"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.."

“Sep 21, 2008” : Today is the anniversary of The Hobbit first reaching the bookshelves in the UK . September 21st, 1937 was the day the world was introduced to a world of Dwarves, Wizards and Hobbits although it had been a full 9 years since Tolkien had first scribbled the words “In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit” on a blank exam paper handed in to him by one of his students. Complete with maps and illustrations The Hobbit was an instant hit with children of all ages.

It was a 10 year old boy who was responsible for the publishing of The Hobbit. A friend and former student of Tolkien, Ellaine Griffiths pestered her friend, Susan Dagnell, to take The Hobbit to the publishing house Allen and Unwin where she worked in an attempt to get it published. The book was given to 10 year old Rayner Unwin, the son of one of the partners.

The boy was paid the standard fee of one shilling for his opinion. You can see his review in the picture below. Later in life Rayner said “It was the best shilling the firm ever spent!”

As a result of the interest from Allen and Urwin, Tolkien polished up The Hobbit and did the illustrations and maps himself including the original dust cover.

(original cover artwork by JRR T.)

On the 21st September the first edition reached the bookshelves and by Christmas all 1500 copies had been sold. The Hobbit was then published in America and first went on sale on March 1st 1938 and by June all 3000 of the first edition had been sold.

It would be the 1960’s before The Hobbit reached the fame and acclaim it enjoys today after the release of the 3 part Lord Of The Rings trilogy in 1954/55 which went on to become one of the most read literary works ever published and brought a clamour for all things Tolkien.

There have been several attempts to bring The Hobbit to other media and in 1968 the BBC brought The Hobbit to the masses with an 8 part radio adaptation which was regarded a major success by both Middle Earth purists and Hobbit fans alike. It was made into an animated movie for TV in 1977 but proved unpopular with both Hobbit and Middle Earth fans because it didn’t stick closely enough to Tolkien’s original story (Del Toro take note).

It will be Christmas 2011 and a mere 75 years after first publication that The Hobbit will (hopefully) get the movie it’s story deserves.

Happy Birthday Hobbit!