A look back at some of the wildest and weirdest moments in Oscars history
The Academy Awards are the biggest night in Hollywood and celebrate the best moments from the past year in cinema. So, it’s only fitting that over the years the live award show has had its own fair share of cinematic moments.
From mispronounced names to misread Best Picture winners, streakers to statement legs, the Oscars have given us decades of hotly debated winners, emotional speeches, and some truly wild and weird moments.
LA LA LAND ‘WINS’ OVER MOONLIGHT
Most of us can remember where we were when La La Land was accidentally announced as Best Picture by Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, who had been handed the wrong envelope. Proving why it’s always worth staying up until the end of the show, La La Land producers began making their thank you speeches when the error was revealed and Moonlight was announced as the actual winner.
A STREAKER TAKES THE STAGE
Host David Niven was on stage when photographer Robert Opel made his mark at the 1974 Oscars by streaking across the stage. Needless to say, security has become significantly tighter since then.
J LAW TRIPS AFTER HER WIN
There was a moment during the 2013 Oscars after Jennifer Lawrence fell while walking up the stairs to accept Best Actress where it looks like she considered just staying down on the steps. We don’t blame her. The actor recovered and gave a funny and emotional speech. Plus, here’s a fact to remember throughout life – even if you fall, you get to keep the Oscar.
CUBA GOODING JR. SCREAMS HIS SPEECH
What happens when you win Best Supporting Actor and love everybody? You don’t let the cue music take your shine. That’s exactly what Cuba Gooding Jr. did when he won for Jerry Maguire. The actor shouted the final minute of his speech and refused to let the music steal his moment.
ROBERTO BENIGNI HOPS THROUGH THE AUDIENCE
Italian actor Roberto Benigni couldn’t contain his joy when Life Is Beautiful was announced as the Best Foreign Film at the 1999 Oscars. Benigni jumped through the audience on top of chairs with an assist from Steven Spielberg before literally hopping his way up the stage.
ELLEN DEGENERES MAKES HISTORY WITH HER SELFIE
As the host of the 2014 Academy Awards, Ellen DeGeneres wanted to make the show a ratings bonanza and that meant viral moments. Case in point, the daytime talk show host orchestrated a record-breaking selfie that became the most-liked and retweeted photo of the year. For a pic with Angelina, J Law, B Coop, Meryl, Lupita, Channing and Julia, it better.
JACK PALANCE DOES PUSHUPS
Jack Palance won Best Supporting Actor for his role in City Slickers at the 1992 Oscars and celebrated on stage by performing one-armed pushups. This was decades before Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson became the highest-paid actor in Hollywood so yeah, it was impressive.
SACHEEN LITTLEFEATHER ACCEPTS MARLON BRANDO’S AWARD
At the 1973 Oscars, Marlon Brando asked Sacheen Littlefeather, the then President of the Native American Affirmative Image Committee, to accept his Best Actor win for The Godfather.
Littlefeather used her time at the podium to call for better representation in film and TV, saying Brando would not accept the Oscar because of the “treatment of American Indians today by the film industry and on television and movie reruns.” Brando and Littlefeather’s comments were met with both boos and applause from the audience.
ROGER ROSS WILLIAMS GETS CUT OFF BY ELINOR BURKETT
When Music By Prudence was announced as the Best Short Documentary at the 2010 Oscars, it set off a speech that would divide a director and producer. Roger Ross Williams made history that night by becoming the first Black director to win an Oscar, but his speech was cut off after 10 seconds by producer Elinor Burkett.
Williams later got to finish his speech during an interview with Larry King, while Burkett went on Joy Behar’s show to say she didn’t "ambush" Williams but also didn’t want to hear him "blather on" for 45 seconds. Needless to say, the pair are no longer friends.
MADONNA AND MICHAEL JACKSON WALK THE RED CARPET
The 1991 Oscars included a performance by Madonna, whose song “Sooner Or Later” from Dick Tracy won that year for Best Original Song. Madonna also won the red carpet, taking Michael Jackson as her date. If Madonna and Michael Jackson were both at the Oscars, who was in charge of pop music that night?
ANGELINA JOLIE’S LEG STEALS THE SHOW
Angelina Jolie dominated the red carpet at the 2012 Academy Awards in her strapless black Atelier Versace gown, which had a sizeable slit the actor and director was eager to display. By the time the show ended, Jolie’s right leg had its own Twitter account with more than 20,000 followers and the slit became the biggest news story of the year. So much for a simple LBD.
SALLY FIELD GETS MISQUOTED
When Sally Field won her second Best Actress award at the 1985 Oscars for Places in the Heart, she delivered one of the most misquoted and heavily meme’d speeches of all time…three decades before memes were even a thing. Let's say it together: "You like me, you really like me!"
Except... that's not what she said.
Starting in television, Field tried to show her appreciation for the critical success an Academy Award signifies by telling the audience, “I haven’t had an orthodox career, and I’ve wanted more than anything to have your respect. This time I feel it. And I can’t deny the fact that you like me. Right now, you like me!” They did like her, they really liked her, but Field didn't actually say it.
BARBRA STREISAND AND KATHARINE HEPBURN TIE
The 1969 Oscars marked the first time the award show had been broadcast worldwide and the first time there was a tie for Best Actress. Barbra Streisand and Katharine Hepburn both received exactly 3,030 votes for their roles in Funny Girl and The Lion In Winter respectively, but only Streisand was at the event to accept her "gorgeous" award on stage.
SACHA BARON COHEN DUMPS ASHES ON RYAN SEACREST
No one can extend a bit like Sacha Baron Cohen and that includes on the red carpet at the 2012 Oscars. The actor arrived in character as Admiral General Aladeen from his film The Dictator and spilled what he described as the ashes of Kim Jong-il on E! host Ryan Seacrest. Cohen was quickly removed by security and gave Seacrest an apology hug four years later.
JOHN TRAVOLTA CAN’T PRONOUNCE IDINA MENZEL
Frozen’s “Let It Go” may have become one of the biggest songs in the world in 2014 (and remains so today), but that doesn’t mean John Travolta had any idea how to pronounce Broadway star Idina Menzel’s name. Or read it. Introducing "Adele Dazeem," Menzel followed up the gaff with a stunning performance like the pro that she is. Elsa would have been proud.
The pair teamed up the following year to spoof the moment, which led to Travolta weirdly caressing Menzel’s face. Some things are just better left alone.
CHARLIE CHAPLIN RECEIVES A STANDING OVATION
Following an FBI investigation that led to accusations of communism, filmmaker and actor Charlie Chaplin left the US and relocated to Switzerland. After 20 years away, Chaplin finally returned to accept an Honorary Award at the 1972 Academy Awards. Chaplin was greeted with a 12-minute standing ovation, which still holds the record as the longest in the history of the award show.
BEFORE YOU GO: Oscars nominations making history
[video_embed id='2160714']BEFORE YOU GO: Oscars nominations making history[/video_embed]
