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B A R B A R A V A N C H E R I ' SOscar Watch Blog
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9:35 p.m. PST
Best Actor Forest Whitaker comes into the press room and starts to field questions before being yanked out for a photo. As tough as it was getting inside Idi Amin's head (for "The Last King of Scotland"), it could be tougher to play a drug addict who doesn't want to live, he said.
Whitaker says he takes his references to his ancestors seriously; he says he sometimes feels a breath on his neck or tingling in his body, and he knows they're around.
He plans to put his Oscar on a shelf on a wall that goes down to his living area, so his children can see it. This is like a "high C" note, the trained singer said. And no, he cannot hit that right now. Whitaker started working on his speech last night, and it was terrific.
No Helen Mirren yet or Martin Scorsese. But the night is far from over.
Mirren and Whitaker were eloquent, Scorsese looked relieved ... and I was too. Not just because I predicted his win (not a hard call) but he deserved it. And has for decades.
Alan Arkin just walked in ... and said he doesn't believe in competition among artists. "Who has the authority to say who's better?"
Oscar voters, that's who.
9:15 p.m., still Sunday night in L.A.
Jennifer Hudson said she was "definitely shocked" that Eddie Murphy lost and that turn made her nervous -- or even more nervous than she already was. "You can never be too sure," she said of her status as front-runner.
Clad in a gold dress that shimmered in the light, Hudson was still getting accustomed to the news. "Did I really just win? ... Gonna take a while to get used to this," she said.
Calling "American Idol" a great platform and denying tension on the set, she talked about her grandmother, who led over 100 solos in their church choir but never wanted to go professional. "Had she gone professional, I wouldn't exist," she said.
Asked for advice to Britney Spears, she said, "All I can do is pray for her. I don't know what's going on," and it's not her business.
Melissa Etheridge said her partner told her, "Write what you feel," and she did, winning an Oscar for best song for "An Inconvenient Truth." Asked if she was surprised that "Dreamgirls" lost, she said yes. "It's what movies and music are about." Had there been one song rather than three, the gold might have gone to "Dreamgirls."
9:10 p.m.
A huge round of applause and cheers in the press room comes when Martin Scorsese is named Best Director. When someone on the carpet had said George Lucas, Steven Spielberg and Francis Ford Coppola were presenting the directing Oscar, they said they assumed that meant anticipation of a Marty win.
12:15 a.m. EST
It's Marty's night!
Martin Scorsese wins for best director and his film, "The Departed," wins best picture.
And it's all over -- finally! -- at 12:17 a.m. Now we just have Monday's paper to close. G'night.
-- Rob Owen, TV editor
12:10 a.m. in Pittsburgh: Nicely done
Both Helen Mirren (best actress) and Forest Whitaker (best actor) offered up winning acceptance speeches in their respective wins. Mirren thanked Queen Elizabeth II, her inspiration for "The Queen," and praised her "dignity, her sense of duty and her hair style. I salute her courage and her consistency and thank her. If it wasn't for her, I most certainly wouldn???t be here."
Whitaker, a winner for "The Last King of Scotland," was emotional in discussing his childhood dreams.
"When I first started acting, it was because of my desire to connect to everyone," he said. "Acting, for me, is about believing in that connection. It's a connection so strong, so deep, we feel it through out combined belief we can create a new reality."
-- Rob Owen, TV editor
We're now blowing our print deadline and all hell is breaking loose. There is a lot of yelling and swearing. We'd like to curse the Academy, computers, software, the Associated Press, long-winded self-important celebrities, Pilobolus and our mothers. Or other people's mothers.
-- Samantha Bennett
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8:32 p.m. PST
In a departure from usual Oscar protocol, Alan Arkin is a no-show, but just so far. He apparently has been waylaid along the way to the press room to field questions. Jennifer Hudson's appearance must have been delayed by her performance during the telecast. At the moment, Ennio Morricone is taking questions, which are being translated and answered in Italian.
8:30 p.m. PST
A questioner in the press room addressed Al Gore as "Mr. President," and he joked he was president of the Senate, so maybe the title wasn't wrong. Turning to the matter at hand, he said of global warming, "This is not a political issue; it's not a political movie. Some of the solutions will have to be worked out within the political sphere," but it should be a bipartisan effort and "seen as a moral issue where we all have the same say."
It is the overriding moral challenge of our time, he told the press room, adding that he hopes the Academy stamp of approval will persuade people to go see the movie, learn about the climate crisis and be part of the solution.
Also he was coy about whether he was jumping into the race during the braodcast; he said, "I do not have plans to become a candidate for office again." While Gore came into the pressroom with five others, he fielded most of the questions and handled them like a ... pro. "We have had a big ally -- reality," Gore said. "Mother Nature has spoken very loudly."
He and the others were leaving the press room when Melissa Etheridge's name was called as the winner for Best Original Song, "I Need to Wake Up." They cheered the news and stopped to watch her acceptance speech.
11:28 p.m.: Give it up Ellen
"I would not want to follow that," DeGeneres said after the "Dreamgirls" performance. It was the second time in the interminable telecast that she made that joke.
"I Need to Wake Up" wins the best song Oscar. How appropriate for this snooze-fest!
-- Rob Owen, TV editor
11:03
My mouse hand and shoulder are cramping up. I'm suffering from montage fatigue. I cannot look directly at Rob's brownies or I will suffer a catastrophic diet failure.
