'Lord of the Rings' DVDs Arrive, Slowly

By Stephen M. Silverman

08/06/2002 at 12:00 PM EDT

Frodo and Gandalf were not there, but several costumed citizens of Middle Earth were, along with William Baldwin, Caroline Rhea, Chazz Palminteri, Marilu Henner and John Rhys-Davies, who played Gimli in last year's blockbuster "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings." The scene Monday night was Central Park's Boathouse in New York City, which hosted a fundraiser benefit for the Creative Coalition, a social and public advocacy group made up of members of the entertainment community. The evening also marked the official launch of the home video version of the first part of the movie trilogy based on J.R.R. Tolkien's Hobbit-ridden fantasy. Baldwin, 39, and the president of the Coalition, thanked the crowd, which included PEOPLE.com, for turning out on such "a hot, sticky, summer night," while Stephen Einhorn, CEO of New Line Home Entertainment, which is releasing the video, promised DVDs for all the guests. (New Line, like PEOPLE, is part of AOL Time Warner.) "I expect all of you to stay up all night, watching it," said Einhorn. As smoke enveloped Central Park Lake, an armada of hooded emissaries from Middle Earth arriving in gondolas was expected at the Boathouse to deliver the first of the DVDs, but not until after a lengthy delay. "Please stand by," came an announcement. "We are experiencing technical difficulties." Where's a good wizard when you need one?