Tom Sherak, the outgoing president of the AMPAS tried to pull a fast one on the incoming president Hawk Koch. The fact that Oscars host and producer are still missing proves that choosing them is probably the most difficult, though important job of the AMPAS president. What makes it so tough?
Sherak broke protocol and tried to hire the 85th Academy Awards hosts for the February 24th, 2013, telecast which should be Koch’s responsibility. He solicited producer Lorne Michaels and Jimmy Fallon, to host.
Jimmy Fallon hosted the Emmys in 2010, and pulled a great job meanwhile Michaels is the longtime executive producer of the successful Saturday Night Live show.
Sherak went to the Academy’s Board of Governors on his own initiative and solicited the right to find himself a producer and a host, a request totally inappropriate even though they approved it. An Academy spokesperson is confirming that neither Fallon nor Michaels has been hired.
Sherak has been one of Hollywood’s most controversial Academy presidents because he ruled with an iron fist. He also caused one of the Oscars’ most embarrassing episodes when he hired Brett Ratner as the telecast producer, but he resigned. After Ratner left, Sherak’s choice for Oscars, host Eddie Murphy, also abandoned ship leaving the Academy scrambling for a producer and host at the last minute, which was humiliating and a premiere for such a big event.
The Academy has such a tough time finding good hosts every year because it can be a career-altering decision. In recent years of Oscar telecasts the ceremony has been emceed by mostly TV or movie comedians.
Hosting the Academy Awards is viewed like performing the most dangerous stunt imaginable for a Hollywood actor or actress. You have to entertain this industry crowd. You have to stay cool when the lights are blazing down. You’ve got to move things along. And you’ve got to be charming without offending anyone.
Some actors have expressed freely their reason for declineing the offer of hosting the Oscars. They haven’t worked 20 years in the film industry, only to be perceived as a comedian or stand up performer, a position they find humiliating.
So it is yet to be seen who will host or produce the 2013 Oscars. Nobody wants it but somebody has to do it. |
