It was a very long road, but Monday, March 21st officially marks the first day of principle photography for The Hobbit films. Peter Jackson and company had a lot of obstacles to surmount with the lawsuits, MGM bankruptcy, Guillermo del Toro forced to leave, ginned up actor strike, and more. The cast is in the place, the sets are built, and Hobbiton is ready to go.As a kind of marker of the day, it seems the Official The Hobbit Blog has also been kicked off starting with a look at the core cast of The Hobbit. "Pictured from left to right are: AIDAN TURNER, WILLIAM KIRCHER, STEPHEN HUNTER, JED BROPHY, JAMES NESBITT, MARK HADLOW, JOHN CALLEN, MARTIN FREEMAN (FRONT), PETER HAMBLETON, GRAHAM MCTAVISH, ROB KAZINSKY, KEN STOTT, RICHARD ARMITAGE, ADAM BROWN."