This has been bothering me for months: When I went to Sunday school, Babel was pronounced "Bay-ble." Now everybody says "Babble." I thought there was a memo I didn't get, until I watched the BAFTAs (which were SO much better and much less interminable) and all the Brits said Bayble. One more piece of evidence that I was born British and stolen by elves who gave me to a childless couple in New Jersey.
Also, Tom Cruise is very handsome for a lunatic.
-- Samantha Bennett
11:00 and no end in sight
Barbara Vancheri sends word that Larry David stayed seated when his wife went to the stage, along with Gore, for "An Inconvenient Truth." She was one of the documentary's producers. And yes, the Davids arrived at the Oscars in a Prius, they said earlier.
-- Sharon Eberson
10:50 p.m. in Pittsburgh
The tumblers of Pilobolus are pretty ingenious, and their sketches are mercifully short. Enjoyed the "Snakes on a Plane" logo, especially.
Finally, a sure thing is: Jennifer Hudson wins for "Dreamgirls."
Jerry Seinfeld emerges from self-imposed exile to hand out the best documentary feature award to one of the nominees he describes as "five incredibly depressing movies."
Former vice president Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" wins.
"I'd like to thank the Academy," Gore says, then segues into, "My fellow Americans... [Global warming is] a moral issue, not a political issue."
-- Rob Owen, TV editor
Al Gore gets to come back on stage -- "An Inconvenient Truth" wins best documentary. I feel bad I made fun of his lapels earlier.
-- Sharon Eberson
7:42 in L.A.
When Tom Cruise appeared to give Sherry Lansing her Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, she was surprised. He had been cold to her at an Oscar party -- because he knew he would be the secret presenter. When he whispered in her ear, it was to say it was an honor he really wanted to do.
Lansing said she learned to give back from her mother, "who never turned away from anybody in need." She raised her daughter to do likewise, a feeling underscored by their Midwestern values. "My mother exemplified that." When she saw the picture of her mother, she started to cry.
Asked if she had career advice for Cruise (who parted ways with Sumner Redstone), she said, "I don't think Tom Cruise needs any career tips," Lansing said, calling him one of the best actors and producers she's known and a likely future Oscar winner.
Somewhere the folks at Pittsburgh Filmmakers are smiling ... they will open Best Foreign Language winner "The Lives of Others" on Friday, and it's riding a recent wave of honors, at the Oscars and Spirit Awards. The consensus has been if it wasn't "Pan's," it had to be "Lives." The woman next to me on the red carpet asked the exceedingly tall director where he got a tux to fit, and he said he had it made years ago.
10:36 p.m.
Just as we said "Pan's" can do no wrong, "Lives of Others" beats it out for Best Foreign Language Film.
At least Jennifer Hudson's win for supporting actress in "Dreamgirls" goes according to most pre-Oscar predictions.
10:30 p.m. (almost in a coma)
Sharon says she doesn't ever remember so many long, boring montage sequences.
Does our new contract include hazard pay for evenings like this?
My blood starts pumping anticipating the winner of best foreign language film (I kid). Our money is on "Pan's Labyrinth," which has the most wins so far.
Holy crap, the Germans won!
-- Rob Owen, TV editor
7:26 p.m. at ground zero
Milena Canonero, winner of the costuming Oscar for "Marie Antoinette," gave director Sofia Coppola credit for providing input with her vision, which she called poetic. Unlike some winners, Canonero asked to speak in English rather than one of the foreign languages that typically crop up here.
10:13 in Pittsburgh
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Associated Press Milena Canonero sews up the costume design Oscar. Click photo for larger image. |
"Marie Antoinette" wins for best costume design, and Milena Canonero accepts her award. "She's a European Diane Keaton squeezed into a too-tight suit," Rob says.
We're all watching the clock and not feeling too kindly toward anyone as the ceremony drags on.
Sherry Lansing's speech, mercifully short, is obviously being read off a teleprompter. "Wow, someone more wooden than Al Gore," Samantha says.
OK, we like Steven Spielberg taking a picture of Ellen and Clint Eastwood, and the host tries to direct Spielberg's framing of the shot.
Well, it's 10:15, and one of the sure things isn't so sure: "Pan's Labyrinth" beats out "Children of Men" for best cinematography.
"Pan's" is looking good.
-- Sharon Eberson
Blingwatch
I've been getting a lot of e-mails already about who's wearing whose jewels. Here goes:
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Associated Press Check out those diamond cuffs on Nicole Kidman as she embraces hippie-chick Meryl Streep. Click photo for larger image. |
Nicole Kidman wore two rough diamond cuffs designed by L'wren Scott and manufactured by diamontaire William Goldberg. They contained 187 arrowhead-shaped, uncut diamonds called "maccles" that totaled a whopping 375 carats. Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry was worn by Reese Witherspoon (including a 1937 diamond Cambodian bracelet), Celine Dion (including rings and clips from her personal collection), Catherine Deneuve (including a 1929 Tassel bracelet of rubies and diamonds) and Anne Hathaway. Diamonds were everywhere, including designs by Hearts of Fire (Amy Adams, Frida Rorresblanco, Paula Abdul and Suzanne Bier); H. Stern (Emily Blunt, Faye Dunaway, Jada Pinkett Smith, Maggie Gyllenhaal); Martin Katz (Amy Berg, Gigi Graxer, Helen Kinnear, Minnie Driver and Sheryl Crow); Chopard (Penelope Cruz and Helen Mirren); Fred Leighton (Jennifer Hudson); Harry Winston (Debbie Matenpoulos); Neil Lane (Jay Manuel and Jessica Biel); Lily et Cie (Andre Leon Talley, Celine Dion, Linda Evangelista and Lisa Ling); Judith Ripka (Kelly Preston); Cartier (Rachel Weisz) and Chanel (Rinko Kikuchi).
