"Middle Earth and All That"

"Two years after the start of negotiations, United Artists and John Ronal Reuel Tolkien have come to terms concerning a motion picture version of "The Lord of the Rings." At one time the Beatles tried to buy the celebrated trilogy consisting of "The Fellowship of the Ring," "The Two Towers" and "The Return of the King." Arlo Guthrie is another who has indicated he would like to be associated with a film adaptation. But UA and Katzka-Berne Productions, Inc., which would bring the work to the screen, have not yet charted a course in respect to performers, director or other participants.

In the States Tolkien is published by Houghton Mifflin in hardcover, Ballantine and Ace in soft. George Allen & Unwin, Ltd., of London, the original publishers, represented the retired Merton Professor of English Language and Literature (Oxford) in contract talks."