Monday, February 27, 2017

Oscars 2017: Best Picture Mix-Up Inspires Hilarious Envelope Meme

89th Annual Academy Awards - ShowLast night's epic mix-up at the Oscars -- where "La La Land" was incorrectly announced as the Best Picture winner, before producers stepped in to reveal that "Moonlight" had actually been awarded the honor -- will go down as one of the weirdest, most surreal moments in Academy Awards (and awards shows in general) history. And as is typical with such a buzzworthy, jaw-dropping moment, the internet took it upon itself to turn the fiasco into a hilarious meme, imagining what else could really have been printed on that now-infamous Oscars envelope that was mistakenly handed to presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway.

Twitter users flooded the social media site with their quickly Photoshopped jokes, inserting other 2016 films like "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" and Beyonce's "Lemonade" as the real Best Picture winners. Other contenders included films that have long been out of theaters (finally, "Space Jam" gets its due), while others took the opportunity to imagine the envelope declaring their loyalty to snubbed favorites (Amy Adams should have nabbed a nomination for "Arrival") or that certain other events went the other way, too (we're looking at you, current POTUS and the most recent Super Bowl champs).

Perhaps the best meme came courtesy of comedian Abbi Crutchfield, who saw the real truth behind last night's blunder.

Whatever the true reason for such an awkward awards show fail (accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers has promised to investigate how the wrong envelope ended up in Beatty and Dunaway's hands), it's always comforting to know that social media will deliver on the laughs.



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'Game of Thrones' Mag the Mighty Actor Dies at Age 36

GAME OF THRONES episode 39 (season 4, episode 9): Neil Fingleton. photo: Helen Sloan/courtesy of HBOBetween the death of Bill Paxton and all the drama at the 2017 Oscars, the loss of Britain's tallest man went almost unnoticed. Neil Fingleton, who played Mag the Mighty on "Game of Thrones," died Saturday at the way-too-young age of 36. According to The Guardian, he reportedly passed following heart failure.

Fingleton, who was 7-feet 7.56-inches tall, became Britain's tallest man in 2007. In addition to "Game of Thrones," he had roles in "X-Men: First Class," "Doctor Who," "47 Ronin," and "Jupiter Ascending," and was a stunt performer in "Avengers: Age of Ultron."

Guinness World Record -Paulo Coelho Photocall
"Game of Thrones" fan site Watchers on the Wall honored Fingleton's contribution to the show in Season 4, Episode 9, titled "The Watchers on the Wall":

"Fingleton's time on Game of Thrones was brief but notable. The scene with Mag the Mighty attacking the Wall's gate, with Grenn leading the defense, was a favorite of fans. Among our readers here at Watchers on the Wall, the scene was chosen as one of the Top 5 Dramatic Scenes of season 4 in our annual awards voting. The episode's segment with Mag the Mighty, another giant and a mammoth attacking the outer door of the Wall was chosen by fans as the Best Visual Effects Scene of season 4. Fingleton's contribution to Game of Thrones will not be forgotten."

This passing closely follows the death of another "Game of Thrones" veteran: Actor Peter Vaughan (Maester Aemon), who died in December at age 93.

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Oscars 2017: Ryan Gosling Had the Best Reaction to Best Picture Snafu

89th Annual Academy Awards - Red CarpetHey girl, it's just a silly awards show. Take your cue from Ryan Gosling and laugh off the Oscars 2017 mistakes. Gosling's many Winona-level expressions turned the night into one giant meme factory, culminating in the most appropriate reaction to the "La La Land" vs. "Moonlight" Best Picture oops.

The Gos was in his own la la land all night. He dodged the candy falling from the sky, kissed a stranger about to be wed by Denzel Washington, and looked bemused as his fellow "La La Land" peeps both won and sort-of-won Academy Awards.

Emma Stone won Best Actress in a Leading Role for "La La Land," and her name unexpectedly came up again when Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway announced "La La Land" as Best Picture before revealing it should've been "Moonlight." Beatty said his card said "Emma Stone, 'La La Land'" on it.

On stage, Stone was clearly shocked by the quick change from "La La Land" to "Moonlight," and she was seen saying, "Oh my god":

Backstage, Stone reacted to the idea that Beatty and Dunaway had her Best Actress card, telling the press:

"I also was holding my Best Actress in a Leading Role card that entire time. I don't mean to start stuff, but whatever story that was..."

But -- as Deadline pointed out -- Pricewaterhouse has two envelopes for every winner, so somehow the ill-fated Best Picture tag team of Beatty and Dunaway ended up being handed the copy of Stone's win. The accounting firm apologized for their mistake.