-- LaMont Jones
7:09 p.m. in L.A.
George Miller, director of "Happy Feet," started "Happy Feet" a long time before "March of the Penguins." He's a convert. "I'm going back to live-action actors for a while, but I'm hooked on animation, and I think it will be in whatever movies I get to make."
He said the basic principles of storytelling are the same in live-action and animation, but he had a tsunami of things to learn. Miller said the humans who appear at the end of the movie are live-action humans; it's difficult to turn humans into animated characters. He's sold on animation; the average age of the people on this film is 26. "I'm an old fart. Working with them was fantastic."
Asked about the blossoming Australian film industry, he said he was blown away by what's going on in Mexico, the sentiment of the night.
Four years later: 9:50 in Pittsburgh
Now we're getting an interminable film montage about writers before adapted screenplay is announced. I'm praying for "Borat" -- you know Sacha Baron Cohen will say something that we'll be talking about tomorrow. (But it's based on a character, not a story. What's the deal with that?)
No, it's "The Departed." Sigh. Nervous winner William Monahan begins by saying, "Valium does work."
It's almost 10, and supporting actress seems a million hours away.
-- Sharon Eberson
9:40 in Pittsburgh
Melissa Ethridge comes on to sing her nominated song from "An Inconvenient Truth." It's called, "I Need to Wake Up."
"I'm gonna have fun with that," Rob says.
Al Gore and Leonardo DiCaprio arrive on stage to announce ... that the Oscars have gone green. Give us a break! Leo begged the former V.P. to make an important announcement, presumably about political office, but he was cutely played off the stage before he could finish.
"He looks like he's been on the chicken-dinner circuit," says my boss, Allan Walton, who's lost a ton of weight recently.
"Allan, you're the only middle-aged guy who's getting smaller," Scott Mervis says.
Give us an award, please! At 9:44: "Happy Feet" wins.
-- Sharon Eberson
6:32 p.m. in L.A.
James Taylor, accompanied by his wife in a beautiful red and white gown on the carpet, revealed this would be his first time at the Oscars. Asked what he normally does on Academy Award night, he said, watch it on TV and drift in and out, just like everyone else.
Not long after, when the winners of the sound mixing Oscar (for "Dreamgirls") come backstage, they are asked about Kevin O'Connell losing for the 19th time. The three winners offer a range of reactions, from maybe he should change his line of work -- we all look at each other, thinking, did he mean that? -- to hang in there and be proud of all he's accomplished so far.
6:25 in L.A.
There's a groan -- hard to know why, surprise or disappointment -- when Alan Arkin's name is announced. Arkin didn't come into the press tent yesterday at the Spirit Awards, and I bet Eddie Murphy would be a lot more fun in the press room. The word that Arkin won for "Little Miss Sunshine" coincides with the appearance of the winners for makeup who are, again, fielding questions in Spanish.
9:15 in Pittsburgh
Ari Sandel, who wins for Best Live Action Short ("West Bank Story"), says, "Hope is not hopeless" -- his film is about Israelis and Palestinians and rival falafel stands. He also says filmmakers who make shorts are trying to be noticed.
"Now you can do TV," Rob Owen says as he types away.
There's a choir doing sound effects.
"We're three away from supporting actor, and we???re 45 minutes in," Scott Mervis says. "This isn't first-hour material."
Rob says what we're all thinking: "They're supposed to be entertaining us."
Finally, a "big" award. It's 9:22 when Rachel Weisz says "the Oscar goes to ... Alan Arkin."
"Maybe this is the beginning of a sweep" for "Little Miss Sunshine," Rob Owen says.
I can't imagine what's going through Eddie Murphy's head right now.
-- Sharon Eberson
After the dance troupe Pilobolus twists their bodies into penguins to represent "Happy Feet," Rob Owen says, "This is the most high-brow Oscars ever -- and by that I mean the most boring."
6:10 p.m. in Hollywood
The winners for art direction just came into the press room. They field their first question in Spanish; in response to the second, Eugenio Caballero says he cannot predict "Pan's" will convert every nomination into a win. "I don't know what's going to happen, but I'm very happy with what is happening with this movie. ... In this cruel world right now, it's important to give a chance to fantasy," he added, describing the gothic fairy tale as a movie about hope.
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Associated Press Abigail Breslin, Little Miss Sunshine herself. Click photo for larger image. |
9:10, and Sam finishes her dinner
Rob brought brownies. Let's hear it for Rob.
Can I just say that I think it's great that Abigail Breslin is dressed like a little girl? As opposed to little girls her age who dress like 17-year-old hoochie mamas? Look how adorable she is.
Also, although I wasn't watching the red carpet action on TV, I was getting a direct feed of AP photos into my cerebral cortex, and I was shocked to see Steve Carell's wife, Nancy Walls, taking a cell phone call on the red carpet. What kind of conversation could that have been? "Listen, I'm going to have to call you back. No, I'm not on the freeway ..."
-- Samantha Bennett
8:50, and the office snarkery settles on Ellen
"Not loving that outfit."
"She looks like the ringmaster at a circus." "Even at the circus they wouldn't wear white shoes." "And it's after Labor Day."
"Oh God, Ellen gets to dance."
"Is it 12:30 yet?"
Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig are announced. Hooray!
Science and tech awards right after art direction to begin the telecast?
"What were they thinking?"
"It's been 20 minutes of nothing."
Go to commercial break ...
-- Sharon Eberson
8:55
Will Ferrell and Jack Black finally liven things up. But supporting actor isn't going to be awarded until No. 7.
At least we're laughing now.
John C. Reilly outsings 'em all. It's a blast.
"That should have opened the show."
5:45 p.m PST
Ellen DeGeneres is killing in the press room. Her opening monologue is prompting people to laugh out loud, while they're typing, taking notes and prepping for what might be a long night. Her Al Gore joke gets across-the-room laughs, and if she made Leonardo DiCaprio blush, she was right -- the ladies do want to look at him. And he's even better looking in person.
We start watching the show
It's almost 8:30, we've seen the order in which the Oscars will be honored, and deadline is already on our minds. "Let's get on with it!" Scott says for all of us.
-- Sharon Eberson
The first seven minutes of the telecast: "Who are these people?" "I'm bored already." "This is real annoying." "Deadly." "Oh, for God's sakes."
The nominees are standing and applauding themselves.
"Come on, Ellen, liven things up."
(Is that Jack Nicholson with a shaved head? Yes.)
5:30 PST, from Barb
It's never too late to get a makeup touch-up, as Maggie Gyllenhaal proved. She stopped on the carpet as someone reapplied her glossy red lipstick, companion Peter Sarsgaard at her side. Like many women, she was wearing a navy dress, and if she ever had baby fat from giving birth to her daughter, it's now long gone. They disappeared into the TV vortex, never stopping by the print press bleachers to entertain questions about "The Mysteries of Pittsburgh" or anything else. But they looked fabulous and happy.
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Associated Press The fabulous diamond shoes, worth a half-million dollars. Click photo for larger image. |
John Travolta is an old friend of Forest Whitaker, and he's firmly in his camp. "I believe in him," a relaxed Travolta told reporters. "We're going to celebrate." His actress wife, a brunette Kelly Preston, was wearing a fitted leopard print dress from Dolce & Gabbana, and she spoke for many women when she told the reporters pressed along the edge of the carpet, "You gotta suffer for your cuteness." Anika Noni Rose showed off her Stuart Weitzman diamond shoes, and they were dazzling.
It's a rule that any mention of Kevin O'Connell must be accompanied by one of Susan Lucci. But Lucci eventually won an Emmy, while O'Connell is still waiting. He's up for No. 19 tonight, and he said he wrote his thank-you on a Post-It in the car on the way here. He has no lucky charm, but if he wins, he jokes he'll sell everything he's wearing on eBay, since something will have worked.
Quick hits: "Devil Wears Prada" pals Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt exchanged warm greetings before going their separate ways on the carpet. Sacha Baron Cohen bypassed the press and slipped on by, with his girlfriend in a gorgeous green gown. Doug Jones, one of the actors in "Pan's Labyrinth," is wearing what he called Western formalwear, an outfit he first donned for "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."
8:15 at the PG
Looking at the electric-red hair color of fashion stylist Patricia Field ("Sex and the City"), Scott Mervis says, "I've never seen hair that color. Even at all the punk shows I've been to."
Features writer Cristina Rouvalis stops by and is upset to see there's a commercial on. She was hoping to glimpse a little glamour, she says, then darts to her assignment.
The Smith family -- Will, Jaden and Jada -- light up the carpet.
Eddie Murphy makes Rob laugh out loud when the "Dreamgirls" nominee is asked which is his favorite Eddie Murphy film. "I like them all," he says. "I even like 'Pluto Nash.'"
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Associated Press Kirsten Dunst and, it turns out, her brother. Click photo for larger image. |
7:50 at the PG, after time out for Chinese food from the Sesame Inn
Later ... looking at some of the skin-tight gowns go by:
"Sam, there should be a contest between who starts to sit down and gets into her seat first: Cameron Diaz, Gwyneth Paltrow or Penelope Cruz."
"Or Mrs. Forest Whitaker," Samantha says.
Nicole Kidman just leaned over and gave George Lucas a kiss. That bright red gown with the big bow over the shoulder makes her look like a Christmas package.
And that's Ricky Gervais on the taped message played by E! for Kate Winslet -- not "Jarvis," as Ryan Seacrest called him.
I say "hippie," but Rob Owen says Meryl Streep looks like she's trying to channel an "Earth Mother." "And she was so hot when we first saw her in 'Manhattan,'" says Scott Mervis. "Or 'Kramer vs. Kramer'," I say.
And who was that blond guy with Kirsten Dunst?
Rob changes to ABC.
-- Sharon Eberson
7:30 p.m. at the PG
"Who would have thought Jessica Biel would be at the Oscars?" Rob Owen says. He's thinking of her from her "7th Heaven" TV days, not from her star turn in "The Illusionist." She's wearing a fucshia gown by Oscar de la Renta.
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Associated Press Cameron Diaz Click photo for larger image. |
7:20 p.m. in chilly Pittsburgh
Look at Cameron Diaz's butt! Seriously, look at it. She wants you to. That's why she wore that dress.
Penelope Cruz: A beautiful woman wearing a pink featherduster.
I wasn't going to be catty -- I really didn't come in here to be catty. I came in here to Web-publish. But I moonlight as a columnist, and I had way, WAY too much coffee to ensure that I'll still be conscious when this show ends sometime around lunch tomorrow, and I haven't had a chance yet to get any of the Chinese food we ordered, and I can't even see the TV. I'm getting my images from the wires. So, you know, I'm not in the mood to mince words.
