Do the Oscar folks have rocks in their heads?

[qanda]

I hope I'm not taking this wrong, but whoever wrote this article for the USAToday seems to be living in a different universe. They absolutely trash Chris Rock. I thought he did a fine job and apparently the ratings for the Oscar were the best in four years. I guess the numbers don't lie.


Apparently the academy thought using hipster favorite Chris Rock as host and giving short shrift to the lower-profile awards would re-energize the Oscar show, turning it from a dowdy matron into a hot, younger-demo hit. Instead, ABC's three-hour plus broadcast of the Academy Awards Sunday seemed tailor-made to bore the young, embarrass the old and chase away even the most dedicated Oscar fan.

Yes, it moved faster — but where exactly did it think it was going?

To be sure, Rock is one of the funniest, smartest, most talented comics in America. What he clearly wasn't, as the academy must surely now realize, was a smart choice to host the Oscars. His act may have worked in the hall (and to be fair, the crowd did seem to be with him), but it didn't work on TV.

Loud, snide and dismissive, he wasn't just a disappointment; he ranks up there with the worst hosts ever — particularly when you factor in the expectations. When the show ran a salute to Johnny Carson's years as host, the comparison was so painful, it made you think the academy would have been better off just letting a computer-generated Carson host again.

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http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/life/20050228/d_oscarbianco28.art.htm

[kwassa]

1. I have mixed feelings about Chris Rock

I liked his old show on HBO, I think that is the best thing he has ever done, I like him much less as a movie actor, for instance, though he is good in certain things. I don't think his comedy style lends itself that well to hosting an awards show.

Some of his standup specials I like, though some of the material is either not funny, or just weird.

I felt that a lot of his jokes last night were hit-and-miss. He obviously scored big on the Bush jokes, but I don't know how it related to the show. I liked the joke about getting the awards in the parking lot next. The part of his routine that just didn't make sense was his comparison of certain actors to certain stars. I thought many jokes fell kind of flat.

I also thought the show was pretty dull, aside from Chris. I haven't watched the full Oscar show in awhile, and it reminded me of some of the old ones from many years ago. Giving awards around the theater was strange, and forcing all the nominees to stand on stage in the more minor awards was a little cruel, I thought. I also thought the set was just plain ugly.

And it was great to see Morgan Freeman and Jamie Foxx win.

[qanda]

3. The show is always dull

I don't remember ever watching an Oscar broadcast thinking, "How exciting!"

I just think Chris Rock did a job. I think he had to settle in a bit, but just about every introduction he gave was funny.

[msgadget]

2. Odd, everyone who was interviewed

immediately following the awards gave him a :thumbsup:. He was chosen, didn't go looking for the job, and the committee that voted for him to be It for the night knew what the hell they were going to get. Carson, if this guy will recall, wasn't reverent and made remarks both personal and political that had absolutely nothing to do with honoring the cinema. Rock, like ALL the other hosts, isn't everyone's taste and he didn't 'ruin' them or take them down a notch as one newspaper put it. Most people got it and even those who didn't may end up whining about it to a small audience.

Check this out:

http://www.washingtondispatch.com/culture/archives/000777.html|Matt Drudge Fails to Bring Down the Oscars>


In the week leading up to the presentation of the Academy Awards, self-professed muckraker, Matt Drudge, devoted several of his headlines to a faux controversy over Oscar host, Chris Rock.

Drudge dug up stand-up performances by Rock in which he minimized abortion along with recent quotes in which Rock bashed the Oscars. Drudge's headlines blared "OSCAR HOST CHRIS ROCK SHOCK: ABORTION IN AMERICA IS 'BEAUTIFUL'" preceded by "HOST CHRIS ROCK SHOCK: ONLY GAYS WATCH OSCARS."

Drudge also found anonymous Academy sources who feigned outrage over the choice of Chris Rock as this year's host.

In the past, Drudge has been able to shake things up within a simple headline. The mainstream media would typically follow the lead of the Drudge Report on issues that would be otherwise unknown. In the case of Chris Rock and the Oscars, Drudge seems to have lost his clout.

Rock hosted the Oscars to mixed reviews but nonetheless, kept his performance clean but not without controversy. He left the red states fuming after his "Gap" scenario:

"Bush did some things you could never get away with at your job, man. ... Just imagine you worked at the Gap. You're $70 trillion behind on your register and then you start a war with Banana Republic 'cause you say they got toxic tank tops over there. You have the war, people are dying, a thousand Gap employees are dead, bleeding all over the khakis, you finally take over Banana Republic, and you find out they never made tank tops in the first place."

In the end and despite the efforts of Matt Drudge, comic Chris Rock is now stands among giants within the entertainment industry as a host of the Academy Awards.

[undergroundrailroad]

5. TRUTH hurts! Good post msgadget.

"Bush did some things you could never get away with at your job, man. ... Just imagine you worked at the Gap. You're $70 trillion behind on your register and then you start a war with Banana Republic 'cause you say they got toxic tank tops over there. You have the war, people are dying, a thousand Gap employees are dead, bleeding all over the khakis, you finally take over Banana Republic, and you find out they never made tank tops in the first place."

[undergroundrailroad]

4. I was there for the Brothers: Chris, Morgan, Jamie, and Don. Oh! Can't

forget the cuties in the house: Sophie Okonedo (nominated for best supporting actress) Oprah, Beyonce (who did an outstanding job!), Jamie's cute daughter, Halle, Regina King and many more. It is a celebration of film but for me it's a celebration of Black culture, my culture and it's like any civil rights march I've been in, the more, the merrier.

As for Chris Rock? He did an outstanding job. Sometimes it doesn't matter who you put up there, somebody will find something to complain about.

Peace.

Undergroundrailroad

[Pithy Cherub]

6. Chris Rock did well for the Oscars and himself.

Oprah gave him major props today via her show and clearly her audience demographic is huge. The Oscars and ABC knew that their audience was shrinking with people of color and the youth - otherwise known as the consuming and movie going public.

USA Today is in full arrest appeasement mode to a perception that consevative values are the dominant force in the marketplace. Not...

What is not remarked upon is the most stunning accomplishment of all. People of color everywhere ALL DURING the Oscars and the 2nd time major acting awards were taken by people of color in the 21st century. That deserves a standing O!

Just next time just let the people walk to stage: Chris nailed it when he said next time; drive by Oscars in the parking lot and get your McFlurrie too...

[undergroundrailroad]

7. LOL! I heard that comment. Next year they might want to turn it up a MTV

notch. I do agree, people of color were all over the Oscars (Go Chris, Go Beyonce). For the first time, I truly enjoyed the broadcast.

UGRR