From the Dallas Morning News

From the Dallas Morning News comes this article wondering about the lack of parents in children’s movies, including the film Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.

Harry Potter’s magic is showing no signs of waning, according to the annual list of the most popular books read in Australia.

The Daily Record has posted quite a few articles today:

He’s the world’s most-loved orphan, star of the Quidditch pitch, famed for his lighting-bolt scar, and today he celebrates his birthday. Harry Potter, the hero of JK Rowling’s best-selling children’s books, will be the centre of attention in the magical and Muggle worlds on his big day. Millions of birthday telegrams are winging their way to the teenager by owl post and Muggle mail, while fans sign giant cards and swamp the Internet with greetings. But the shy Seeker is likely to be spending his special day, like the rest of the summer holidays, with the dreaded Dursleys.

Once one starts delving into the realms of the magical, age and things like birthdates become rather fuzzy, as magic can take us back and forth through time. So you must forgive the fact that, while Harry’s birthday remains fixed as being on July 31 every year – making him a proud and clever Leo – his actual age must, for the sake of the magic, remain something of a mystery.

While there’s no disputing today is Harry’s birthday, the year he was born has been the subject of heated debate among internet fans of the fictional character. In the Philosopher’s Stone, it reads, “tomorrow, Tuesday, was Harry’s eleventh birthday.” July 31 doesn’t fall on a Tuesday very often and most readers assumed that, because the book was published in 1997, Harry attended Hogwarts during the 1990’s – and 1990 is the only year July 31 falls on a Tuesday. That means Harry was born in 1979 and would turn 23 today.

Centuries after the death of the era of witches and wizards, magic and sorcery have once again conquered the world of the ordinary muggle. Wondering what the muggle is or, for that matter, how this sea-change came about? Well, one doesn’t need a wand or a crystal ball to get an answer. Just type ‘Harry Potter’ on any search engine on the Internet and the popularity of J.K. (Joanne Kathleen) Rowling’s four-book series hits you right between the eyes. Fan clubs, home pages, research material and chat rooms onthe author and her books scream for attention. (From the Hindustan Times.)

Ananova reports that props from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone are being raffled for charity. They include two of the letters used in the film inviting Harry Potter to Hogwarts School, a T-shirt worn by one of the film crew, a hat and a poster. The raffle is raising money for the Iain Rennie Hospice at Home, which provides free nursing care for patients in the Chiltern area of Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire.