• Does anyone in Hollywood have a clue how to correctly pronounce Charlize Theron's last name? So far, we've got two options: THER-on and Ther-ON? She was only the runaway favorite for Best Actress and yet Billy Crystal pronounced it two different ways in consecutive sentences. The rest of the interviewers and presenters weren't any more consistent. Jake Delhomme doesn't have the most familiar last name in the world, but we got it right by the Super Bowl, for Christ's sake.
• You know who's under the most pressure of the evening? The dead guys. When they run through the list of the year's deceased, you want to get more than a smattering of applause, with maybe a whistle or two thrown in there. That's why I think the big winners of the evening were Sean Penn, Charlize Theron and John Ritter.
• If you're gonna start a show by selling me on the artistic significance of movies, see if you can make sure no front-row guests wear sunglasses at any point in the evening. (I'm talking about 59-year-old Michael Douglas here.)
• People of color. Anyone see one Sunday night? If this is the Super Bowl of the entertainment industry, shouldn't that be a topic of discussion? Or should we just focus on Naomi Watts' shoes?
• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King set the record for most Oscars (11) won by a film I will never in my life see.
• How 'bout the different pressure these people are under on the red carpet? Ben Stiller absolutely has to turn even the most banal questions into something witty. That's what people expect. All Nicole Kidman has to do is make sure her necklace is on straight.
• When did Roger Ebert become the skinny one?
• Robin Williams fished for a laugh by threatening to expose his breast. Didn't the "sell by" date on that gag pass like three weeks ago?
• I didn't know whether to feel bad for Sophia Coppola, who seemed so uncomfortable at this Hollywood self-fuckfest, or to celebrate her. God, does she ever go an hour straight without someone asking about her father?
• Bill Murray for Best Actor. Cubs fans lose again. And it's just as much of a surprise.
• When LOTR went 10-for-10, is that about the time the Seabiscuit folks left the room? That was like the Yankees being up eight runs in the ninth. Why was anyone still in their seats and not heading to the parties?
• I was pissed when Billy Zabka lost on out on his Oscar for Live Action Short. I thought I saw him in the crowd, but I wanted to see if he'd thank the Cobra Kai sensei or the dive team instructor from Back to School. New rule: if any cheesy '80s villain gets nominated for an award, he must win.
I thought I had read somewhere that you are supposed to pronounce it Te-RON, the way they do in her native homeland of South Africa. (I'll remember the article because I always find it amusing to see the phrase "native homeland of...")
Posted by Zuba at March 1, 2004 7:39 AM