 |
::2/5/03 Harry and Vatican City:: VATICAN CITY, Feb. 4 The Vatican (where the pope lives) is giving two thumbs up to the Harry Potter series. The good vs. evil plot lines of the best-selling books are imbued with Christian morals, the Rev. Don Peter Fleetwood told a Vatican news conference. "I don't see any, any problems in the Harry Potter series," Fleetwood said. HE WAS RESPONDING to questions Monday, following the release of a new Vatican document on the New Age phenomenon, which he helped draft as a member of the Pontifical Council for Culture. Fleetwood was asked whether the magic embraced by Harry Potter and his pals at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, in the series of books by J.K. Rowling, was problematic for the Roman Catholic Church. Some evangelical groups have condemned the series for glamorizing magic and the occult. "I don't think there's anyone in this room who grew up without fairies, magic and angels in their imaginary world," said Fleetwood, who is British. "They aren't bad. They aren't serving as a banner for an anti-Christian ideology. "If I have understood well the intentions of Harry Potter's author, they help children to see the difference between good and evil," said Fleetwood. "And she is very clear on this." ::1/20/03 Hyped Up Over Harry:: According to Headline CNN, Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix became a best seller within twenty-four hours of the announcement of it's release date! Also, I just noticed this yesterday myself... if you visit the "book" section of Amazon.com and scroll down just a bit, they have posted a hour by hour "Muggle Counter" reporting the number of Harry Potter items they have sold worldwide to date! The count is nearing 500,000!!! Click here to see for your self! :) ::1/15/03 Harry Potter 5 is Coming June 21st!!!:: For those of you who have yet to hear; Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix is coming on June 21st of this year!!! Only a few more months to go!! This is an article from USA today; LONDON (Reuters) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the fifth book of adventures of the boy wizard by author J.K. Rowling, is due to be published on June 21, its British publisher said on Wednesday. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the fifth installment in the Potter series, will be published on June 21. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is absolutely superb and will delight all J K Rowling's fans. She has written a brilliant and utterly compelling new adventure," Bloomsbury Publishing Plc chief executive Nigel Newton said in a statement. The book, which at 38 chapters and 255,000 words, will be a third longer than the last book Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is also being published by U.S. children's book publisher Scholastic Corp. Fans will have had a three-year wait for Order of the Phoenix. Goblet of Fire was published on Saturday, July 8, 2000 and was the fastest-selling book in history on the first weekend of its publication. Like Goblet of Fire, Order of the Phoenix is being published on a Saturday, meaning eager fans will not have to miss a day off school or work to buy the new book. By then, most will likely know the first few sentences off by heart. They are: "The hottest day of the summer so far was drawing to a close and a drowsy silence lay over the large, square houses of Privet Drive ... The only person left outside was a teenage boy who was lying flat on his back in a flowerbed outside number four". The book may have a darker side than the earlier escapades. Bloomsbury said Rowling also writes: "Dumbledore lowered his hands and surveyed Harry through his half-moon glasses. "It is time," he said, "for me to tell you what I should have told you five years ago, Harry. "Please sit down. I am going to tell you everything... " (End of article) I am incredlibly exited! Post about this breaking news at the Message Board! ::1/3/03 J.K. Rowling, Britain's Highest-Earning Woman:: According to TheOlympian.com, The money keeps rolling in for "Harry Potter" creator J.K. Rowling, who was far ahead of the pack as Britain's highest-earning woman. The author reportedly raked in $77 million this year, nearly doubling the $43 million earned by Madonna, who came in second place in a survey in The Mail on Sunday newspaper. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," the movie version of the second book in Rowling's series about the boy wizard, grossed $240 million in North America alone. Yeah for Rowling! :) ::1/1/03 Happy New Year:: The Sorting Hat is glad to be back for the new year. Some changes that were made to the site while we were gone include; Chamber of Secrets the Game Codes, and one new affiliate. ::12/16/02 The Trouble with Potter:: After just two films the Harry Potter franchise is in trouble. The third movie will be late, the fourth book is proving unadaptable, the director is burned out and the boy wizard is facing a greater enemi than Voldemort- the march of time. The Daily Telegraph has an admittedly depressing article covering the challenges the Harry Potter franchise faces. The franchise is growing up, just like Harry. Of course there will be challenges. ::12/13/02 Going Once, Going Twice...:: The card signed by J.K. Rowling including random words and hints about the upcoming book (Order of the Phoenix) was auctioned off this past Wednesday, and sold for nearly $38,000 (�24,000 was the final bid). That's almost $47,000 with the added taxes. ::11/1/02 A LOT HAS HAPPENNED:: As some of you have may have noticed, my site has been down for the past week due to technical difficulties. But I have had help in fixing the problem, and hopefully it will never happen again. Here are all of the things that have happened in the past week: First and foremost, we would like to express our deepest sympathy for the family and friends of Richard Harris who died this past week at age 72. Also, I would like to ask you to vote for this site at the following awards sites: Erised Awards O.W.L. Awards Alohomora Awards To vote for this site at these awards sites, simply click on the link above, once at the site, you should see a link for "voting". After that there should be further instructions... The site name will either be listed under something like: "SortingHat.tk" or just "Sorting Hat". I really