LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Movie box office records would have to reach back as far back as 2007, when Will Smith's "I Am Legend," debuting on the same weekend raked $77.2 million.

"Hobbit" is the first in a planned trilogy by director Jackson, who previously mined box office gold with his "Lord of the Rings" series, likewise based on the books of fantasy author J. R. R. Tolkien.

Based on Tolkien's 1937 novel and set 60 years before the events chronicled in "The Lord of the Rings" begins, the film enjoyed an older audience with the majority of ticket buyers, 58 percent being older than 25 years of age. Men made up 57 percent of "The Hobbit's" audience.

Some 326 Imax theaters, the favorite locale of "fan boys," made up the top 10 locations for "Hobbit," generating $10.1 million in ticket sales for a location average of $31,000. Imax screens playing the film in the 48 frames-per-second format also generated strong numbers, or $44,000 per location.

In the meantime, Academy Award contenders "Lincoln" and "Silver Linings Playbook" both saw a boost from their Golden Globe nominations.

In its sixth weekend, Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" dropped less than 19 percent to come in No. 3 with weekend earnings of $7.2 million and putting its domestic total at $107.9 million. DreamWorks produced the film, while Disney has domestic distribution duties.

From David O. Russell, "Silver Linings" dropped only four percent to come in No. 10 with $2.1 million from 371 theaters.

The top ten movies at U.S. box offices this past weekend were:

1. "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
2. "Rise of the Guardians"
3. "Lincoln"
4. "Skyfall"
5. "Life of Pi"
6. "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2"
7. "Wreck-It Ralph"
8. "Playing for Keeps"
9. "Red Dawn"
10. "Silver Linings Playbook"