03:02 AM EDT 03/06/2012
Billy Crystal
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PEOPLE Review: Oscars Like Old Times – for Good and Bad
Originally posted 02/27/2012 01:00AM
Considering that last year's Oscars were so thumpingly bad – co-host James Franco behaved as if he'd been taken out of the freezer, left on the counter and unevenly thawed – last night's broadcast was a welcome relief.
The strength of the show ultimately rests on the heat of the biggest contests – I doubt Americans were on the edge of their seats wondering whether the cosmically inscrutable Tree of Life could score an upset over the French silent The Artist – but the production looked great and flowed well.
Billy Crystal was hosting for his ninth time, brought on after Eddie Murphy dropped out in November, and it felt no different from his seventh, eighth or (if one were to project) fifty-seventh time.
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The Best of Billy Crystal at the Oscars: How Did He Do?
Originally posted 02/26/2012 11:50PM
Is the ninth time still a charm?
More than 20 years since he first played host in 1990, Billy Crystal once again flexed his funny bone – and his vocal cords – for Sunday night's 84th annual Academy Awards.
In case you missed the host's latest turn on the Oscar stage, PEOPLE is breaking down some of his best moments and one-liners.
• Taking a jab at Hollywood elite early in the show, Crystal deadpanned, "Tonight, enjoy yourself, because nothing can take the sting out of the world's economic problems like watching millionaires present each other with gold statues."
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Octavia Spencer, Christopher Plummer Win Supporting Actor Oscars
Originally posted 02/26/2012 09:25PM
Octavia Spencer and Christopher Plummer have new fireplace mantel adornments – Oscars!
After a splashy opening with host Billy Crystal and bestowing honors in technical categories, the 84th annual Academy Awards finally got down to the business of presenting its first acting honor Sunday night. Octavia Spencer, whom Las Vegas oddsmakers gave a 70-percent chance of winning, did just that, taking the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her turn as the rebellious maid Minnie Jackson in The Help.
"I'm freakin' out," said the actress, who received the first standing ovation of the evening. Choking back tears, then finally unable to control their flow, Spencer, 32, said she needed to thank all her families: the one in her native Alabama, the one in L.A., her Help family. She also thanked the Academy for letting her sit next to the hottest guy in the room – Tate Taylor, director of The Help.
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Did Jennifer Lopez Have a Wardrobe Malfunction at the Academy Awards?
Originally posted 02/26/2012 09:40PM
Jennifer Lopez dazzled on the red carpet before the Academy Awards in a sparkling Zuhair Murad gown.
But when the American Idol judge took the stage with Cameron Diaz to present the Oscars for Best Costume Design and Makeup, her look – and that dangerously plunging neckline – wasn't so best-dressed-list worthy.
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Oscar Trivia: What You Don't Know About Hollywood's Big Night
Originally posted 02/23/2012 01:15PM
Pop quiz: What annual awards show airs this Sunday night? If you're as into the Oscars as we are, you likely just yawned and said, "Easiest. Question. Ever." And you'd be right.
Now, let's try a few more challenging questions. Which of the current crop of Best Actress hopefuls honeymooned at George Clooney's Italian villa? The Help's Jessica Chastain earned a scholarship to Julliard funded by which Oscar-winning comedian? War Horse composer John Williams's son sang for which classic rock band?
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George Clooney, Michelle Williams Receive Oscar Nominations
Originally posted 01/24/2012 08:45AM
Comedy counts in Hollywood, for once, with two surprise nominations for Bridesmaids, for Supporting Actress Melissa McCarthy and Best Screenplay writer Kristen Wiig, according to this year's Oscar nominations, announced early Tuesday at the Beverly Hills headquarters of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
As anticipated – given earlier honors from critics' group and the Golden Globes – nominations in the Best Picture category included those for director Alexander Payne's family drama set in Hawaii The Descendants (five nods) and the love letters to early movies, The Artist, with 10 nominations, and Martin Scorsese's Hugo, with 11. In all, nine films received Best Picture nominations.
Acting nods went to, among others, those friendly rivals George Clooney, for The Descendants, and Brad Pitt, for Moneyball.
For Best Actress, Michelle Williams was cited for her turn as Marilyn Monroe in My Week with Marilyn, as was Meryl Streep, who plays former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, in The Iron Lady.
Streep's nomination is her 17th – an all-time Academy record. (Both Jack Nicholson and Katharine Hepburn received 12 nominations; he won three times and she won four.) Streep has won twice, as Best Supporting Actress for 1979's Kramer vs. Kramer, and as Best Actress for 1982's Sophie's Choice.
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Billy Crystal Replacing Eddie Murphy as Oscars Host
Originally posted 11/10/2011 05:30PM
Sorry, Miss Piggy.
Despite a social media campaign to have the Muppets host the Oscars this year, the job instead went to a perennial favorite, Billy Crystal.
Crystal replaces Eddie Murphy, who announced on Wednesday that he was stepping down from his originally assigned duties.
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Oprah Winfrey to Host the Oscars?
Originally posted 07/08/2011 04:15PM
She bid her talk show farewell in May, and ever since, Oprah Winfrey's loyal fans and followers have kept their eyes on their idol, waiting for her next move.
But, despite reports Friday, one thing seems for sure: Although Winfrey, 57, who now calls the OWN network home, is known for going big, she won't be honoring the biggest stars from the big screen this year.
Sources at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences say that Winfrey is not in talks to host the 84th annual Oscar ceremony in February.
"The camera loves Oprah. Oprah's a genius," Academy president Tom Sherak tells The Hollywood Reporter. "But it's not true, and I don't know where that story even came from."
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Billy Crystal Recalls Horse Beechnut 'Was Like Driving a Porsche'
Originally posted 11/25/2008 02:00PM
Billy Crystal's beloved horse, Beechnut, recently died at the age of 27 – and the comedian remembers him fondly as a good friend and companion.
"Beechnut was, in a way, one my best friends," Crystal, 60, tells PEOPLE. "He was incredibly human in his instincts."
Crystal first met the horse on the set of his 1991 comedy City Slickers, which filmed in New Mexico. After the shoot, Crystal couldn't help but keep the horse. "It was an on-location romance," he says of their bond. "I wasn't sure I wanted to continue it after I finished the shoot [but] there he was with a ribbon around his neck."
The comedian also famously rode the horse on stage at 1991's Academy Awards, which he hosted, as part of a tribute to that year's best picture winner, Dancing with Wolves.
"It was like driving a Porsche," Crystal recalls of riding his horse. "He was so athletic and great."
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Hugh, Billy, Monty Python Light Up Tonys
Originally posted 06/06/2005 08:00AM
Hunky host Hugh Jackman shared his singing, dancing and joke-telling talents on the Radio City Music Hall stage, and Broadway shared the prizes among several winners at Sunday night's 59th annual Tony Awards.
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