Peter Dinklage, George R.R. Martin among N.J. Hall of Fame nominees

Nov. 17 (UPI) -- Game of Thrones collaborators George R.R. Martin and Peter Dinklage are among the 2018 nominees for induction into the New Jersey Hall of Fame.

Dinklage plays Tyrion on the HBO series, which is based on Martin's fantasy novels.

Also included in the nomination roster are author Peter Benchley, late chef and television presenter Anthony Bourdain, actors Danny Aiello, Jason Alexander and Ed Harris, comedians Chris Rock and Whoopi Goldberg, actress Anne Hathaway, musicians Patti Smith, Phoebe Snow and The Smithereens, and Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito and the late Antonin Scalia.

Voting is now open to the public. Inductees will be announced next month and a ceremony honoring the winners is to take place in May.

"Everyone needs a hero, and the accomplishments of Garden State citizens span the pages of nearly every volume of American history. Until now, they have never existed side-by-side, in one place," the Hall of Fame website said. "The people we celebrate have overcome every imaginable obstacle and challenge. They have survived war, overcome the bleakness of poverty, conquered fear and disability and rebounded from untold rejections and failure."