Great Oscar quote: "Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night."
-- Samantha Bennett, columnist and Web-publisher
6:30 p.m., back at the PG
Michael Sheen comes down the red carpet looking like Tony Blair, whom he's played in the BBC TV drama "The Deal" and in the Oscar-nominated "The Queen."
"That's his shtick," notes Rob Owen.
First up to the E! mic held by Ryan Seacrest is another Brit, scruffy presenter James McAvoy, Forest Whitaker's co-star in "The Last King of Scotland."
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Associated Press Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard. Click photo for larger image. |
LaMont Jones is watching the big TV in the conference room, thumbing through the Vogue with Jennifer Hudson on the cover while checking out the feathers in Maggie Gyllenhaal's hair and on her gown as she walks the red carpet. He's loving a structured Ralph Lauren outfit in a Vogue ad, but he turns his full attention now to the screen, and we who have watched Gyllenhaal -- a recent mom and star of "Sherrybaby" -- on a lot of red carpets, agree that "this is the best she's looked," as LaMont says.
Speaking of Ralph Lauren ... that's the designer whose tux former Vice President Al Gore chose to wear. Gotta say, those are the widest lapels I've ever seen.
No one is feeling Jennifer Hudson's silver "Jetsons" bolero.
"Andre Leon Talley was dressing her for tonight. What was he thinking?" LaMont says. The gown underneath looks great, though. "And did you see Cameron Diaz? She looks great in white."
-- Sharon Eberson
3:25 PST
The skies above are getting crowded with two helicopters, one blimp and a plane towing a banner that says, "Bring Our Troops Home Now."
On a lighter note, a straw poll among the bleacher fillers favors "Little Miss Sunshine" as Best Picture.
3:05 California time
Carpet dwellers were treated to a sneak preview of Pilobolus, dancers who will be performing tonight. They will create nine segments during the show. Laura Ziskin, producer of the telecast, said, "Pilobolus dancers are like magicians with their bodies -- they do everything. Everyone should expect the unexpected. I can't wait."
The performance was kept hush-hush prior to the telecast.
Pilobolus was formed by a group of students at Dartmouth College in 1971 and are based in Connecticut.
A dispatch from the home front
Arrived in the office a little after 4 and refrigerated regular and diet Pepsis for a long night of watching, waiting and hoping for the winners to be quick about their thank yous.
TV editor Rob Owen is already here, and we'll be joined by Weekend Mag editor Scott Mervis and fashion editor LaMont Jones, plus an editing crew for print and the Web.
There are two messages in my voice mail from PG movie editor Barbara Vancheri, who's on the red carpet now. She's been sending in regular blog entries, along with her stories for the newspaper, since she arrived in Hollywood Thursday. I take a quick dictation, and now I can watch the E! Network pre-show filler for a while, before the "Who are you wearing?" questions get hot and heavy.
Oscar night is a busy one at the PG, but someone was escaping as I walked in -- Seen editor Marylynn Uricchio.
Marylynn was a PG movie critic back in her pre-Seen days and was in Los Angeles for the ceremony about 15 times, she estimates. In recent years, she's covered the local Oscar gala, but this time, she's leaving it to her colleagues.
"This is one of the few times in the past 27 years I'll get to watch at home," she says, relishing the thought as she waves goodbye.
-- Sharon Eberson, Post-Gazette entertainment editor
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Associated Press Wolfgang Puck with his contribution. Click photo for larger image. |
2:15 p.m., California time
Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck arrived bearing chocolate Oscars, in what's become an annual ritual. He was in his white chef's coat, accompanied by a small staff.
One of the nominees, Michael Arndt, writer of "Little Miss Sunshine," is an early arrival, escorting his mother. His hoarse voice from yesterday's Spirit Awards has gotten worse, and he seems to be saving his voice for later.
2 p.m., California time
To make sure there are no gaps in the press bleachers, "bleacher fillers" toting boxed lunches -- marked turkey or vegetarian -- are squeezed into our section. They're the ones in the upper rows with the bottled water and wearing sweatshirts and comfortable shoes.
The red velvet rope with metal stanchions has just gone up along the red carpet. Sid Ganis, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, has welcomed the crowd and announced the academy would be taking a class photo. He took the opportunity to thank and pay tribute to John Pavlik, who has done publicity for the academy for 39 years.
So far, the only celebrities are media types such as bejeweled Mary Hart, in a gorgeous blue dress; Jann Carl, resplendent in red; Deborah Norville; and Steven Cojocaru.
Noon, California time
The Pittsburghers have scored prime seats in the second and third rows in the middle of the bleachers. They are indeed wearing their scarves.
They only celebrity they've seen so far is the caveman from the Geico commercials, but the day is very, very young. They've been practicing their cheers, met several lottery winners from Cleveland and elsewhere, and received goody bags with M&Ms, ballcaps, and L'Oreal cream.
The bleacher fillers also have been fed Krispy Kreme donuts and Subway sandwiches to keep their energy level up.
Here outside the Kodak Theatre, temperatures have gone down and the wind has kicked up a bit.
Workers are still scrambling to keep the red carpet as impeccable as possible, clearing away any debris while people continually wander on it.
