The Daily Star - Stay Tuned
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The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, February 25, 2011 2 coverstory Oscar’s time to shine Find out who walks away a winner Colin Firth is nominated for best actor for his role in “The King’s Speech” By Kyla Brewer TV Media T he Oscars are supposed to be the biggest night of the year for filmmakers. But as it turns out, Oscar Night is one of TV’s biggest nights as well. Across the country, and even the globe, movie fans gather to gawk at glittering gowns, sob- bing actors and haughty come- dians taking jabs at their fellow stars. Winning an Academy Award is the ultimate fantasy for ev- eryone from actors to screen- writers, directors and more, and they won’t have to wait much longer to find out who among them will snag the fa- mous golden statue. ABC pres- ents “The 83rd Annual Acade- my Awards,” airing live from the Kodak Theater in Holly- wood, Sunday, Feb. 27. Producers have broken with tradition in selecting this year’s hosts. In January, Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer announced that young stars James Franco and Anne Hathaway will co- host the telecast. It was a surprising twist, considering that for the past few decades, the Oscar tele- cast has been hosted by estab- lished comedians. (One nota- ble exception was the casting of Hugh Jackman for the 2009 ceremony, but the Australian is a seasoned musical-theater performer.) Franco and Hathaway are undoubtedly rising stars as ac- tors, but to call them comedi- ans would be a stretch. How- ever, the award-winning pro- ducers don’t seem worried. “James Franco and Anne Hathaway personify the next generation of Hollywood icons -- fresh, exciting and multi-tal- ented,” said Cohen and Misch- er in a joint statement. “We hope to create an Oscars broadcast that will both show- case their incredible talents and entertain the world.” Whether the young co-hosts deliver, there will be plenty to entertain the masses come Os- car night. The excitement kicks off with a newly expanded ver- sion of the red carpet arrivals show, which begins 90 minutes before the ceremony, not 30 as in previous years. With so many eyes on what the starlets are wearing, it’s no wonder the show has been extended. Fans and paparazzi, along with en- tertainment correspondents, line the revered carpet outside the Kodak Theatre for hours to watch the stars arrive, and TV viewers are notoriously glued to their sets for the broadcast as well. Once the ceremony begins, another parade of stars begins, on stage this time, as they serve as presenters and per- formers for their peers. A high- light of the evening will be the live performances of this year’s Academy Award-nominated songs. Oscar winner Gwyneth Paltrow is slated to perform the song “Coming Home” from the movie “Country Song,” while A.R. Rahman and Flor- ence Welch will perform “If I Rise” from the film “127 Hours.” Fellow nominee in the original song category Randy Newman is set to present his ditty “We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3.” The final nominated song, “I See the Light” from the film “Tangled,” will be performed by Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi, with composer Alan Menken ac- companying them on the pia- no. Presenters for this year’s ceremony include the afore- mentioned Jackman, Annette Bening, Tom Hanks, Oprah Winfrey, Robert Downey Jr. and Jeff Bridges, among others. As with every year, the real stars are the films. They repre- sent the best the American film industry has to offer, according to The Academy of Motion Pic- ture Arts and Sciences, an orga- nization that includes more than 6,000 artists and profes- sionals. “The King’s Speech” leads the list of nominees with 12 Oscar nods, including honors for best picture, best actor (Co- lin Firth), and best director (Tom Hooper). “True Grit” isn’t far behind with 10 nomina- tions, which also include best picture, best actor (Jeff Bridges) and best director (Joel Coen and Ethan Coen). By far the most coveted category of the evening, best picture, is round- ed out by “Black Swan,” “The Fighter,” “Inception,” “The Kids Are Alright,” “127 Hours,” “The Social Network,” Toy Sto- ry 3” and “Winter’s Bone.” Bridges and Firth face some tough competition from Franco (“127 Hours”), Javier Bardem (“Biutiful”) and Jesse Eisen- berg (“The Social Network”). The best actress nominees in- clude favorite Bening (“The Kids Are Alright”), Nicole Kid- man (“Rabbit Hole”), Natalie Portman (“Black Swan”) and Michelle Williams (“Blue Val- entine”). Chirstopher’s Coins 2 x 2 hollywoodQ&A By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: I’m enjoying watching the reruns of “Walker, Texas Ranger” and wonder if you can tell me what’s going on now with Clarence Gilyard, Sheree J. Wilson and, of course, Chuck Norris. A: Clarence Gilyard, who played Walker’s partner, James Trivette, on the popular series, has personally been scarce on the screen lately, but his influence has not. A year after the final episode of “Walker” aired, he had moved on to his new job: teaching. He’s now an associate pro- fessor of film at the University of Nevada -- Las Vegas, teaching another generation of TV stars. Graduates of his classes have gone on to work on such recent series as “Jericho,” “24” and “ER.” That’s not to say he’s finished with acting, though. He’s cur- rently working on what looks to be an oddball horror-comedy called “3:18,” co-starring fellow former TV star Edie McClurg, of all people. Sheree J. Wilson, who played Walker’s love interest, Alex Ca- hill, has been more visible since, having starred in quite a few (albeit low-budget) titles since. Have a question? E-mail us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Personal replies will not be provided. Crazy Tom's 2 x 3