March 19, 2001
Oscar’s memorable moments - THE COMMENTARY
By Joseph Planta
VANCOUVER -- Thursday in this space I’ll bring you my favourite Oscar moments, as seen on the Oscar telecast over the years. It was written a month and a half ago and then I learn now that the good people at the Academy, through their website «oscar.com» have an online poll gauging the public’s own favourite Oscar moments. Some of the moments I’ve picked aren’t cited on the online poll, thus I shall highlight what the I deem memorable Thursday. Go onto the website, watch the clips and vote too. The favourite one will air on the Oscar pre-show this Sunday. 15 moments of Oscar history are culled on the site. In chronological order:
Sidney Poitier’s acceptance speech in 1964. Being the first black honoured in a lead category, Poitier makes a moving speech. By the way, Hattie McDaniel was the first black to win. She won the supporting actress prize in 1939 for Gone With The Wind. Poitier’s lead win for Lilies of The Field, has yet to be repeated.
Barbra Streisand tied with Katherine Hepburn, when she won her first Oscar for Funny Girl. (Hepburn won her fourth.) She grabbed the Oscar, tearing her see-through pants descending the stage and said, "Huhlo, gorgeous." Much quoted and a memorable line from Funny Girl, she’s made it a memorable Oscar moment.
Shaft brought a new kind of movie music to the Oscars. It was the 1970s and Isaac Haynes was given an Oscar for composing the "Theme from Shaft." Performing it on the Oscar telecast in 1972 cites it memorable.
In 1955, Marlon Brando accepted his Oscar for On The Waterfront. 18 years later he was up for The Godfather, but vowed to refuse the Oscar. On Oscar night, a girl in Indian garb took the stage when Mr. Brando’s name was called. She claimed to be one Sacheen Littlefeather and that she was refusing Brando’s Oscar on the grounds of Native Indian treatment by the motion picture industry. She was promptly booed and it turns out she was a mere Mexican actress looking for a break.
The next year, as David Niven was about to introduce Elizabeth Taylor, a streaker ran across the Oscar stage. Niven somewhat taken by the audience’s gasps turned to see the naked man. He quips: "Isn’t it fascinating to think, that probably the only laugh that man will get in his entire life is to strip off and show his short comings."
25 years ago, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest won best picture. (By the way, a young Michael Douglas was its producer.) Jack Nicholson won the best actor Oscar, while Louise Fletcher won best actress. In her speech, with tears in her eyes, she signed to her father and mother. The audience was moved.
John Wayne was on his sickbed suffering the late stages of cancer. On the 1979 telecast he ambled on stage fraught, to the standing ovation of his peers. Gaunt, yet with that unmistakable presence he spoke: "Oscar and I have something in common. Oscar came onto the Hollywood scene in 1928. So did I. We’re both a little weather beaten, but we plan to stick around, for a whole lot longer." Two months later, John Wayne died.
Sally Field won an Oscar in 1978 for Norma Rae. In 1985 she won her second for Places In The Heart. It was that acceptance speech that spurned the tacky line, "You like me, right now, you like me."
In 1991, Madonna performed the Dick Tracy song, "Sooner or Later". It’s on this list and I don’t see why. Maybe because she was dolled up to look like Marilyn Monroe.
Jack Palance won the supporting actor Oscar in 1992 and upon acceptance got down and started doing one-armed push-ups. Has much been made with his career since? Nothing much. Memorable nonetheless.
In 1996, just after the horse riding accident that left him confined to a wheelchair, Christopher Reeve appeared on stage, much to the tears and surprise of those gathered. He spoke of Hollywood’s need to look over the commercialisation of movies and make movies that have a message. His appearance was a huge surprised that moved everyone.
Cuba Gooding Jr’s "Show me the money," line in Jerry Maguire may have earned him an Oscar. He is widely remembered, however for his acceptance speech. Defying the orchestra’s playing he screamed, shouted and jumped up and down. All the more implying to mere mortals, the tremendous honour and excitement of winning an Oscar. That took place in 1997.
Also in ‘97 was Billy Crystal’s return as Oscar’s master of ceremony. After two shows hosted by Whoopi Goldberg and the infamous "Uma/Oprah" bit by Dave Letterman, Billy was back with a film package that saw him spliced in some of the year’s nominated pictures. It was inventive and when he ran on stage, right through the screen, he was greeted with a standing ovation.
At the 70th Annual Academy Awards, on stage was a gathering of past Oscar winners. Actors and actresses, oddly enough 70 of them, sat on a 5 tier structure and were introduced in alphabetical order. The audience was on its feet for 20 minutes as Anne Bancroft to Teresa Wright, with Vanessa Redgrave to Ernest Borgnine soaked the applause. It was a gathering of Oscar history. A real treat to see legends and fledglings in such a moment of togetherness.
The final nominated moment was the 1999 acceptance of Roberto Benigni when he won the Foreign Language Oscar for Life Is Beautiful. In a moment of pure joy and exuberance, he climbed atop the furniture and jumped onto the stage. Pure joy for all. I voted for this one and so I wonder which did the voting public choose.
In 1992, the Academy themselves came out with a video called, Oscar’s Greatest Moments. It only culled clips from 1970 to 1990, but made a good tape nonetheless. I find it curious that the moment they deemed, Oscar’s greatest moment, is not on this list on the website now. The moment in question, is Charlie Chaplin’s appearance in 1972 after his self-imposed 20 year exile in Europe. The video’s narrator Karl Malden (a former Academy President) is quoted as saying it is the, "Single most emotional moment of modern Academy Awards history." Then why not on the list? Damned if I know, but I’d have voted for that in a heartbeat. It’s pure emotion, magic and timelessness to see the ‘Little Tramp’. (It’s funny to note that that moment was recreated in Robert Downey Jr’s Oscar nominated performance in Chaplin, and used as it’s climactic closing.)
You too can register your vote at « oscar.com » and watch for Oscar’s most memorable moment on the Oscar pre-show this Sunday on ABC.
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An archive of Joseph Planta's previous columns can be found by clicking HERE .