My Ten Favorite Oscar Moments

The Oscars are coming! The Oscars are coming! So all movie addicts like me will be glued to our TV sets on Sunday, February 28, to watch Chris Rock host the 88th Annual Academy Awards telecast on ABC. Whether good or bad, the following Oscar moments are my 10 favorites from the past (in no particular order).   

2009 – Host Hugh Jackman opening the show with a musical number poking fun at nominated films like Slumdog Millionaire, The Reader and Frost/Nixon.

1974 -- David Niven’s impressive composure when a streaker interrupted his comments during the 46th Academy Awards ceremony.

2002 -- Whoopee Goldberg’s outrageous costume changes (inspired by nominated films like Moulin Rouge!) while hosting the Oscars.

1985 -- Sally Field’s exuberant “You like me!” speech upon winning Best Actress for Places in the Heart.  

1999 -- Roberto Benigni running on top of the theater seats to accept his Best Actor award for A Beautiful Life.

1992 – Seventy-three-year-old Jack Palance doing push-ups after being awarded the Best Supporting Oscar for City Slickers.

1964 – Winning Best Actor for Lilies of the Field, Sidney Poitier makes history as the first African-American male to receive an Oscar.

1989 – The dreadful, but great fun to watch, Snow White musical number with Rob Lowe (!).

1997 – Cuba Gooding Jr.’s enthusiastic “I love everybody” acceptance speech after winning Best Supporting Actor for Jerry Maguire.   

1973 – Sacheen Littlefeather condemning treatment of Native Americans while accepting Marlon Brando’s Best Actor Award for The Godfather.  

Honorable Mention:  Any of Billy Crystal’s movie parody songs from his eight Oscar-hosting gigs.

Always the eternal optimist, I’m expecting to see more memorable moments while watching this year’s Academy Awards show.

Cinema Stanzas Released on Kindle Today

I am very excited to announce that my new book Cinema Stanzas: Rhyming About Movies has been released on Amazon Kindle today. Thanks so much to Denise Cassino of BestsellerServices.com for publishing this unique Ebook. And to Phil Hall for writing a wonderful Foreword, to Ronald Hull for permission to add his supportive quote to the cover image, and to those many readers who have been enthusiastic about my film poems. 

Cinema Stanzas: Rhyming About Movies showcases the film poems I have incorporated into my reviews of various movies ranging from big blockbusters like Star Wars: The Force Awakens, The Martian and The Revenant to small independent films such as The Lives of Hamilton Fish, In the Dark and With Child. Genres represented in Cinema Stanzas include: drama, comedy, horror, mystery, musicals, thrillers, romance, sci-fi and action. 

Some rhymes in this book are a bit harsh, but no poets were harmed physically during its creation! Cinema Stanzas: Rhyming About Movies is meant to be a fun resource for fans of both movies and poetry.    

For more information about Cinema Stanzas, please click on this Kindle link http://tinyurl.com/z7tmat2  

   

Coen Brothers Take on Old Hollywood

An epic and a musical,

a comedy, but that’s not all.

A Western and a drama too,

Hail, Caesar! tries so hard to do.

It takes us back to fifties flicks.

In many scenes it really clicks.

But plot is thin as it can be

and jumps around too hastily.

Channing Tatum’s dance just shines!

Gene Kelly’s work he surely mines.

George Clooney gets most of the laughs

as an actor a group kidnaps.

Josh Brolin’s character looms large.

Keeping stars in line, his charge.

And yet I wanted so much more

from Coen Brothers I adore.

  

A Gift of Appreciation

In appreciation of my Movie Addict Headquarters friends and fans, IT HAD TO BE US, the award-winning romantic memoir my husband and I wrote under the pen names of Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence, is FREE at the Amazon Kindle store today and through February 7th. We hope you enjoy this early Valentine gift! 

Below is the link with more information.

 http://tinyurl.com/hq48g4a