# The Sean Astin Thread



## Barliman Butterbur (Dec 15, 2004)

*Sean Astin Book Tour Report: San Francisco*
Xoanon @ 11:35 am EST

Sean Astin and Alan Lee a hit in San Francisco
Click for more images

Celebriel writes: The first fans arrived at A Clean Well-Lighted Place for Books at 11am Friday morning for Sean Austin’s 7 pm appearance. They came from all over the Bay Area and from at least as far as Seattle.

Events Manager Wendy Sheanin, who introduced Sean, had wanted him to appear since she first heard about the book. “People have been calling for weeks,” she said, adding “the book is doing really well.” About 200 fans attended, with the seating area and adjacent aisles completely filled.

Sean impresses fans as sincere, patient, enthusiastic, generous, and caring, pretty much like his character San Gamgee. He loves connecting with fans and sharing with them his experiences as a central figure in the “Lord of the Rings” films and the cultural phenomenon they have become. Some fans were very nervous and tongue-tied when they got to speak to him, but Sean always tried to get them to relax and give them a little extra time to ask a question. He also loved talking to children, shaking their hands and offering them encouragement.

He started by thanking the bookstore, noting that the name was the title of a Hemingway story, and talked enthusiastically about the intimate setting of the store and how nice it is to know staff members who will track down books for you. He remarked there is a Barnes and Noble near his home in Los Angeles, which generated some hisses. (The host book store is an independent and its loyal customers view B&N rather the way Merry would view The Witch King.)

Sean then introduced his wife Christine, daughters Alexandra and Elizabeth, and a special visitor, his middle school English teacher, Ms. Gilbert, saying he still remembered a class trip to Williamsburg, VA he took as a kid and how hard it was to be away from his family. He has stayed friends with her over the years since eighth grade.

Complete (huge!!!) report at http://www.theonering.net/perl/newsview/8/1102782948

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Dec 15, 2004)

*A moment with ... Sean Astin, actor*

Wednesday, December 8, 2004

By REBEKAH DENN
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

So Sam Gamgee and Gollum had some personality conflicts on the "Lord of the Rings" set. Is anyone surprised? And Sean Astin, the actor who plays the steadfast Sam, appears to be loving and loyal and honest to a fault in real life, too. Shocking?

But wait. Hollywood is hardly the spot we expect to find earnest honesty, and that's where Astin's new book, "There And Back Again," gets interesting. Part memoir (with collaborator Joe Layden), part Astin's personal stories from the set of the blockbuster movies, it reads like diary and history as much as Hollywood exposé (complete with insecurities, ambitions and the occasional paragraph about how fat Astin feels sometimes.)

Want to know how Astin's relationship was with Ian McKellen? (Disappointing.) How he found Warren Beatty to work with on "Bulworth"? (Brilliant, but an inconsiderate megalomaniac.) What Astin thought after seeing all the scenes that were chopped from the final cut of "Return of the King"? ("They've ruined it!" he told his wife, before regaining perspective.)

We spoke by phone with Astin before his appearance at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave. Tickets: $5, or free with purchase of Astin's book from University Book Store.

Publisher's Weekly says that, at 33, you're too young to write a memoir. Why not wait a few decades and gain more perspective?

Complete article (where you will learn about our young stalwart's mercenary tendencies and other quirks and foibles) at http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/movies/202715_astin08.html

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Dec 18, 2004)

*Astin's Poker Humiliation*

THE LORD OF THE RINGS star SEAN ASTIN fears he will never live down his humiliating performance on TV gambling show CELEBRITY POKER.

The actor, who played hobbit SAM GAMGEE in the movie trilogy, is still mocked by strangers for his shambolic card skills on BRAVO channel's star-studded series.

He complains, "I was on it once - and I bet everything on the first hand and lost. Now everywhere I go, people I've never met say to me, 'Hey man, you've really got to work on those cards.'" 

Source: http://www.contactmusic.com/new/xmlfeed.nsf/mndwebpages/astin.s poker humiliation

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This is precisely the kind of thing that seems to strike mortal fear into Astin's heart (judging from my read of his oh-so-prematurely-written autobiog): public humiliation. Come to think of it, I can't think of anything much more scary either.