appreciate all of your votes... and I am going to need every single one! We also won another award this week.. (Pretty impressive since my site wasn't even working right huh? :D ) from Harry Potter Books and More! You can see this award on my "Awards Won" page. ::10/21/02 NO EIGHTH HARRY POTTER BOOK:: CNN reports that J.K. Rowling's agent has denied reports of an 8th Harry Potter book (just as I suspected... I knew it was too good to be true! :) ) Click here to read the entire article! If you have any news you would like to submit about HP, click here!::10/13/02 VOTE FOR ME:: First of all, I would like to give you all an advanced notice, that I may not be able to update my site every day but instead something like every 2-4 days this week basically because of school... Now, to the real order of business: I have been nominated in the O.W.L. Awards! Voting voting begins soon, so keep checking back and please vote for me!! Also, voting has begun at the "Erised Awards" and I would greatly appreciate your vote at that site as well! Although.. I highly doubt I even have a chance compared to some of the other nominees.... but you can vote for me by clicking on the button under my "Affiliates" section on this very page, and just follow the instructions from there. ::9/27/02 AZKABAN CASTING CALL:: Thanks to Mugglenet.com for this article. The film bosses are not actually launching a big search for new kids to play roles in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. But don't get your hopes up too much. They are not promising budding actors and actresses or anything. They just want to give you a proper address to write to if you are determined to be characters like Cho Chang or Cedric Diggory. Remember! Leavesden Studios don't want you to phone, write or fax to any other address you might have heard about - this one only! Send a short letter and a recent photograph to: Casting Office Leavsden Studios PO Box 322 Watford Hertfordshire WD25 7XJ ::9/20/02 POTTER AUTHOR IS EXPECTING:: Thanks to cnn.com for this news story: LONDON, England Author J.K. Rowling, hard at work producing a new Harry Potter book, is expecting a baby. Rowling, 37, who was married on December 26 last year, has a nine-year-old daughter, Jessica, from her previous marriage. "J. K. Rowling and Dr. Neil Murray are delighted to confirm that they are expecting a baby in the spring," said spokeswoman Nicky Stonehill. It was as a single mother after her divorce and while bringing up her daughter, that Rowling began to write the best-selling books in Edinburgh. Rowling's second child will be born into a very different world to that of Jessica's younger years when the author was still struggling. ::9/19/02 GREAT NEWS ABOUT BOOK FIVE:: Thanks to Mugglenet.com, whom got it from CBBC News for this interview with J.K.!! Lizo: There have been quite a few rumours about when book five will be out - when do you think it'll be ready? JK: There's a lot of book done - that's all I want to say because if I give a date and then I pass it everyone will be upset. I will say that I have a beginning, a middle and an end - you could read it all the way through and I know a lot of Harry Potter fans will say just give it to us but I'm perfectionist and I want a bit more time to tweak. I really am getting there and I have to laugh when I read the bits about writers block because I don't think I've ever been blocked in my life! I'm loving the writing and now the revising and I'm getting on really well. Lizo: Is the book going to be as long as book four was? JK: Yes, it is looking that way - it's already passed Azkaban, so I think yes, we are looking at Goblet of Fire length. Lizo: Finally, what's your message to children who've been waiting for the next book for a two and half years? JK: It's coming and it's a lot nearer than you'd think if you read some newspapers - just trust me. 9/17/02 Updates and Uh-Ohs Well, I as I posted just a few days ago, I added a new "Free Graphics" page, and there have already been a couple of webmasters interested. One of the webmasters was from WIzardBlood.com. But when I tried to e-mail them back, I get an error message back from their server. Just wanted to let you know WizardBlood. :) 9/16/02 We're Done! I finnally finished updating the rest of the site, so now the new layout will be on every page. Added lots of new Chamber of Secrets Pics, including new teasers! I also added a new page: "Free Graphics" make sure to check it out today! 9/10/02 More news on WB's sneak preview of Harry Potter and the COS. Some one on Mugglenet.com wrote in and said; "Tonight, I was watching Angel and they said that on the Season Premiere of this new show called "Family Affair" they were going to pass a sneak preview of the upcoming film "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"." Mugglenet says that they have heard this claim many times before so it is most likely true. So keep your eyes peeled!! "Family Affair" will air on Sept. 12th, 2002 at 8/7 central, and the preview of COS, will most likely be during the commercials. 9/8/02 Get a Sneak Preview of HP and the Chamber of Secrets in Vanity Fair Magazine! The October issue of Vanity Fair will have a article featuring a behind the scenes look at Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets! Click on pic below for a bigger image. 9/7/02 All-New Harry Potter Trailer to Air on the WB!!! You heard it right - according to iHarryPotter, and MuggleNet, the WB will be airing a brand-new trailer for Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets next Thursday. 'Lynn' told them: "I was watching the WB between Sabrina and Reba and they aired a commercial for the SNEAK PREVIEW TO COS! It airs next Thursday! " Keep in mind that this has not been confirmed yet - we will keep you updated on this! If you can confirm this rumor, please drop us a line. Here's hoping it's true! 8/24/02 Yet Another Birthday! Happy B-Day to the boy who plays Ron; Rupert Grint! (tuning 14) |
 |
 |
|
| ::OUR NEWS ARCHIVE: HARRY IN THE NEWS:: |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
| Disclaimer: This site is a non-profit privately owned site. The Sorting Hat is not directly related or associated with J.K. Rowling, Scholastic, or Warner Bros, except for being Part of the Official Harry Potter Webmaster Community. |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
 |
|
 |