10:30 a.m., California time
Oscar Day seemed to dawn sunny but the sky is almost entirely cloud covered and it feels like rain is moving this way. The temperature is in the 50s and it's sweatshirt or sweater weather for the regular folks, although no one in Los Angeles has to worry about the ice and snowstorms splashed all over the Weather Channel. Anika Noni Rose will not have to fret about getting salt stains on her Stuart Weitzman designer shoes.
This year, I've changed my strategy about securing a space in the press bleachers, a small bank of bleachers that is separate from the fan bleachers where four Pittsburgh-area women -- Carol O'Laughlin, Nancy Dombrowsky, Jaclyn Harold and Mary Lou Leibold -- should be sitting by now. I tested my laptop and found my seat in the press room yesterday so today, I'll go straight to the carpet and see how long I can last before shivering sets in.
Press must be seated by 2 p.m. California time but if you wait until 2 (three-plus hours before showtime), the seats are gone and the earlybirds will not make space for latecomers, even if they were delayed elsewhere in official queues, as I was last year.
My ensemble, such as it is, was not assembled for warmth but comfort, a splash of style and appropriateness. Those were the marching orders I gave my sister who found me something new to wear at Macy's and Saks, and I ended up with a black skirt with a sparkly sheen to it, silky white blouse with a black floral design and side frog enclosure, and thin black jacket. I think I'm going to wish I had one of those red scarves Leibold made for herself and her friends, so they will be visible in the TV coverage.
Or a blanket.
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Spirited Away
To get to the goodies you have to wander through the Elle tent and walk past Aaron Eckhart, standing in a clot of people talking, as if he's just another celebrity. Which he is, at the Spirit Awards at Santa Monica Beach.
After resisting entreaties to visit the gift lounge last year, I agreed this year to give it a quick look. Although tax rules are changing the nature of goodie bags and lounges, the Spirits still reward presenters, co-chairs and the host with the chance to survey the scene and walk away with free sunglasses or handbags or diamond-encrusted watches not yet on the market.
In case you've ever wondered (and I had), it's like being in a small boutique with attentive salespeople, one per station. But no money changes hands as celebrities pick out UGGs -- new crocheted boots for women in a variety of colors that admittedly look comfy and warm -- or French lingerie, AMC Theater passes, belts, handbags and Dior makeup such as bronzing powder and special blotting papers, the latter not available to the public.
After years of reading about gift bags, it's not as excessive as I imagined, but the heyday is over, now that Oscar has abandoned the $100,000 gift basket. In fact, the Los Angeles Times carried a story today headlined: "Swag resurfaces with a conscience."
Still it's a little weird to wander around and ask which celebrities have been by for freebies although everyone knows publicity is part of the process. Not being a presenter I leave the tent with not so much as a tin of Altoids in my possession.
The Spirit Awards quit being the best kept secret of Oscar weekend about four years ago, when the start of the war in Iraq prompted the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to scale back its Hollywood hoopla. But there was still a carpet at the Independent Spirit Awards, as the event was then called, and jostling for space has increased ever since
Now it's hard to score a spot on the carpet; my credentials were for the press tent only, not the tent and arrivals area. I ran into the man with the toy monkey from last year; he has a website devoted to pictures of Marvin the monkey posing with well-known people and in famous places. He didn't get credentialed for the carpet either.
At least I don't feel so bad now.
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Plugging in
At 9:50 a.m., the line at the security stations outside the press rooms for the 79th Academy Awards was already two dozen people long. Most were photographers lugging bags and trunks of equipment. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences allows the media access twice today and once Sunday morning to test equipment, locate assigned spots and get the lay of the land.
This year I'm at table 25, seat 8. Unless someone switches seats, I will be next to the Australian Associated Press and sharing a rectangular banquet table with Entertainment Weekly and the Arizona Republic along with Gannett and a couple of other publications whose abbreviations I cannot crack.
The oversize Oscars are already flanking the back of the podium where winners will come to field questions from the media. Arrangements of flowers in white, gold and green are ready too.
But that's tomorrow. Now it's time to unplug and head for the Spirit Awards at Santa Monica Beach. So many awards shows, so little time.
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Hollywood treasure trove
It's turning cold and blustery, and workers on the red carpet have pulled on scarves and hats (I've even seen a few parkas), unless they're TV reporters doing stand-ups in formal gowns. Crowds are stopping to watch the oversize Oscars arriving, while carts of golden flower boxes with delicate hydrangeas, kalanchoes, cyclamens and what look like begonias are lining up, too. It takes a small village to turn the block outside a theater and shopping mall into a fairyland, and the transformation is under way.
Down the street I pay $15 to enter a celebration of Hollywood old and new. It's the Hollywood Museum and it boasts 10,000 "real showbiz treasures." Located in the Max Factor building at 1660 N. Highland Ave. at Hollywood Boulevard, it's a treasure trove of stuff, from Hannibal Lecter's leather mask to Cary Grant's 1965 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud III and Dorothy's ruby slippers from "The Wizard of Oz" with a note, "These shoes speak for themselves."
A woman at the front desk directs visitors upstairs and explains that photos, alas, are forbidden. Almost everything is tucked behind glass and the collection is heavy on such stars as Bob Hope, Judy Garland, Mae West and honorary Hollywood mayor Johnny Grant although nods to the present are scattered about, too. Among them: Costumes from Oscar-nominated movies (sparkly dresses from "Dreamgirls," an Idi Amin uniform with gold-and-red braiding and medals from "Last King of Scotland," a demure dress and sensible pumps from "The Queen," to name a few), the original postcards from "Brokeback Mountain," an autographed "Chicago" poster and the hat worn by Hugh Jackman in "Van Helsing."