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Dec 22, 2004)

*The Upcoming Mardi Gras Parade in New Orleans*

Sean Astin has been named Bacchus XXXVII for the 2005 parade. Astin will lead the 38-float procession along the traditional route on Feb. 6 at 6:30 p.m.

Elijah Wood was last year's Bacchus, and will return in a special Returning King's float.

Source: http://www.theneworleanschannel.com/holidays/4014675/detail.html

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Dec 22, 2004)

*Sean Astin finds therapy in writing book*

By KRISTI TURNQUIST
Newhouse News Service

...for much of the filming [of LOTR] Astin was wrestling with anxieties about his appearance, his role as a husband and father and his own ambitions as a filmmaker. ... At various times, Astin writes, he felt jealous of [Peter] Jackson's position, underappreciated and insecure around his co-stars.

Astin readily admits the book was a form of therapy and that he also wrote it to earn some money.

Since the book's publication, Astin says he's learned more about what communication is appropriate to have in private and what to make public. 

"I was willing to risk my reputation with some of those individuals [that he wrote about in the book] by experimenting in a public way," Astin says.

"It's the conceit of believing in your own goodness."

Complete review at: http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/ae/books/news/2959926

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I'm glad that _somebody_ besides me labels this book autobibliotherapy. When I bought it, I was expecting and hoping to read an insider's view of the filming of the Rings trilogy. Instead, what I got was a book as described above: Astin telling me about his inner angst. It reminds me of the old phrase: "Well, enough about me — what do _you_ think about me?" 

This young man, at least at this stage of his life, seems to be _so_ self-involved and _so_ self-absorbed that it seems to take up his every waking moment, leaving him almost paralyzed. No wonder he seems incapable of simply kicking back and enjoying himself when appropriate! 

(This comes through to me not only in his book, but in the LOTR Appendix interviews, and on public television interviews I've seen him on as well: always a not-so-hidden agenda: "Me, me, me — this is what I think of me and this is what I think of this and this is what I think of that, and this is what I think of others, and what do others think of me..." Sheesh, enough already!)

The book reads in places like a transcript of someone delivering of himself a long tedious monologue of his perceived shortcomings, and what he thinks _about what he thinks_ to his therapist — revelations that properly belong in the privacy of the therapist's consulting room, not in a book written ostensibly for the public's entertainment about a film trilogy. _Not_ why I bought the book, which I am strongly thinking of throwing away. 

As far as I'm concerned, I was gypped because misled — and I think other readers who buy the book for film information will feel that way too. He should have learned "what form of communication is appropriate to have in private and what to make public" _before_ he inflicted these uncomfortable, unlooked-for and unasked-for self-revelations upon an innocent and unsuspecting readership.

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Jan 14, 2005)

*"Two-Gun Astin"...*

Sean Astin pulled a "Viggo Mortensen," going from hobbit to cowboy:

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Posted 1/12/2005 9:45 PM Updated 1/12/2005 10:25 PM

Spielberg, TNT push frontiers with 'Into the West'
By Robert Bianco, USA TODAY
LOS ANGELES — Steven Spielberg is taking TNT Into the West.

In June, the network will premiere a Spielberg-produced six-part, 12-hour epic about the settling of the American West.

Starring *Sean Astin,* [this list is in alphabetical order, and not by billing] Beau Bridges, Josh Brolin, Graham Greene, Keri Russell and Wes Studi, the movie will follow two multi-generational families — one settlers, one members of the Lakota tribe — over a period of 90 years.

Though it's called Into the West, don't call it a Western. "We don't classify this as a Western. This is really a film about the West," co-executive producer David Rosemont said Wednesday at the semiannual gathering of TV critics. "Everything from wardrobe, locations, casting, the language. ... Everything is checked, rechecked. Everything was authentic."

In its drive for authenticity, West hired Lakota adviser Charlie White Buffalo to teach the Lakota language to the actors playing Native Americans (most of whom are descendants of Native Americans). The goal, however, is not to tell the story of the West from a Native American point of view.

