Six Surprising Oscar Moments

Every year, the Academy Award ceremony delights millions of spectators around the world. They know the procedure very well: since 1953 (the first televised edition) it has been pretty much the same, a 3-4 hours event where winners in each category are finally revealed. But there always have been unexpected situations, some of them happier than others.

1. Streakers: The Risk of Live Transmissions (1974)

Ten years before the Janet Jackson’s episode at the Super Bowl 2004 (when Justin Timberlake uncovered one of her breasts during a musical performance), there was another “naked live-surprise” in television and it happened at the Oscars. David Niven was introducing Elizabeth Taylor as Best Picture presenter when a nude man suddenly appeared behind him, raising one of hir arms and showing the peace sign.

In order to avoid this kind of situations, nowadays the ceremony is transmitted with a 5-seconds delay.

2. Halle Berry Kissed By Surprise (2003)

Berry had announced the name of the young and almost unknown Adrien Brody as the winner of the Best Actor award, who defeated competitors stars like Jack Nicholson, Michael Caine, Daniel Day-Lewis and Nicolas Cage. Visibly moved, Brody stepped on stage and gave her a “Hollywood style”, passionate, unforgettable kiss.

3. What a Couple: A Disney character and a Sex-Scandal Icon (1989)

Oscar ceremony producers will probably regret forever the musical number they planned for the 1989 edition. How would they come up with the idea of getting together the star Rob Lowe and an unknown actress playing Snow White? Timing couldn’t be worse: Lowe had been involved in a sex scandal just one year ago and then he was on the stage trying to sing (as if he could!) with one of the most famous Walt Disney cartoons.

4. Jack Palance Shows He’s in Perfect Shape (1992)

Palance had to wait 42 years to win the Oscar, so when his moment finally came, he knew how to make it memorable. Although he was most know for his villain characters, he got the award as Best Supporting Actor for playing a role in a comedy, City Slickers.

At 72, he demonstrated not only a great sense of humor in his speech but also his extraordinary physical shape by doing three one-armed push-ups on the floor.

Old Jack passed away in 2006, but the memories of his golden Oscar night remain.

5. The Brando Rejection (1973)

One of the biggest fiascos ever. It was “The Godfather” year and Marlon Brando got the prize as Best Actor, as expected. But he didn’t attend the ceremony and sent a woman instead. She was introduced as Sacheen Littlefeather and made her speech dressed in Apache’s traditional clothes. She explained that Brando had decided to reject the award as a way to oppose “the treatment of American Indians…by the film industry.”

Watch the video here.

Some time later, the press discovered that she wasn’t a real Apache but an aspiring actress named Maria Cruz.

6. Unique Woody Allen Appearance (2002)

Allen’s absences at the Oscars were famous. He hadn’t even attended the ceremony in 1978, when his film “Annie Hall” got 4 awards, including best picture and best director. That’s why it was almost shocking seeing him at the 2002 ceremony. It was a real special ocassion: after the unfortunate events of 9/11 the producers decided to pay a tribute to the city of New York with a clip of some of the best movied filmed there. Nobody better than Woody could have been picked up to present the segment.