One exhibit consists of snapshots of Roddy McDowall's parties and if you look closely at the images you can spot such luminaries as Carol Burnett and Shirley MacLaine. Former Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw, along with Pittsburgh native Jeff Goldblum, are among the celebrities in a picture display devoted to the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The collection donated by Grant, who presides over the Walk of Fame ceremonies, ranges from a roulette wheel from the Pickfair Estate circa 1927 to Sgt. Joe Friday's badge and ID card from television's "Dragnet."
It's a bit of a mish-mash but fun, since you never know when you'll find the bike from "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure" or Elizabeth Taylor's "Cleopatra" costumes or Elvis Presley's "personal stained robe." It's white terrycloth with his name stitched in gold over the left breast and a frayed pocket (the brochure says there's a peanut butter stain but I missed that).
The museum is open Thursdays through Sundays and I didn't allow enough time to see everything. If you're interested, go to www.TheHollywoodMuseum.com. Admission is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors and students and $5 for children under 5, although I imagine young visitors might get antsy.
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Kazakhstan, stand down
If Sacha Baron Cohen isn't presenting an Oscar on Sunday, it's not because he was snubbed. Producer Laura Ziskin said of the "Borat" star: "He's been in London working on 'Sweeney Todd' and we reached out to him very early on because I went to his manager and said, look, the audience and the press will lynch me if he's not on the show since it's all anybody's been talking about but I totally respect how busy he was. I think he's only returned to the counry, maybe, in the last couple of days. And we're thrilled he's coming to the show as one of the nominees."
In fact, he's not the only person who turned down a request to present. Ziskin said she wishes that were true, but that's not the case.
Makeup magic
Doug Jones is a trouper. He would have to be, to sit for 10 hours of makeup to play two characters in "Pan's Labyrinth," and he hung around the red carpet after most of the folks connected with the nominated foreign films had disappeared.
Asked how he coped with being buried under makeup preparations for that long, he said: "A combination of finding my happy place -- which is kind of like zoning out -- and also enjoying the company of the people that I'm with, which are my makeup artists. Special-effects makeup artists are always very, very creative, fun, good-humored people," the tall, lanky actor said, standing next to the movie's beautifully designed poster.
He was part of the team for "Pan's" who mainly posed for photos and did quick interviews, when reporters could shoulder their way through the thicket. He worked in Madrid and the mountains to the north with a Spanish-based company on "Pan's" and said they were "just like homespun people that you would think this is the first movie they'd ever worked on, but it wasn't because they were just so excited to be alive and happy to be on the set that day."
He would often run his dialogue with the makeup artists since he had to memorize reams of Spanish, he said, and they had a better sense of the accent and pronunciation necessary for the tale set in 1944 Spain. They would banter about the usual stuff, too, such as what they did the previous night or what they watched on TV.
Jones will be going to the Oscars with his publicist (who had his own ticket), while his wife will attend a party with friends. Since Jones isn't nominated -- the movie is competing for a half-dozen Oscars, including for makeup -- he was lucky to score a single seat.
Just as Jones was about to wrap up interviews, beefy security guards insisted everyone quietly move back. The folks milling about were then briefly shunted down the carpet. It turned out someone had left an odd-shaped, unidentified bag nearby and it had to be checked, just a reminder of the tougher security that will come Sunday night.
Tourist trappings
As any tourist knows, the area near Graumann's theater is crawling with celebrity impersonators, some good, some not. Fat, late-in-life Elvis looks like he's had one too many peanut butter-and-banana sandwiches, while the makeup artists on the "Today" show turned Al Roker into a better "Pirates of the Caribbean" clone than the one near the famous cement blocks holding celebrity handprints and autographs.
One of the better ones is the single-named Tobias, who dresses as Charlie Chaplin. He's been a circus clown for 28 years and Little Tramp imitator for a decade. On Friday morning, he was sitting outside the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf shop in full regalia, from his bowler hat and black eyebrows to his oversize shiny black shoes.
Like the others, he works for tips and says he typically arrives in the neighborhood at 9 a.m. and stays till mid-afternoon or later if the traffic is good. Not everyone understands the protocol -- pose for a photo, slip someone a couple of bucks. If visitors, particularly from overseas don't get it, he lets it go.
His wardrobe includes a brown tuxedo jacket, trousers and one of the 20 vests he owns. The mustache is real human hair, just not his. He has to replace it every month or it will start to fray and tickle. His favorite Chaplin movies: "The Great Dictator" and "City Lights."
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Four of the five directors of the Best Foreign Film nominees swept Oscar off its feet this morning, and one is hoping he or she will do likewise on Sunday.
A photo opportunity with four of the directors -- the fifth will arrive Sunday -- was jammed with photographers and reporters speaking a polyglot of languages as the two men and two women were holding aloft an oversized resin model of the statuette.
The four in attendance were: Guillermo del Toro ("Pan's Labyrinth," Mexico), Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck ("The Lives of Others," Germany), Susanne Bier ("After the Wedding," Denmark), Deepa Mehta ("Water," Canada). Missing was Rachid Bouchareb, director of "Days of Glory" (Algiers).
If the voting goes according to the press interest, the Academy Award may well go to "Pan's Labyrinth."
On the still plastic-covered red carpet outside the Kodak Theatre, media and workers preparing for Sunday's ceremony congregated or scurried about.