"The most important thing to (Spielberg) was authenticity, but also balance," says co-executive producer Darryl Frank. "Telling a balanced story and telling it from two points of view. ... He felt like the true story hadn't been told, because it had been told in a one-sided way. And that's what we're trying to do, tell the full story from a dual perspective."

Source: http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2005-01-12-into-the-west_x.htm

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Jan 15, 2005)

*Sean Astin to speak at ProLiteracy luncheon*

Sean Astin will be the featured speaker at the Love of Literacy Luncheon to be held at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach, Florida on Friday, March 18, 2005 at 11:30 a.m. Tickets are open to the general public. These luncheons are very nice with some "commercials" first and at least 30 minutes from the guest speaker.

Previous speakers were Henry Winkler and LeVar Burton. There is no autograph session, but in the past speakers have graciously signed items as the assistants gently guided them out of the room. There is a Champagne Reception where Patrons will be invited to meet with Sean Astin and have a photo taken with him. Patron tickets are $225 each; Individual tickets are $85 each. There are other Sponsorship Opportunities detailed in the newsletter. More information about the Literacy Coalition can be found at their website: http://www.pbcliteracy.org or by calling 1-800-273 1030. The website has not announced Sean as the guest speaker yet; only those receiving the newsletter have that information at this time. 

Source: http://www.theonering.net/perl/newsview/8/1105666212

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Jan 17, 2005)

*New Film "Slipstream" Premiers Feb 4*

Sean Astin News : New Film Slipstream Premiers Feb 4
Jan 15, 2005, 19:29
Posted By Wendy Shepherd at Movie Vine .com

*New movie Slipstream starring Sean Astin (Feb 4, 2005). Description of movie: Professor Conway (Astin) who lost his research funding plots a bank robbery based around his newest invention - a time travel gadget that will send its user 10 minutes into the past. Everything goes according to plan until a group of violent thieves arrive, lead by the notorious Winston Briggs (Jones), they've planned their heist for the same day.

The movie is having it's world premiere during the 4th London International Festival of Science Fiction and Fantastic Film. 

Complete article at http://www.movievine.com/actors/a/seanastin/article007.shtml

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Jan 28, 2005)

*TNT Presents Dramatic Saga of the Opening of the American West in 12-Hour Epic Limite*

From DreamWorks Television and Executive Producer Steven Spielberg


Starring *Sean Astin,* Simon Baker, Irene Bedard, Tom Berenger,
Beau Bridges, Josh Brolin, Gary Busey, Jessica Capshaw, Tonantzin Carmelo,
Tyler Christopher, Rachael Leigh Cook, Balthazar Getty, Daniel Gillies, Graham
Greene, Lance Henriksen, Christian Kane, George Leach, Zahn McClarnon, Russell Means, Matthew Modine, Will Patton, Tyler Posey, Francesco Quinn, Keri Russell, Matthew Settle, Michael Spears, Wes Studi, Jay Tavare, John Terry, Sheila Tousey, Alan Tudyk and Skeet Ulrich

ATLANTA, Jan. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- The story of the opening of the American West is given epic treatment in Turner Network Television (TNT)'s 12-hour original limited series INTO THE WEST, produced by TNT in association with DreamWorks Television and executive producer Steven Spielberg.

Full article at http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/01-27-2005/0002908524&EDATE=

Barley


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## Rowan (Jan 28, 2005)

I've had a crush on Sean Astin since The Goonies!


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## Barliman Butterbur (Jan 29, 2005)

Rowan said:


> I've had a crush on Sean Astin since The Goonies!



Don't tell his wife — she gets upset whenever he has kissing scenes — the scene he did with "Rosie Cotton" had her fidgety...this could put a real crimp in his career if she keeps on like that...

Barley


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## Rowan (Jan 29, 2005)

Bad line of work for her husband to be in if she's the jealous type! Not that I don't understand...but the way people make up and break up in Hollywood, I wouldn't be keeping my fingers crossed!

However, if her man's been in the same room with Liv Tyler, and still came home, she probably doesn't have much to worry about. 

Rowan


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## Barliman Butterbur (Jan 31, 2005)

*Astin To Be A Dad Again*

Following in the tradition of "those productive hobbits,"

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LORD OF THE RINGS star SEAN ASTIN is set to become a dad for a third time, after announcing to pals his wife CHRISTINE is pregnant.

