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Stewart And Oscar—Will The Second Time Be The Charm?

Jon Stewart sealed the deal. America’s favorite faux newscaster is going to give hosting the Academy Awards another try. His first stab at the prestigious gig came in 2006 when he got mixed reviews for his performance. In 2007 the show was hosted by Ellen DeGeneres and drew 40.1 million viewers—-about 2 million more than when Stewart hosted. But, producers insist that the show’s lackluster ratings in 2006 weren’t due to Stewart’s performance. “He did a great job two years ago,” Oscar telecast producer Gil Cates told reporters. “You need a host who is not afraid of the unexpected, who … Continue reading →

Retro Mondays: Oscar Moments to Remember

I am in excitement mode. I love Christmas and Halloween, but after those two holidays, the biggest holiday of the year to me is Oscar Night. Well, actually, I should say Oscar Day because for me, it is an all day event. Coverage in our house starts around noon and does not end for at least the next 12 hours. Here is a look back at some interesting Oscar moments: We Liked Her, We Really Liked Her She already had one Oscar sitting on her shelf (for Norma Rae), but when Sally Field won again in 1985 for Places in … Continue reading →

Fake Oscar Removed from the Auction Block

It is considered by most to be the most coveted award an entertainer can receive. Because of that, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences asks its winners to sign a contract stating the award will remain in their possession. If an entertainer dies and his or her heirs wish to sell the Oscar, they must first offer it to the Academy for $1.00. The Academy always buys the statue and locks it away in a vault. However, the Academy did not instigate this contract until 1951, making all Oscars received before 1951 eligible for sale. When these Oscars … Continue reading →

Oscar Loves Disabilities

For those of you who are faced with mental challenges, developmental delays, disorders, or physical limitations, either because you parent a special child or face your own life struggles, Hollywood pays tribute to you. Regularly. In fact, it is interesting to note that if you look closely at Oscar-winning movies over nearly the past two decades, a great majority of “Best Picture” winners or nominees contain a theme or character with some kind of disability. 1988 : Rain Man – The Story of an Autistic Savant and his brother, who must learn to co-exist. 1989: My Left Foot was the … Continue reading →

Blind Man Sees Again

I heard this story on the radio this morning, and had to check the local news to be sure: a local legally blind man experienced a miraculous return of his vision! Ninety year old Tualatin, Oregon resident Marty Alvey has been legally blind for years, thanks to macular degeneration — a loss of vision in the center of the eye that is a major cause of blindness in older adults. He could only see things that were a foot or less away. All that changed over the weekend. On Saturday night, Alvey felt ill and called 911, fearing a stroke. … Continue reading →

Martin Scorsese—Could This Be It?

He’s been nominated five times previously for best director, but has gone home a loser each time. Could this finally be the year Martin Scorsese goes home with an Oscar? This year marks Scorsese’s sixth nomination for directing, this time it’s for his violence-laden flick “The Departed.” His first nomination came in 1980 for what critics called a movie masterpiece, “Raging Bull.” Other directing nominations followed for his work on “The Last Temptation of Christ,””Goodfellas,””Gangs of New York” and “The Aviator.” (He also had two screenplay nominations for co-writing “Goodfellas” and “The Age of Innocence,” but lost both times.) Scorsese … Continue reading →

This Year’s Academy Awards

This Sunday is the 79th Annual Academy Awards. This year’s host will be Ellen Degeneres. I like Ellen – I think she is funny. I never cared to watch her talk show because I like her more as a stand up comedian, but I think she should fit in well as host. This is her first appearance as an Oscar host. As I started searching Families.com, I realized we had tons of blogs on Oscar’s previous hosts, previous winners, and this year’s nominees. Check some of these out: Blogs about former Oscar hosts: Chris Rock Chris Rock: Brooklyn’s Own Stand-Up … Continue reading →