Bored of the Rings: A Parody of J. R. R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings [Paperback]

Harvard Lampoon (Author), Henry Beard (Author), Douglas C. Kenney (Author)

Book Description

Release date: July 1, 1993

A quest, a war, a ring that would be grounds for calling any wedding off, a king without a kingdom, and a little, furry "hero" named Frito, ready - or maybe just forced by the wizard of Goodgulf - to undertake the one mission which can save Lower Middle Earth from enslavement by the evil Sorhed...Luscious Elfmaidens, a roller-skating dragon, ugly plants that can soul-kiss the unwary to death - these are just some of the ingredients in the wildest, wackiest, most irreverent excursion into fantasy realms that anyone has ever dared to undertake.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Written in the gloaming of their college days, just before they started National Lampoon, Douglas C. Kenney and Henry N. Beard wrote Bored of the Rings. It's dated--references to Nixon, drugs, and consumer products circa 1969 crowd every page--but darn it, Bored of the Rings is still funny nearly 30 years later: "'Goodbye, Dildo,' Frito said, stifling a sob. 'I wish you were coming with us.'

'Ah, yes. But I'm too old for that sort of thing now,' said the old boggie, feigning a state of total quadriplegia. 'Anyway, I have a few small gifts for you,' and he produced a lumpy parcel, which Frito opened somewhat unenthusiastically in view of Dildo's previous going-away present [the ring]. But the package only contained a short, Revereware sword, a bulletproof vest full of moth holes, and several well-thumbed novellas with titles like Elf Lust and Goblin Girl..."

Place yourself in the hands of these professional humorists: you won't be disappointed.

About the Author

The Harvard Lampoon was essentially Douglas Kenney and Henry Beard. They wrote BORED OF THE RINGS when they were students at Harvard. They then went on to form tTHE NATIONAL LAMPOON, a satirical institution in the '70s. Kenney died in 1980. Beard lives in the Hamptons in the USA. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Roc Trade; 51 Anv edition (July 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451452615
• ISBN-13: 978-0451452610
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (261 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #732,480 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 48 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars 4 stars if you were born after 1970 September 2, 1999

By An adult reader

Format:Paperback

It was in order to read and enjoy this book that I first read "The Hobbit" and the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. One of my high school buddies, now a struggling author, was tossed out of English class for laughing out loud while reading this book during class. I read it in 1974, and remember laughing out loud frequently. [Unfortunately, LOTR and BOTR led to the Dungeons and Dragons(tm) role playing games, which cost me points off my GPA in college. ] Here it is, 25 years later, and rereading this book made me chuckle with delight. My kids want to read whatever it was that made Daddy laugh, so I have promised them that when they have finished Tolkein's books, which are good, clean heroic fantasy based on a variety of Western Literary archetypes, that they can read this short and humorous spoof.

The book has not aged as well as it might have, since it has many pop culture references from the late 1960's/early 1970's. Back then, drugs were "cool," writing dirty passages was a daring/shocking assault on the perceived prudery of American society, the anti-establishment theme was still a vibrant part of American culture, and National Lampoon was becoming a very funny (albeit sohpomoric) magazine. Cultural norms change, and some contextual humor will be lost to the current generation. All that notwithstanding, BOTR is a great spoof of LOTR and an integral part of any Tolkein collection.

For those of you offended by a spoof of JRR Tolkein's trilogy, including the indignant 8th grader, I challenge you to write a parody of the LOTR for Generation X. You will find that it takes great love for a work to spoof it successfully. Example: Monty Python's Quest for the Holy Grail movie, a spoof of the most beloved legendary figure of English culture. I suspect there are a lot of sharp wits out there who could equal, or even better, the original spoof and in so doing make a whole new generation laugh without losing their affection for the LOTR. I for one would love to see a Generation X spoof of Lord of the Rings.

