Ian Holm is not Bilbo Baggins

The actor and human being Ian Holm poses for a photo before the world premiere of the film The Duchess, held at the Odeon Leicester Square in London on September 3, 2008. The operative term here is "human being." Although he is closely associated with his role of Bilbo Baggins in the film series that desecrated the beloved Lord of the Rings books of J.R.R. Tolkien -- and although he may look cute and cuddly -- Ian Holm is not, in fact, a hobbit. Hobbits don't exist. Ian Holm is simply a human being, and a friendly-looking human at that. Ian Holm was born in 1931 (wow!) so he turned 77 the year this photo was taken.