According to America's STAR magazine, 31-year-old Astin made the happy announcement to his friends at the SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL.

Astin and his wife already have two daughters - eight-year-old ALEXANDRA and two-year-old ELIZABETH.
28/01/2005 02:49

Source http://www.contactmusic.com/new/xmlfeed.nsf/mndwebpages/astin to be a dad again.

Barl


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## Barliman Butterbur (Feb 3, 2005)

*1880 Train headed to small screen*

DIRK LAMMERS

Associated Press

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - A Black Hills landmark will hit the road for New Mexico Wednesday to make an appearance in a television miniseries about the Old West.

The 1880 Train's Engine No. 7, one of the oldest operating steam engines in the country, will be featured in the six-part TNT series, "Into the West."

"This is a great thing for the train itself and the State of South Dakota," she said. "It's exciting for us all."

Workers will use massive cranes to lift the 174,000-pound steam engine and its tender and way car onto heavy-hauler trucks on Wednesday.

The 52-foot-long Engine No. 7 was built in 1919 by Baldwin Locomotive Works and was bought by the Black Hills Central Railroad in 1962.

The series, to air starting in June, will feature Sean Astin, Tom Berenger, Beau Bridges and Keri Russell.

Coomplete article at http://www.aberdeennews.com/mld/aberdeennews/news/10789474.htm

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The heck with Astin — I want to see this train!  

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Feb 20, 2005)

*Mother and Son Reunite for 'Bigger Than the Sky'*

Wed, Feb 16, 2005, 01:02 PM PT
By Mike Szymanski

Reuniting with his mom for the indie film "Bigger than the Sky" was somewhat bittersweet, says Sean Astin, better known as Frodo's sidekick Sam Gamgee from the "Lord of the Rings" films.

His mom is Patty Duke (now known as Anna) who won an Oscar for "The Miracle Worker" and they co-starred in a 1981 TV movie together about child abuse called "Please Don't Hit Me, Mom" when Astin was 10.

"Mom was looking far more forward to working together and she had a lot of expectations, so I think she may have been disappointed because I kept running around," Astin tells Zap2it.com about the filming.

Just after the high of starring in a best picture winner himself in last year's "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," Astin went on the campaign trail for Democratic candidate John Kerry and flew back home to Los Angeles regularly to see his wife and two daughters while the indie film was being shot in Portland.

"Mom and I had a nice dinner the day shooting began, but we didn't get much time after that to spend with each other, and I know she was disappointed," Astin admits.

Astin plays an arrogant actor in a community theater troupe based in Portland. Duke plays a dual role of twins, a shy theater office worker and a flamboyant costume designer. Director Al Corley says he forgot that Duke is famous for playing diverse twins on TV's "The Patty Duke Show" in the 1960s.

Read the whole article at http://www.zap2it.com/movies/features/scenes/story/0,1259,---24699,00.html

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Mar 20, 2005)

*Astin: Trilogy tips cap to literacy*

By DAVID ROGERS , Daily News Staff Writer

Saturday, March 19, 2005

Actor Sean Astin doesn't hesitate when asked to name his favorite scene in the blockbuster Lord of the Rings trilogy.

He portrayed the hobbit Samwise Gamgee, a member of a diminutive, pastoral people with pointed ears and large hairy feet. He and fellow hobbit Frodo Baggins, his best friend, are at the center of an epic battle of good versus evil that is set in J.R.R. Tolkien's fantastical Middle-earth. At the height of their battle to destroy the powerful, corrupting One ring, Sam is a source of strength for the morally faltering Frodo.

But that's not the favorite scene for Astin, son of actors Patty Duke and John Astin.

That moment is at the end of the third film, The Return of the King, when Sam returns a set of books to Frodo. At some point along the way, the formerly illiterate gardener has learned to read. As a result — it's only referenced briefly in the film — Sam has become mayor of Hobbiton.

Astin, guest speaker Friday at the 14th annual Love of Literacy Luncheon, praised literacy as an essential component of bettering oneself. The event, held at the Kravis Center, is a fund-raiser for the Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County.