Not looking chill about the error? "La La Land" director Damien Chazelle:


But you know who seemed fine with it? Gosling. Photos caught him giggling as the rest of the "La La Land" team looked shocked:

And why not?

Gosling was up for Best Actor, but lost to Casey Affleck, and his reaction to that was also noteworthy:

He was just a joy to watch all night:

Very true. Perhaps he was the Leo we needed this year.

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Oscars 2017: The 10 Best and Worst Moments

Oscars 2017 Best and Worst MomentsSo, now you know why you have to watch the Oscars until the bitter end.

The evening's last-minute shocker wasn't just "Moonlight's" upset Best Picture Oscar win over "La La Land," but the way it went down, with presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway announcing the wrong movie. Not their fault, apparently, but still ... Steve Harvey must be feeling pretty smug right now. (Actually, he's not.)

It was really a shame, since the 89th Academy Awards show was otherwise pretty hard to find fault with. Jimmy Kimmel was a funny host, the speeches were mostly free of shrill political rhetoric, the "In Memoriam" montage snubbed only one major figure (sorry, Garry Shandling), and even the Art Deco stage set was gorgeous. And yet, the final gaffe is going to be all that anyone can talk about for a while. Which is unfortunate, since there were a lot of moments from Sunday's Oscars, good or bad, that were memorable.

Best Musical Number89th Annual Academy Awards - ShowThe song-and-dance moments are usually the draggiest part of the Oscars, but this year's numbers were actually pretty lively, from the poised 16-year-old Auli'i Cravalho proving that "Moana" should have been a live-action musical with her stirring "How Far I'll Go," to John Legend proving that he should have had Ryan Gosling's part in "La La Land" with his medley of "City of Stars" and "Audition." But we'll give the performance trophy to Justin Timberlake, who opened the show with a rendition of his "Trolls" tune "Can't Stop the Feeling" that was energetically staged and brought the Dolby Theatre crowd instantly to its feet. Really, the whole show could have used more of JT's seemingly boundless energy and charm; could he please host next year?

Best Kimmel JokeABC's Coverage Of The 89th Annual Academy AwardsKimmel's monologue nicely walked the line of deflating stars' egos without being overly mean-spirited -- except toward Donald Trump (whom he thanked for making us forget that last year, it was the Oscars that seemed racist) and faux Kimmel nemesis Matt Damon (too many barbs to mention). More generally, he mocked Hollywood for not discriminating by national origin, just by age and weight. But his best joke was his most economical one-liner. Neatly summarizing the racial politics of "Hidden Figures" and "La La Land," Kimmel observed that 2016 was the year "that black people saved NASA and white people saved jazz."

Worst Kimmel JokeUS-OSCARS-SHOWIn a year when so many awards were handed out to the FX mini-series "The People vs. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story," it was nice to finally hear someone accept an O.J.-related trophy (in this case, Best Documentary honoree Ezra Edelman, director of "O.J.: Made in America") and remember to pay homage to murder victims Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson. So it was pretty crass that Kimmel followed that moment by quipping that the incarcerated football legend would also get a prize tonight, an extra slice of bologna on his sandwich. The Dolby Theatre crowd booed that one pretty loudly, though Kimmel recovered by acknowledging that he'd just squandered all his good will.

Best Surprise Guest89th Annual Academy Awards - ShowNo, not Michael J. Fox and his "Back to the Future" DeLorean, though both are welcome visitors to any movie-fan event. Rather, it was , the real-life heroine played by Taraji P. Henson in "Hidden Figures." The former NASA mathematician briefly joined Henson and co-stars Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae on stage, earning a standing ovation just for showing up. The wheelchair-bound 98-year-old appeared frail and didn't say much (just "Thank you very much"), but her presence alone was enough to underscore the theme of this year's ceremony, which was inspiration.

Worst Viral Stunt89th Annual Academy Awards - ShowIt's an awards-show requirement these days for the host to go out into the audience and do something seemingly spontaneous that forces the gathered dignitaries to sacrifice their dignity for a few moments that will end up immortalized as GIFs. Usually, that involves sitting on laps or photobombing selfies, but this time, it involved Kimmel bringing in a busload of Hollywood tourists who had no idea that the collection of Oscar gowns they'd been told they were going to see was being worn by real, live celebrities at the real, live Oscars, and that their own astonishment would be broadcast to the world on live TV.

