. So he already knew then, and I think he'd even started fussing that she'd said no. To me, the crazy part, the really wrong-headed decision-making part, was going ahead with all of it. I understand the disappointment--I mean, there's a huge amount of entitlement mixed in, but just from a psychological point of view, yeah, I can see how he would feel very disappointed and thwarted. I just don't see how he thought he could get away with it after all.

I think, entirely aside from the profit and celebrity, there's probably a certain amount of fannish butthurt involved.

"But... but what do you MEAN you don't want my help with the official Encyclopedia? I've already done all this work... ..."

Hee! I don't know why the tiny font is so funny, but it is. And yeah--by all accounts he enjoys going to absolute tons of fan events (conventions, what have you) and is very popular, so there's a certain fannish/BNF sense of entitlement, plus the more long-term idea of Going Down in History as the Editor of the Harry Potter Encyclo-Lexicon-Thing.

See, the thing to do if/when she turned down his help with her encyclopedia would have been to be all publicly butthurt about it--"I put in all this work, and she didn't want me to help!"--rather than continue with the book anyway. I mean, obviously you'd be an entitled asshat if you did that, but you'd be a clever entitled asshat.

Yeah, that part gets me too. I mean, I can understand hoping for something - you have this idea for an encyclopedia-type thing, hey, maybe you can actually print it! - but to try it after the owner of the rights says no is just dumb and pigheaded.

For some reason, I always get interested in the psychological angles of things--news stories, what have you--and I'm always fascinated when I hit one that I just can't even make up any kind of pseudo-psych bullshit for. I just keep trying to figure out how he thought he was going to get away with this, if JKR told him no upfront. I mean--how do you rationalize that away? What do you think is going to happen? He's going to have so much outcry on the part of his fans--his fans--that she's going to have to relent? I just--I can't figure it out.

It's like the sheer WTFness makes you WANT to find some reason in madness. I don't know what the deal is with this guy, but maybe what happened is that he thought, "Oh, JKR and I are buds, she likes my site, she doesn't mind fanfic, she won't mind a sort of...unofficial gathering of information." And then he found out otherwise but was too far in to change gears and back the hell up.

BUT. Even that doesn't make sense because he could step away NOW and he's not. He has to have some kind of egotistical delusion that somehow he will come out on top. Or...something?

Yeah, I'm not really having any luck either.

Sunday evening already?

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