"He wouldn't be able to be the mayor of Hobbiton if he didn't learn how to read. And at the beginning of the story, he doesn't know his letters," Astin said.

The wizard Gandalf and Frodo are avid readers. "And Sam, sort of stepping above his station a little bit, is probably intrigued by learning how to read," Astin said. "I was really proud when [director] Peter Jackson included the scene at the end of the third movie when Sam is visiting Frodo and he's returning the books he's borrowed from him. I think that was a beautiful tip of the cap to literacy."

Astin said his most important role in real life is helping to educate his two children — one more's on the way — by reading to them. Reading feeds creativity, Astin said.

'Not only is literacy this incredible tool, this incredible gateway to having a solid economic life and everything else, it's also a profound gift in the world of imagination,' Astin says.

Read the whole article at http://www.palmbeachdailynews.com/n...?urac=n&urvf=11113326134210.10702851142784808

Barley


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## Barliman Butterbur (Apr 13, 2005)

*Sean Astin: One Cool Cat!*

A fair number of indie companies have decided to get in on the CG animation game. The latest, Imagi Entertainment, have garnered quite an excellent cast for their feature CAT TALE. *The film follows a cat named Rover who grows up in "Dogtown" by accident but later returns to "Catopolis" when he realizes he's coughing up more furballs than the other kids. Rover will be played by Sean Astin* and the insanely hot Elisha Cuthbert will be playing Rover's romantic interest Cleo. Sean Astin just can't catch a break. He spent most of his time in LORD OF THE RINGS with three guys and in the last two movies, with Elijah Wood alone. The one time he has Elisha Cuthbert as his romantic interest, it's in an animated movie where he won't even be in the same room with her. He won't even get a chance to pretend to ruin a love scene so he can do the take eighty five times. One of these days, Astin. One of these days, it'll be your time. Rounding out the cast are Stanley Tucci, Alan Cumming, Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara, Wayne Knight, David Cross, and even Billy Idol.

Source: http://www.joblo.com/index.php?id=7160

Barley


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## Corvis (Apr 14, 2005)

Has anyone read Sean Astin's book, _There and Back Again An Actor's Tale_. It's quite good. It tells of his life as an actor and his experience on the Lord of the Rings movie set. It includes some really cool pictures as well.


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## Barliman Butterbur (Apr 14, 2005)

Corvis said:


> Has anyone read Sean Astin's book, _There and Back Again An Actor's Tale_. It's quite good. It tells of his life as an actor and his experience on the Lord of the Rings movie set. It includes some really cool pictures as well.



Bought it, read it, tossed it. I wanted to read about his experiences making the PJ movies. What I got was mainly him baring his soul about everything that ever happened to him, and what was ever said to him, and what he thought about it all. This didn't interest me in the least. Sorry! 

Barley


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## Corvis (Apr 17, 2005)

Barliman Butterbur said:


> Bought it, read it, tossed it. I wanted to read about his experiences making the PJ movies. What I got was mainly him baring his soul about everything that ever happened to him, and what was ever said to him, and what he thought about it all. This didn't interest me in the least. Sorry!
> 
> Barley


 
I don't know I thought his life was pretty interesting. And he's not that bad of a writer (though he did have some help from some man named Joe Layden).


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## Barliman Butterbur (May 17, 2005)

*'Hercules' has some weaknesses*

BY NOEL HOLSTON
STAFF WRITER

May 16, 2005

NBC is touting Robert Halmi Sr.'s three-hour "Hercules" movie as "the definitive retelling" of the mythological muscleman's life. Well, not quite.

Certainly it hews closer to the original myths than "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys," the late-1990s syndicated hit that transplanted the hero from ancient Greece to some vaguely medieval time and represented him as a tanned and wiry surfer type (Malibu Herc?) who dressed as though he were fronting Aerosmith or Def Leppard.

<snip>

Sean Astin ("Lord of the Rings") gets sidekick duty again, with much dopier dialogue. He's Linus, the lyre instructor young Hercules accidentally kills. In the myths, Linus stays dead. In the movie, he's revived and becomes Hercules' Sancho Panza.

Full article at: http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/tv/ny-ettel4262226may16,0,3040041.story

Barle


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