Tag Archives: Academy Awards

The Academy Awards—I Want In

So, you want to hobnob with the stars during Hollywood’s biggest party? Dreams are great to have aren’t they? (Pardon the sarcasm.) Seriously, though, who hasn’t dreamed of walking down Oscar’s red carpet while flashbulbs explode in every direction and rubbing elbows with Tom Hanks, Nicole Kidman or Steven Spielberg? Unfortunately, the granddaddy of all award shows is an invite-only affair and unless you somehow, someway become the next Jennifer Hudson, date the next Ryan Gosling or parent the next Abigail Breslin you’ll likely have to settle for a front row seat… in front of your TV. Then again, maybe … Continue reading →

Oscar—The Day After

If you stayed up to watch the entire Academy Awards broadcast last night you may be just as tired today as the winners are. Okay, maybe not, but if you live on the East Coast and watched the nearly four-hour long telecast then you likely didn’t get to sleep until after 1 a.m. (I happen to live in the Central time zone and was in bed by midnight.) Regardless, it was a long show and many are now saying it could have run even longer if it wasn’t for an ingenious use of modern technology. Last night, the Academy unveiled … Continue reading →

Oscar Glam: The Million Dollar Massage

With just a few hours until Hollywood’s biggest party kicks off, many of tonight’s Oscar nominees have segued from the relaxation portion of the day to the “I-wonder-if-I’ll win-and-if-I-do-will-they-cut-me-off-during-my-acceptance-speech” part. I for one am not feeling bad for any one of them. PUH-LEEZE! Do you know how many of those nominees and their celebrity friends have spent the week getting the star treatment at super-secret spas? I’m talking about $500 facials and $1 million massages. A million dollar massage?! No, it’s not a misprint. According to InStyle magazine, Hearts on Fire, known for its perfectly cut diamonds, has partnered with … Continue reading →

Traveling to the Academy Awards

When I was younger I would sit in front of our family’s TV on Oscar night and wonder how fans secured the bleacher seats that put them within reach of Hollywood’s biggest names. (Okay, within reach if the celebrity crossed the street to the bleacher area.) As a 13-year-old girl I promised that someday I would travel to L.A. so I too could touch the jacket sleeve of a Tom Cruise or Tom Hanks. More than 20 years later, I still haven’t made good on that promise. However, I know others who share the same dream, have ditched their seats … Continue reading →

Oscar Trivia

Okay, hopefully I have not overloaded you with Oscar blogs yet because here is another. Here are a few Oscar trivia questions. Some are pretty easy and some are not. The answers will be posted at the end of the blog. 1. There have only been three films to sweep the Oscars, winning Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Screenplay. Can you name any of them? 2. What actress has receive the most Academy nominations and how many has she received? 3. Who were the oldest male and female nominees in the Best Actor and Actress … Continue reading →

Preparing For Your Own Red Carpet Moment

Do you have a favorite red carpet moment? No, not one you saw on television. I’m talking about an actual, real life red carpet moment, such as a date to the prom, your wedding day, or another occasion when you got dolled up and all eyes were on you. Personally, I haven’t had too many… and the ones I’ve had weren’t well documented. But alas, such is life. Bottom line: you don’t have to be the reigning queen of Hollywood to be the star of your next high profile event. With a little planning you can make your red carpet … Continue reading →

Red On The Red Carpet

The countdown to the 79th Academy Awards is on and you can bet that right now somewhere in L.A. some Hollywood starlet is getting prepped and pampered for tomorrow night’s big show. After all, pre-Oscar massages, facials, manicures, herbal wraps, and wax jobs are staples in the process of getting red carpet ready. So what will we see Hollywood’s A-lister’s donning Sunday night? Aside from the obligatory “surprises” (remember Bjork’s swan dress), typically there are trends the stars follow for movie’s biggest night. For example, red on red. According to star stylists, you can expect to see a lot of … Continue reading →

Martin Scorsese—Could This Be It?

He’s been nominated five times previously for best director, but has gone home a loser each time. Could this finally be the year Martin Scorsese goes home with an Oscar? This year marks Scorsese’s sixth nomination for directing, this time it’s for his violence-laden flick “The Departed.” His first nomination came in 1980 for what critics called a movie masterpiece, “Raging Bull.” Other directing nominations followed for his work on “The Last Temptation of Christ,””Goodfellas,””Gangs of New York” and “The Aviator.” (He also had two screenplay nominations for co-writing “Goodfellas” and “The Age of Innocence,” but lost both times.) Scorsese … Continue reading →

This Year’s Academy Awards

This Sunday is the 79th Annual Academy Awards. This year’s host will be Ellen Degeneres. I like Ellen – I think she is funny. I never cared to watch her talk show because I like her more as a stand up comedian, but I think she should fit in well as host. This is her first appearance as an Oscar host. As I started searching Families.com, I realized we had tons of blogs on Oscar’s previous hosts, previous winners, and this year’s nominees. Check some of these out: Blogs about former Oscar hosts: Chris Rock Chris Rock: Brooklyn’s Own Stand-Up … Continue reading →

Oscar: Whatever Happened To…

It has to be one of the biggest if not THE biggest night of your life as an actor – the night you win an Academy Award. You are a media darling – at least temporarily. Unfortunately, Hollywood has the memory of a gnat, so fame is often fleeting. Here are some Oscar winners that you may or may not have heard from lately: Roberto Benigni Who can forget Roberto crazily leaping into his seat when he won his Oscar in 1998? But, who remembers what he has done since? His follow up to Life is Beautiful, 2002’s Pinocchio, which … Continue reading →