# Academy Award nominations are out **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 31, 2006, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341 "2006-01-31T14:03:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/61 "2006-01-31T19:56:44Z")
> [@Equipoise](#): > > Damn, I even previewed that one. The only thing more embarrassing about a post with a lot of typos is a post apologising for the typos, with typos in it. “misplaced” commas… > lissener, has she ever said what the procedure is on getting tickets and when to arrive and where to go and what one does at an Oscars? I haven’t talked to her about it years. Solly. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/62 "2006-01-31T19:57:36Z")
> [@Amok](#): > > He’s the game show contestant (and real life dude) John Turturro portrayed in _Quiz Show_. The guy who kept winning on the show _Twenty One_ because he was being fed answers. [nitpick] Stempel wasn’t being fed answers; Charles van Doren was. Stempel was the victim of the scam, not the perpetrator. [/nitpick] ---
**Author:** ![Ensign\_Edison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ab992/32.png) [@Ensign\_Edison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ensign_Edison)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/63 "2006-01-31T20:07:08Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > [nitpick] > > Stempel wasn’t being fed answers; Charles van Doren was. > > Stempel was the victim of the scam, not the perpetrator. > > [/nitpick] Stempel was also being fed answers, and threw his last game on a ‘Best Picture’ question. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/64 "2006-01-31T20:07:13Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > It seems that it would be really easy to pick the actor and director winners, based on the SAG and DGA results – since it’s the same people voting (actors voting for actors for the Oscars; presumably those same actors are members of SAG…ditto for the DGA/director). Not necessarily. Actors who belong to the Academy are a small subset of SAG members. They are also on average an older group, and a more artistically conservative group, than SAG members as a whole. ---
**Author:** ![anyrose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/54ee81/32.png) [@anyrose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anyrose)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/65 "2006-01-31T20:38:56Z")
> [@Amok](#): > > He’s the game show contestant (and real life dude) John Turturro portrayed in _Quiz Show_. The guy who kept winning on the show _Twenty One_ because he was being fed answers. Gee, it’s been a while since I’ve mentioned I went to college with John Turturro…😉 ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/66 "2006-01-31T20:51:26Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > Meaningless. > > The Academy Awards are nothing but a glorified circle jerk between overpaid and overego-inflated individuals congratulating themselves on another year of producing crap for the masses. Well said. I might as well go on the record here and predict this will be the lowest-rated Oscars in history. I love movies and will eventually see all the Best Picture nominees, but it’s hard to ignore the fact that mainstream audiences really aren’t all that interested in gay cowboys and George Clooney’s take on the McCarthy controversy. Hell, if Clooney was interested in corruption at CBS, why not make a movie about Dan Rather hawking phony National Guard memos in an effort to influence a presidential election? At least that would be based on recent events. It reminds of _ **Quiz Show** _, now that we mention it: Redford seemed to think that a cheating scandal during '50s TV game shows was an Important Topic and addressed the Loss of Innocence in America. Turns out nobody gave rat’s ass. I did see _ **Crash** _and found it to be laughably bad. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/67 "2006-01-31T20:59:31Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > Hell, if Clooney was interested in corruption at CBS, why not make a movie about Dan Rather hawking phony National Guard memos in an effort to influence a presidential election? … > I did see _ **Crash** _and found it to be laughably bad. Well, I guess the Academy can cross you off their list of projected viewers. Still, the show must go on. I suspect Clooney was at least as interested, if not more so, in the courage of Edward R. Murrow than corruption at CBS. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/68 "2006-01-31T21:02:43Z")
[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11077661/site/newsweek/](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11077661/site/newsweek/) A great rountable interview with the Directors of Capote, Munich, Brokeback, Crash and GN&GL. Gotta love that Clooney. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/69 "2006-01-31T21:05:30Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > but it’s hard to ignore the fact that mainstream audiences really aren’t all that interested in gay cowboys _Brokeback Mountain_ has been one of the highest grossing movies of the last two months – for a while it was #1 at the box office. _Brokeback_ has done well in virtually every U.S. market it has opened. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/70 "2006-01-31T21:33:12Z")
> [@Equipoise](#): > > My only major disappointment is the shut out of **The New World**. It was nominated for Best Achievement in Cinematography. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/71 "2006-01-31T21:37:20Z")
