The reason there are so many similarities between HP and LotR is because Tolkien did everything. You can find echoes of LotR in most fantasy works simply due to the fact that Tolkien has influenced so many writers. I can understand comparing them to an extent, but they're just so different that I hate it when hardcore HP fans bash LotR for no apparant reason. The people at the Downs are so much more friendly than the people at the Internet Movie Database boards!
And
Gelmir, a hobbit comes of age at 33, so 50 is not old, but it's not a particularly dapper age to be either
