Ninth Time Not the Charm for Billy Crystal: Most Boring Oscars Host Ever?
SLIDESHOW: Most Boring Oscars Host Ever?
Billy Crystal
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Billy Crystal
Crystal, the "safe" host who opened with a predictable video montage and stuck with soft jokes throughout the night, almost made Anne Hathaway and James Franco look good.
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James Franco and Anne Hathaway
Franco and Hathaway were supposed to host a "younger, hipper" Oscars last year, but their efforts fell flat, with Hathaway trying too hard and Franco not trying hard enough.
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David Letterman
When people think of bad Oscar hosts, they think of Letterman’s "Oprah, Uma" routine in 1995. And that wasn’t the only joke that fell flat.
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Hugh Jackman
Jackman won raves for his musical opening number in 2009, but didn't do much after that.
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Jon Stewart
The Washington Post said Stewart "did only a fair-to-middling job, mostly middling" as host of the 2008 Oscars.
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Donald Duck
Was the Academy really so desperate in 1958 that the best they could come up with was Donald Duck to co-host the show?
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Jerry Lewis
In 1959, the show ended with 20 minutes of airtime left to fill. Lewis urged the cast to "Keep on singing!" a rendition of "No Business Like Show Business," then tried (and failed) to ad lib the rest of the show.
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729 votes
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18% | |||
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1,532 votes
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37% | |||
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862 votes
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21% | |||
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213 votes
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5% | |||
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377 votes
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9% | |||
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294 votes
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7% | |||
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150 votes
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4% | |||
Like millions of Americans, we had to fight really, really hard not to pack it in around 10 p.m. EST -- everyone knew "The Artist" was going to win for best picture, so what was the point of staying awake?
Oh yeah, to see if Meryl Streep won for the first time since 1982 (she did, but we felt sorry for best actress hopeful Michelle Williams). And to watch BFFs Brad Pitt and George Clooney go up against each other in the best actor category ... and both lose (as predicted) to Jean Dujardin from "The Artist."
The evening's biggest disappointment? Billy Crystal, the "safe" host who opened with a predictable video montage and stuck with soft jokes throughout the night. Of all the critics to pan this year's show, The Hollywood Reporter put it best:
"And somewhere, against all odds, James Franco is buying drinks for everybody. The colossal hosting disaster from last year is now forgotten by the safe, unfunny, retro-disaster that was Crystal making jokes that he laughed at repeatedly and overseeing an Oscars telecast that was as poorly paced as any in recent memory."
From Crystal to Hathaway and Franco to David Letterman, click through our slideshow and let us know: Who was the most boring Oscars host ever?
Top Opinion
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skyperkins1 2012/02/27 19:13:06
I don't know why people would pick on Crystal, unless they are youngsters who wouldn't relate to him or his humor. I thought his opener was amusing as usual and felt that he and the show actually went very smoothly.
Justin.
Billie Crystal is stuck in the 1980's. The only thing new about him is his Plastic Surgery.
And, Baba Booey to you all!
I should have voted James Franco and Anne Hathaway as worst Oscar hosts.
I didn't enjoy them as hosts at all last year. I thought they were duds. I am not a fan of either actor so that sums it up right there.
I like to feel safe and entertained at the same time, it's all good!
I didn't even get it.