> [@Walloon](#): > > _Brokeback Mountain_ has been one of the highest grossing movies of the last two months – for a while it was #1 at the box office. _Brokeback_ has done well in virtually every U.S. market it has opened. Hey, I’m hoping it’s a good movie and I’m looking forward to seeing it. But I think for most Americans \*\*\*Brokeback Mountain \*\* \* is, and will always be, a late-night talk-show punchline. And nobody I know is expressing the least interest in seeing it. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/72 "2006-01-31T21:40:50Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > I was watching some commentary on Fox News this morning and they could barely contain their chagrin that so many “gay films” and “terrorist films” got nominated. 😃 Wish I’d seen that! The Fox News website has only a story headlined, “Oscar Snubs Johnny Cash Movie.” [http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,183273,00.html](http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,183273,00.html) ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/73 "2006-01-31T21:42:32Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > Hey, I’m hoping it’s a good movie and I’m looking forward to seeing it. But I think for most Americans \*\*\*Brokeback Mountain \*\* \* is, and will always be, a late-night talk-show punchline. And nobody I know is expressing the least interest in seeing it. I am not convinced this is because it is a gay cowboy as much as because it is a love story. I mean aside from **Titanic** , weepy dramas are not known for wide viewership and big box office. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/74 "2006-01-31T21:43:05Z")
> [@C K Dexter Haven](#): > > **Clothahump** ’s comments are not political . . . :dubious: You don’t really believe that. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/75 "2006-01-31T21:44:57Z")
> [@Menocchio](#): > > Art isn’t competitive. 😛😛😛😛😛 ---
**Author:** ![Ensign\_Edison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ab992/32.png) [@Ensign\_Edison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ensign_Edison)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/76 "2006-01-31T21:47:28Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > Hey, I’m hoping it’s a good movie and I’m looking forward to seeing it. But I think for most Americans \*\*\*Brokeback Mountain \*\* \* is, and will always be, a late-night talk-show punchline. And nobody I know is expressing the least interest in seeing it. So your response to the facts is “La la la, my limited personal experience trumps reality”? Is it your contention that the FIFTY ONE MILLION DOLLARS Americans have spent just going to see this movie all comes from “unordinary” Americans? To put that figure in perspective, here are movies that did not make as much in 2005: Aeon Flux, Doom, Constant Gardener, Brothers Grimm, Pride and Prejudice, Fever Pitch, Because of Winn-Dixie, Munich, Must Love Dogs, The Skeleton Key, and The Fog. That’s just a few, of course, but surely you believe that “average” Americans would be interested in at least half of those movies? ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/77 "2006-01-31T22:09:12Z")
> [@Gadarene](#): > > I wonder if Paul Giamatti’s nomination was to make up for the Sideways and American Splendor snubs. Can anyone who’s seen Cinderella Man tell me how his performance was there? He was great, as he always is, but there wasn’t anything memorable about it, really. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/78 "2006-01-31T22:11:56Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > The actor I think most deserved a BSA nomination who didn’t get one (and yes, I really am serious): Deep Roy from _Charlie & the Chocolate Factory_. His performance as hundreds of Oompah Loompah’s was the absolute highlight of the movie. Roy was good and everything, but “the highlight of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” is sort of logically equivalent to “the nicest thing about a kick in the balls” or “the friendliest thing Charles Manson ever did.” ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/79 "2006-01-31T22:23:13Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > …it’s hard to ignore the fact that mainstream audiences really aren’t all that interested in gay cowboys… Here is the [Boxoffice Rankings](http://theenvelope.latimes.com/movies/boxoffice/chart/env-box-office-chart,0,3686607.ssipage). I think you might be surprised at some of the numbers. Compare the boxoffice for Brokeback with all of the other nominees. And considering it is playing in far, far fewer theaters than most big films, that says a lot. As much as I would like BBM to sweep, I am still a little leery about the Academy voters - I think their average age is about 106 years old, so who knows what they will do. PSH has already won the Golden Globe for Capote and he has won lots of other awards this year- this could be good news, but has also been known to backlash as Academy voters sometimes think, “He has won enough already, and we have heard his acceptance speech several times” and often tend to pick someone else. Of course, same backlash could hit BBM for the awards it has already won. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341/80 "2006-01-31T22:27:48Z")
Overall, I’m pretty pleased with the line-up, though I never watch the awards show. I would rather read about it online or the next day in the papers. I’m a bit surprised that **Cinderella Man** and **Walk the Line** did not make it into the list of Best Picture nominees, but I can live with the others. I have not yet seen **Crash** or **Munich** but have seen many of the others. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/academy-award-nominations-are-out/342341.md?page=5)