Laughter is good for you. . . so read this book.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The Harvard Lampoon's take on Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" December 16, 2004

By Lawrance M. Bernabo HALL OF FAMETOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Despite a background in literature I actually remember very few lines of verse, but amongst those committed to memory are the lines: "We Boggies are a merry folk/who like to eat until we choke/loving all like friend and brother/and hardly ever eat each other" (which is followed up a chorus that repeats the word "gobble" a whole bunch of times). "Bored of the Rings," the Harvard Lampoon parody of J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings," was written by Douglas C. Kenney and Henry N. Beard at the end of the Sixties, right before they went off into the real world to found "The National Lampoon" and at a time when the Trilogy was required reading for fans of fantasy.

Of course, it goes without saying that much of what you will find in here will be grossly offensive and that if you are not well versed in Tolkien's Trilogy then the story of the ring that was given by Dildo Bugger to his nephew Frito, who then embarked with his servant Spam, his friends Moxie and Pepsi, Goodgulf Grayteeth the wizard, Stomper the ranger (a.k.a. Arrowroot of Arrowshirt), Bromosel, Gimlet the dwarf and Legolam the elf across Lower Middle Earth to the dark land of Fordor is not going to make much sense. For that matter you had better be well versed in the drug culture of the Sixties and the political machinations of Richard Nixon to get all of the references (I just realized: we need an annotated edition of "Bored of the Rings"). Even if you have seen the movies and recognize the lady Hashberry, you still need to have read the books to know who Tom Benzedrine is in the grand scheme of things.

My favorite scene are when the Ballhog shows up and when Goddam and the ring meet their final fate. This is a lengthy parody, necessitated by the size of the work that inspired this insanity. Despite the low-brown humor involved with the playful names, there is some college level sophistication to the parody as well. However, if you consider Tolkien to be sacred text, then do not go anywhere near "Bored of the Rings" because you will be grossly offended (and probably several other types of offended as well). I will still maintain that the wicked sense of humor here is inspired by an affection for Tolkien's work, but understand that there will be those who dismiss that idea.

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The Harvard Lampoon's take on Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" February 4, 2004

By Lawrance M. Bernabo HALL OF FAMETOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I remember very few lines of verse, but amongst those committed to memory are the lines: "We Boggies are a merry folk/who like to eat until we choke/loving all like friend and brother/and hardly ever eat each other" (which is followed up a chorus that repeats the word "gobble" a whole bunch of times). "Bored of the Rings," the Harvard Lampoon parody of J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings," was written by Douglas C. Kenney and Henry N. Beard at the end of the Sixties, right before they went off into the real world to found "The National Lampoon" and at a time when the Trilogy was required reading for fans of fantasy.

Of course, it goes without saying that much of what you will find in here will be grossly offensive and that if you are not well versed in Tolkien's Trilogy then the story of the ring that was given by Dildo Bugger to his nephew Frito, who then embarked with his servant Spam, his friends Moxie and Pepsi, Goodgulf Grayteeth the wizard, Stomper the ranger (a.k.a. Arrowroot of Arrowshirt), Bromosel, Gimlet the dwarf and Legolam the elf across Lower Middle Earth to the dark land of Fordor is not going to make much sense. For that matter you had better be well versed in the drug culture of the Sixties and the political machinations of Richard Nixon to get all of the references (I just realized: we need an annotated edition of "Bored of the Rings"). Even if you have seen the movies and recognize the lady Hashberry, you still need to have read the books to know who Tom Benzedrine is in the grand scheme of things.

My favorite scene are when the Ballhog shows up and when Goddam and the ring meet their final fate. This is a lengthy parody, necessitated by the size of the work that inspired this insanity. Despite the low-brown humor involved with the playful names, there is some college level sophistication to the parody as well. However, if you consider Tolkien to be sacred text, then do not go anywhere near "Bored of the Rings" because you will be grossly offended (and probably several other types of offended as well). I will still maintain that the wicked sense of humor here is inspired by an affection for Tolkien's work, but understand that there will be those who dismiss that idea.