J.R.R. Tolkien Fact Sheet J.R.R. Tolkien Author of The Lord of the Rings Full Name: John Ronald Reuel Tolkien Nicknames: Ronald, John Ronald, J.R.R.T., and Tollers Birthdate: January 3rd, 1892 Birthplace: Bloemfontein, South Africa Height: Unknown Weight: Unknown Parents: Arthur Reuel Tolkien (died in 1896) and Mabel Suffield (died in 1904) Siblings: Hilary Arthur Reuel Pets: Unknown, but probably none Hair color: Fair Eye color: Blue Marital status: Married Edith Bratt on March 22nd, 1916 Fun Facts: Even though his first name was John, he was almost always called Ronald Was bitten by a tarantula while in South Africa Played rugby all through his school years Broke his nose and cut his tongue playing rugby Met Edith, three years his senior, when he was sixteen His guardian banned him from seeing Edith until he had turned twenty-one (he was eighteen when the ban was enacted) Failed to win a scholarship to Oxford University in 1909, but succeeded the next year By age 19, he was quite dedicated to smoking his pipe Created numerous school clubs, including T.C.B.S., the Apolausticks, and the Kolbítar Another Tolkien-formed group, the Viking Club, translated nursery rhymes into Anglo-Saxon Always detested anything French, including the language and the cooking Disliked Shakespeare with a passion Loathed allegory in all its forms, although ironically his story Leaf by Niggle is somewhat allegorical Enjoyed playing card games Bridge and Patience (the latter is also called Solitaire) Was a signals officer in his battalion during WWI Worked on New English Dictionary entries U-Z At age 27, he started writing his diary entries in his own alphabet Enjoyed solving crossword puzzles and doodling Middle-earthian designs on them Had four children: John, Christopher, Michael, and Priscilla Served part-time duty as air raid warden during WWII His first car was a Morris Cowley nicknamed "Jo" Thought his friend C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia was silly and immature Converted Lewis back to Christianity The Hobbit's first line was written while Tolkien graded exam papers Was a skilled artist--his own drawings were published in The Hobbit, and his calligraphy was always elegant and adorned Christopher Tolkien's first wife, Faith, sculpted a bust of Tolkien, which Tolkien later had cast in bronze Tolkien and his wife are buried in the same grave. Below his name on the tombstone is inscribed "Beren" and below Edith's name is inscribed "Lúthien," in honor of two characters from The Silmarillion. Sites to see: The Tolkien Society J.R.R. Tolkien in Oxford Tolkien.co.uk   < < Back to index page