At midnight dedicated fans began lining up at the AMC theaters in Burbank to be among the first to see the highly anticipated trailer for Lord of the Rings.

Having some smores.

Ominous reports of rain did not dampen everyone’s spirits. Tolkien Guild staff members set up a tarp to protect fans against the rain, and many brought their own tents to help them brave the elements. A generous donation of Domino’s pizza also helped to bolster everyone’s spirits.

The first sleeper. Some call him ‘wimpy’.

Inspired by the film productions’ book signing described in Ain’t It Cool News‘ “A Geek In Middle-earth” reports, line members have been writing their thanks to Peter Jackson in a copy of Lord of the Rings that will hopefully sent to him in New Zealand.

Bringing you the news.

Tolkien Online was present in full force, with Jonathan, Ted, Cline, David and mandos being among the first in line. In fact, Cline saved the day by convincing a nearby Radio Shack manager to stop taking inventory and opening up shop to sell us desperately needed (but somehow overlooked) computer cables for our registration table.

The early group getting started.

The excitement will continue until the theater doors open and we get to see the long-awaited trailer at 12:30pm.

We’ll keep you posted with all the latest developments!