Fittingly, the tourists seemed not at all star-struck or even all that impressed, though there was a nice moment when engaged Chicago couple Gary and Vicki got Vicki's favorite actor, Denzel Washington, to pretend to officiate over their wedding. Despite being made Kimmel's unwilling victims in front of an audience of hundreds of millions, the tourists came through with aplomb. Rather, it was the celebrities who appeared embarrassed -- at being treated like commodities or zoo animals and, in Jennifer Aniston's case, being cajoled by Kimmel to fork over a pair of sunglasses from her pocketbook as a wedding gift.

Best Speech89th Annual Academy Awards - ShowDo you suppose that organizations keep giving awards to Viola Davis just to hear her speeches? Not that she didn't deserve an Oscar, her first, for her supporting role in "Fences," but not even the bravest orchestra conductor would have dared ruin her moment by trying to play her off the stage while she was at hear tearful, dramatic, impassioned best. "You know, there is one place that all the people with the greatest potential are gathered," she began, "and that's the graveyard." Then she went on to thank her fellow artists, particularly her "Fences" colleagues, for telling "the stories of the people who dreamed big and never saw those dreams to fruition, people who fell in love and lost." She added, "I became an artist and thank God I did, because we are the only profession that celebrates what it means to live a life." If you needed a justification for why anyone should watch an evening's worth of Hollywood self-congratulation, this was it.

Second Best SpeechABC's Coverage Of The 89th Annual Academy Awards"Hacksaw Ridge" sound mixer finally won his first Oscar on his 21st nomination, thus ending the longest losing streak in Oscar history. He recalled that his mom, Skippy O'Connell, got him his first industry job (she was a secretary in the sound department at 20th Century Fox) and told him how he could express his gratitude: "You can work really hard, and someday you can win yourself an Oscar, and you can stand on the stage, and you can think me in front of the whole world." Alas, she didn't live long enough to see him fulfill that pledge, but he said he was sure she was looking down proudly from beyond.

Worst Running Gag89th Annual Academy Awards - ShowKimmel's candy drop was actually pretty cool the first time, with those gossamer parachute payloads of Red Vines and Junior Mints wafting down upon hungry celebrities like those lovely airborne jellyfish creatures from "Avatar." The second time, with Lemonheads and Mike & Ikes, seemed redundant, but at least it involved the adorable "Lion" star Sunny Pawar. By the third time, when Kimmel dropped cookies and donuts and threatened to drop coffee as well, it became clear why the show is nearly four hours long.

Best MontageTOPSHOT-US-OSCARS-SHOWGive credit to the compilers of all the clips. The four montages of acting winners from throughout Oscar history were stirring and inspirational. So were the tributes to Shirley MacLaine (who inspired Charlize Theron with her performance in "The Apartment") and Meryl Streep (who inspired Javier Bardem with her work in "The Bridges of Madison County"). And even the spoof of those same montages late in the show, with Kimmel mocking Damon's performance in "We Bought a Zoo," was funny. But the best montage was the one of filmgoers from around the world talking about how much movies mean to them, how they make viewers feel empathy for others, and how they make people from different countries feel closer to one another. There were a number of speeches throughout the evening, most of them implied reactions to President Trump's policies, that called for tolerance and cross-cultural understanding, but this montage made the best case for movies as a means of transcending our differences -- and for the Oscars as a fitting tribute to that mission, and not just as a night of the privileged honoring the pampered.

Worst BlooperUS-OSCARS-SHOWSo, apparently, all that hemming and hawing that Beatty and Dunaway did while opening the envelope to read the Best Picture winner's title wasn't just the seventysomething stars having a senior moment or vamping to generate suspense. As Beatty explained later, he'd been handed a duplicate Best Actress envelope, whose card read, "Emma Stone -- 'La La Land.'" The "Bonnie and Clyde" actors were understandably perplexed, but eventually, Dunaway read the "La La Land" part of the card to the world. Two of the musical's three producers gave acceptance speeches before the mistake was discovered and the correct envelope containing "Moonlight"'s title opened and showed to the cameras. The "Moonlight" crew were gracious about the error, but still ... someone at PricewaterhouseCoopers is sooooo fired.



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Steve Harvey Reacts to Oscars 2017 Gaffe: 'Call Me, Warren Beatty'

It's not really a fair comparison, but it was an easy comparison: When the wrong winners were announced for Best Picture at last night's Oscars, everyone thought of Steve Harvey and his Miss Universe gaffe.

But Steve Harvey had the right card, he just read the wrong winner. Academy Awards presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, as we know now, did not have the right envelope. They could've saved the moment, but still. It's not 100 percent the same.

But if anyone can feel their pain, it's Steve Harvey. Although, right now, he's too busy being thrilled that someone else is the focus of You Had One Job insults.

