Belated RIP: Priscilla Tolkien, February 28

[thewayne]

While buying my supporting membership for the Chicago WorldCon to get the Hugo downloads (don't seem to be available yet), for whatever reason I decided to read the In Memoriam page and came across this entry:

Priscilla Tolkien (b.1929) died on February 28. Tolkien was the youngest and last surviving child of J.R.R. Tolkien and has served as the honorary Vice President of the Tolkien Society. She served as a trustee for the Tolkien Trust.

Her entry in Wikipedia is a bit more informative. She was a probation officer and social worker and deeply involved in her father's work, serving as a typist at the age of fourteen. She also served to name Frodo, whose original name was Bingo Bolger-Baggins.

There are still some grandchildren and presumably some greats, nephews and nieces.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tolkien_family#Priscilla_Tolkien

One thing mentioned in the Tolkien Family Wikipedia page that I had forgotten was that JRR was born in South Africa! I vaguely recalled that. I don't remember when he moved to England.

Comments

[dewline]

Wow.

That reach and scope of history encompassed in her obituary there...

[thewayne]

Yeah, it was quite something.

[disneydream06]

Thank goodness she was around for the naming process. :o
Hugs, Jon

[warriorsavant]

If I recall correctly, The Shire was an idealized version of either where he lived in S. Africa, or his mother's stories about the Dear Little English Countryside; whereas Mordor was Birmingham.

[thewayne]

I have a similar faint recollection.

[suchasnack]

I wonder what it must've been like for her (but for the rest of her family, too!) to realize how much impact JRRT had on so many lives. The stories he used to tell his children, the same ones she used to type, have also kept so many people company, encouraged them and made them dream. She must've been so proud of her father ♥

[thewayne]

It is curious to think about, to be part of a literary "event" that almost single-handedly created an entire genre of literature.  For example, in a different field, you have Star Trek.  Leonard Nimoy famously wrote the book I Am Not Spock, not long after the original series ended.  Then the fan cons started and he later embraced his part in Trek helping bring science fiction further into the main stream, and later writing another book, I Am Spock.  I am unaware of Christopher or any of the other Tolkien children writing a book about their experience as being a Tolkien.  Me, working in a library, maybe I should look into this.

[suchasnack]

I am unaware of Christopher or any of the other Tolkien children writing a book about their experience as being a Tolkien.

That's a good point, I have absolutely no clue. If you discover something do report back, I think it would be an interesting read :)