So, is anyone thinking what I am thinking about tonight's Academy Awards?????

Halle Berry called herself a “Vessel”.

Let’s get some perspective here. The Academy Awards and Hollywood are in no way, shape, or form, representative of society as a whole. It’s an ego driven gala where they congratulate themselves. I won’t think anything special of Denzel and Halle simply because Oscar awards and nominations in the past hvae been given out to so many undeserving people and so many deserving people, both black and white, have been shut out that it’s not a racial issue. For every black actor that should have won or been nominated, you could find 5 or 6 white or non minority actor who should have been. It’s not because of race, at least it hasn’t been in the last 20 or 30 years.

Ok, I have no problem with Halle’s award…I think she did a good job in Monster and totally deserved to win.

But did any of you guys actually see the piece of crap that was Training Day? I’m disgusted that either Denzel or Ethan was even f-ing nominated for that tripe. So what, Denzel played a bad guy. Oooo. He didn’t do it very well and I have no idea how he got nominated for that. Honestly, it was a crappy movie and a crappy role and a crappy performance. I totally do not get it. IMHO, this was ABSOLUTELY political and they just wanted to give it to a black actor (who has deserved it in the past) on the same night a black actress won.

I was getting sick of all the “black” comments being made by Whoopi…I mean, what was that all about? I like Billy Crystal MUCH better as a host…wonder why he isn’t doing it anymore.

Wrong.

1969 - Neil Armstrong walks on the moon.
1972 - Isaac Hayes wins Best Song for “Theme From Shaft” from Shaft
1982 - Louis Gossett, Jr. wins Best Supporting Actor for An Officer and a Gentleman
1983 - Irene Cara wins Best Song for “Flashdance…What A Feeling” from Flashdance
1984 - Stevie Wonder wins Best Song for “I Just Called To Say I Love You” from The Woman in Red
1984 - Prince wins Best Song Score for Purple Rain
1985 - Lionel Ritchie wins Best Song for “Say You, Say Me” from White Nights
1989 - Denzel Washington wins Best Supporting Actor for Glory
1990 - Whoopi Goldberg wins Best Supporting Actress for Ghost
1996 - Cuba Gooding, Jr. wins Best Supporting Actor for Jerry Maguire

And those are just from the categories where I would be most likely to recognize a name. (Haven’t got a clue about the race of winners for, say, Best Animated Short.)

Now, if you had said that “we hadn’t even put a person on the moon when a black last won a lead acting Academy Award,” then you would have been right.

I think the outcry had Maggie Smith won for Best Actress would have been deafening, since she was nominated in the Supporting category. The fifth BA nominee was Judi Dench.

**Random rants for your edification **

I am a little tired of the Oscar for Best Actress going to women who just break down and blather on and on and on during their acceptance speeches.(Julia Roberts, Gyweth Paltrow and now, the nonactress, Halle Berry.)

Frankly, with the very heavy campaigning going on for Halle-this and Halle-that and all the money spent by the studio to Halle for Best Actress - Breaking the Barrier, I was really hoping for an upset and that she didn’t win.

It is not like they didn’t think they had a chance to win. One in Five ladies are your chances. And you go up on stage and just blather. I can only hope and pray that Halle will just disappear into obscurity for about 20 years. She couldn’t act her way out of a speeding ticket…oh wait…she tried that ( the accident that she left) and got slapped on the wrist. See.

If you think about it, the people in the audience are the ones voting for the nominees. The people in the audience are the ones creating the jobs/roles and sending out the message that * racism is bad * and *can’t we all get along *. But it is the people in that audience that “have supressed” the black man and black woman for 75 years. Hollywood, is full of hypocrites and last night was no exception.

By the way, I just love another hypocrital underlying message of
"We are Americans and we are proud of our freedoms and have become stronger since 9/11. * But * by the way, we oppress the black man in Hollywood. Did anyone else notice that.

Maybe, just maybe, Hollywood hasn’t had any really decent black actresses. Gosh, there is a thought. Like the way us white folk haven’t had any really decent white wimmen who can act and hold their own in a few years. ( Meryl Streep/Kathy Bates/Sally Fields/Sissy Spacek and a boat load of British woman like Judi Dench and Maggie Smith who are nominated every year since menopause, it seems.)

Where in the hell are the asians and latinos saying they have been discriminated against for not winning Best Actress/Actor. John Leguizamo is one of my favorite actors, you don’t see him getting all puckered up. Jennifer Lopez, what was up with your poodle hairdo?

Where are the transgendered people stating they are being discriminated against for not even having a specific catagory for them.

God, if I won an Oscar next year I would say in my acceptance speech, “I have opened the door for all mid western housewives…they have been shut out of Hollywoods elite crowd for too long…”

The Oscars are not about acting any more, it is all about popularity. What? Did I say anything that wasn’t new? Halle won, not on the strength of her acting, but a) she is black (can I say black here?) and b) she is spectularly beautiful.

There are ,what, a handful of black actresses out there of standard acting talent: Viveca Fox, Jada Pinkett Smith, Queen Latifah (who is not half bad) Whitney Houston, and, uh…help me out, I’ve drawn a blank because they are just that pedestrian. They are nearly always in the same type of movie about the same he-done me wrong crap over and over again. Gee, little wonder why they never get nominated.
Now, Denzel is another story. He is an outstanding classy actor and can always hold his own and has a great deal of class. I was glad to see him get it, but it would have been loads of fun to see Ian McKellen win.
I was sad to see my next husband Mr. Shirley Ujest, Russell Crowe not win.

Cirque de Soliel was outstanding and the highlight of the show.

**This concludes my rant. You may return to a more normal post **

Yes, that is what I meant. Thank you for the correction.

Given that in another thread you said you hadn’t even seen the movie in question, I’ll give your nonopinion the nonrespect it deserves.