Harvey tweeted his reaction to the Oscar news early Monday morning:


At least he's getting some self-promotion out of other people's embarrassment.

On his morning show (via TMZ), Harvey did have more to say on the subject:

"Me and Warren Beatty going to take photos together... So in closing I'd like to say, in the words of Martin Luther King: Free at last, free at last, thank God almighty, I'm free at last!"

Here's Harvey's "I have to apologize" gaffe:
Here's the Dunaway/Beatty drama last night with Best Picture winners "La La Land" and "Moonlight":

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Oscars 2017: Producer 'Devastated' to See Own Photo Used 'In Memoriam'

Sheesh. Did Monty Python produce last night's Oscars? Not only did we have #EnvelopeGate, we now have a not-dead woman featured in the "In Memoriam" segment.

It was such a beautiful segment, too, so of course something had to be wrong. According to Variety, an incorrect photo was used in the montage honoring the stars who had died in the past year. Instead of a photo of costume designer Janet Patterson -- a four-time Oscar nominee who died in October -- the Oscars showed an image of producer Jan Chapman -- who is still alive, and was totally shocked to see herself revealed as dead instead of her friend and former colleague. Patterson's name and occupation were correct, but it was Chapman's photo that played around 1:25 into the video, right before "Star Trek" actor Anton Yelchin.

That's Jan Chapman on the left, and Janet Patterson on the right:

Chapman reacted with a statement to Variety:

"I was devastated by the use of my image in place of my great friend and long-time collaborator Janet Patterson. I had urged her agency to check any photograph which might be used and understand that they were told that the Academy had it covered ... Janet was a great beauty and four-time Oscar nominee and it is very disappointing that the error was not picked up. I am alive and well and an active producer."

Eek. As tempting as it is to just laugh off another Oscars gaffe, these women were friends. It hurts to lose a friend, and then be shocked by your own image at the Oscars in her place. The Australian women both worked together on "The Piano" and "Bright Star." Patterson was Oscar nominated for her costumes for both of those films, as well as for "Portrait of a Lady" and "Oscar and Lucinda."

It's very possible this gaffe can be sourced to an incorrect image in the system. If you search Getty Images for "Janet Patterson," this comes up:

2010 Inside Film Awards - Awards Room
Here's the caption:

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - NOVEMBER 14: Janet Patterson poses with her award for Best Production Design at the 2010 Inside Film Awards at City Recital Hall on November 14, 2010 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)

But as we now see, that is Jan Chapman, not Janet Patterson. No wonder Chapman asked them to double check the images. She probably worried this exact photo error would come back to haunt them, and it did.

The "In Memoriam" always faces some kind of controversy, but usually it's "just" over who was left out. This time, Garry Shandling and Florence Henderson -- more TV stars than film stars -- were considered snubs, and some fans are still mentioning Alan Rickman as a snub even though he was included in last year's reel. It's hard to say what they'll do about Bill Paxton in Oscars 2018, since Jennifer Aniston mentioned him at the top of the 2017 "In Memoriam" segment but there wasn't time to add him to the actual montage.

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Bill Paxton Had Finished Taping 'Training Day' Season 1 for CBS Before Death

The late Bill Paxton, who died Saturday, Feb. 25 at age 61, left behind a loving family and an impressive body of work, including nine upcoming episodes of the CBS show "Training Day."

Paxton played Detective Frank Rourke, co-lead opposite Justin Cornwell as Officer Kyle Craig, in a sequel/follow-up set 15 years after the original 2001 film. The TV series just started airing on Thursday, Feb. 2, so only four episodes have shown so far.

According to Deadline, production on "Training Day" wrapped in December and all 13 episodes from the show's first season order have already been filmed. Bill Paxton's son James (that's him below, with Dad in 2013) reportedly guest stars in Episode 8, which should air in mid-March.

Premiere Of Disney's 'Saving Mr. Banks' - Arrivals"Training Day" did not have a great start in the ratings, so Season 1 was probably going to be the end of the series anyway. As Deadline reported, it opened with 4.7 million viewers and a 0.9 rating in the adult 18-49 demographic in Live+same day ratings, and by Episode 4 it was down to 3.7 million and a 0.7, with small boosts from DVR.

It's possible fans will now catch up, since it's a last chance to see Bill Paxton. (He will also be seen as Emma Watson's father in the April 28 movie "The Circle.")

Paxton's "Training Day" co-star Justin Cornwell reacted to the tragic news of Paxton's death:

"Training Day" airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. on CBS.

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