Originally posted on JRR Tolkien Examiner on 5/27/09.

Trivia question: Who is the only member of the Lord of the Rings movie cast who actually met author JRR Tolkien?*

The answer is Christopher Lee, who portrayed Saruman. And today, May 27th, is Lee’s 87th birthday.

Lee has performed in over 200 films, according to his Wikipedia profile. Most notably, he portrayed Dracula in at least five films; the title character in the James Bond film The Man With The Golden Gun; and Count Dooku in the Star Wars prequels.

He not only portrayed Saruman in The Two Towers and The Return of the King, but also provided the voice for the audiobook version of The Children of Húrin.

*Note to sticklers — yes, Royd Tolkien was an extra in The Return of the King. And he “met” his great-grandfather JRR Tolkien — as an infant. He has no memory of the event.