In the crowd was veteran film critic Leonard Maltin, who agrees with most critics that the Best Picture Oscar is up for grabs this year. His assessment:
If the voters are in a "Crash" mood, it will be "Babel." If they're in a let's-make-up-for-all-the-times-we've-passed-over-Martin-Scorsese mood, it will be "The Departed." If the sentiment is Clint Eastwood can do no wrong, it will be "Letters from Iwo Jima." If they vote with their hearts for the best-liked picture, it will be "Little Miss Sunshine." Or, if they go for the best picture, it will be "The Queen."
His personal favorite -- "Little Children" -- isn't nominated in that category, although it does have nods for Kate Winslet (actress), Jackie Earle Haley (supporting actor) and adapted screenplay.
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Reed Saxon, Associated Press The media and workers stand in front of the Kodak Theatre and on the red carpet which is covered in plastic to protect it from the rain today as preparations continued for the Oscars in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles. The 79th annual Academy Awards are scheduled for Sunday. Click photo for larger image. A look at Oscar history Clips of the nominees Host Ellen DeGeneres on the challenge of the big night
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And I'm off to Los Angeles, via Vegas, home of the oddsmakers who have made Helen Mirren such a sure thing that you'd think the plaque has already been engraved for her Best Actress Oscar. The statues are naked, of course, when handed over and the plates affixed later once the winners are announced.
Sitting on the plane and waiting for the de-icing, I read how Ellen DeGeneres has been in training for her hosting gig. She's been eating well, drinking green tea, exercising and undergoing massages. My training has consisted of waking up in the middle of the night and leaving myself voicemail messages at work about boarding passes and credential paperwork, and dining on delicacies from the Post-Gazette snack bar.
I groaned when I saw the movie for the westbound flight: "School for Scoundrels," a middling comedy starring Billy Bob Thornton and Jon Heder. In the spirit of any distraction is a good distraction, I buy the headset but the sound is pure fuzz. A second headset is no better. I'm sitting directly under the overhead compartment concealing the video equipment, which probably accounts for the trouble. Oh well, at least the turbulence ended.
Earlier in the morning, I had a "Hill Street Blues" flashback when a security screener who looked like the original roll-call sergeant on the '80s cop drama confiscated my tiny bottle of mouthwash. Not tiny enough, apparently, although the other items in my regulation one-quart zippered bag made it through.
I collected my zippered bag, my carry-on, my laptop, my laptop case, my tennis shoes and my jacket from the array of trays and headed for the train to the airside part of the terminal. The plane was overbooked; every seat ended up being occupied. The young man sitting next to me attempts to sleep with his head on his tray table; it seems no more comfortable than when his head falls to his chest and he jerks it back up.
In Vegas I have no time to even think about gambling before it's back in line for the second leg of the journey to Los Angeles. Standing in line at the car rental agency I have a Pittsburgh moment: The man at the head of the line is wearing a Steelers ballcap. It takes a minute to register that we're in LA; after all, the TVs behind the counter are tuned to the breaking news about Anna Nicole Smith's burial and the cool, overcast skies are reminiscent of home.
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Nine-year-old Arie Quintanilla has been practicing his autograph since he was 8 and now he knows what it's like to hold an Oscar.
He and his mother, the Colombian-born Ivonne, squeezed a trip to the "Meet the Oscars" display into a very busy day. The exhibit, housed in a storefront at the Hollywood & Highland Center, has been attracting thousands since it debuted Feb. 9. On its busiest day so far, Feb. 17, some 3,170 people streamed through to ogle the Oscars behind glass cases (all four Katharine Hepburn ones are there, along with the statues to be awarded on Sunday), take pop quizzes at kiosks, look at photos with famous movie quotes and to pose with an actual award.
Arie's favorite was the posing. "Because if you would like to become an actor, director or producer, you might end up winning one and so when you get up there, you have the experience of what it's like holding one," he says. The Los Angeles boy agreed with the consensus that it was a "little heavy."
Arie, a fan of George Lucas who is not on the Oscar ballot this year, has had show business aspirations since kindergarten, when he and his classmates were asked what they wanted to be.
"One of them said I would like to be a policeman so I can help people to make the right decisions. One of them said to be a fireman, so he can rescue people and for them to have a longer life. When I went up there, I said I would like to be a movie director and everyone went [he gasps], he already knows what he wants to be."
And he hasn't changed his mind.
Like cats and dogs
The weather is not exactly what a stylist or a star or a director would order, but it's way too early to panic. Rain went from a sprinkling to a steady downpour, but the red carpet is covered with plastic, as always, and tourists seem happy to wear their Universal Studios ponchos or other raingear as they wander around. It's still very early in the outdoor preparations stage, with much of the work to be done on Friday and Saturday.
I, of course, left my umbrella in the car at the Pittsburgh airport. It's right on the floor behind the driver's seat where I left it; I meant to toss it into my bag and forgot. That's what arriving at the airport at 6:30 a.m. will do to you. Tomorrow I will find one and buy it.
Wahlberg tee
I wonder what Oscar nominee Mark Wahlberg would make of the T-shirt in the window of a store near the grand entrance to the Kodak Theatre, home of the 79th Academy Awards. Spelled out across the chest: "Marky Mark Needs an Oscar." No sign of similar shirts for fellow supporting actor nominees Eddie Murphy, Alan Arkin, Jackie Earle Haley and Djimon Hounsou. Hmm, perhaps a groundswell of support for "The Departed."
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