What does it mean to be a true fan?

[Knight of Gondor]

*Shrugs, then chuckles*

A true fan, eh? Well, I suppose it would mean that you have a good collection of books about Middle-Earth. You've read the Silmarillion at least once. You can distinguish between movie and book. If you like the movie (not mandatory, but a large, missing chunk if you don't), you have a basic, working knowledge of cast and crew members, scenes, actors, weapons, art, design, and a good deal of behind-the-scenes knowledge. You have a feel for the history of Middle-Earth, and at least a little knowledge about Tolkien itself.

I'd shy away from saying that these are qualifications, however, for entering the kingdom of fan-dom. I was a hard-core fan years ago when I first picked up the FotR book. (I had to sacrifice my reading rights to the next four Left Behind books in order for my older brother to let me go ahead and read RotK ahead of him!) I think it depends on mindset and passion for it. If you gradually fail to meet those "qualifications" I listed, then it would seem you're gradually losing your fan status.