It's one of our favorite seasons of the year. No, not spring (that's our second): Awards Season, and the biggest awards show is upon us. The Academy Awards, aka the Oscars, will air this Sunday, February 24 at 7 p.m. EST on ABC.
While this year's show should prove interesting -- the host, Seth MacFarlane is known for his candidness, not political correctness, and is perhaps even more unpredictable than Ricky Gervais, who made quite the splash when he hosted the Golden Globes last year.
In honor of the impending ceremony we've dug up some of our favorite Oscar moments.
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Here's our ten favorite moments, in ascending order by year.
10. It's a Tie The first and last time there was a tie in Oscar history for Best Actress was in 1969 at the 41st annual Academy Awards, when Katharine Hepburn and Barbra Streisand won for "The Lion in the Winter," and "Funny Girl," respectively. In typical Hepburn fashion, she was a no-show, and in what would become typical Streisand fashion, she stole the spotlight. We can't imagine celebrities playing nice and sharing anything, let alone an Oscar.
9. Oscar? I don't need no stinking Oscar. In 1971, George C. Scott won Best Actor for his role in "Patton." Scott however had already said he would send the Oscar back if he won, due to believing the Academy Awards to be "a two-hour meat parade, a public display with contrived suspense for economic reasons." Any celebrity who doesn't need extra attention wins an awesome award in our book.
8. Yeah, what he said At the 45th annual Academy Awards Marlon Brando sent a Native American named Sacheen Littlefeather in his place to decline his award for Best Actor in "The Godfather" because of Hollywood's mistreatment of Native Americans. (Only Scott and Brando have refused Oscars, both for Best Actor). Brando sent Littlefeather with a 15-page speech but when the producer met her backstage he allegedly threatened to have her removed or arrested if she spoke for longer than the allotted 60 seconds. Brando's little stunt caused the Academy to introduce a ban on proxy acceptances going forward.
7. Nudity makes everything more interesting David Niven was introducing the Best Picture presenter, Elizabeth Taylor, in 1974 when a streaker flashing the peace sign ran out on stage behind him. "Well, ladies and gentlemen, that was almost bound to happen. But isn't it fascinating to think that probably the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings?" was Niven's quick-witted response. Either way, the streaker wins a spot on our list simply because that would NEVER happen in our day of extreme and over-the-top security measures, even if back in the day it was a regular part of our world.
6. Everybody loves Christopher Reeve Christopher Reeve received an intense standing ovation at the 1996 annual Academy Awards, with many in the audience crying, when he came on stage to introduce a film montage recognizing how Hollywood has tackled social issues.
5. Who invited these guys again? In 2000, the "South Park" group showed up in drag to the red carpet, with Matt Stone and Trey Parker mocking Gwyneth Paltrow and Jennifer Lopez's former memorable red-carpet gowns. It was a sight one might expect to see at the Oscar's sluttier, more irresponsible little sister, the Golden Globes, and was so incredibly odd, although not surprising coming from Stone and Parker.
4. Milestone Halle Berry winning Best Actress in 2002 for "Monster's Ball" was a memorable moment not only at the Oscars, but also in history. She became the first black woman to win an Oscar for Best Actress, and her speech was expectedly extremely emotional.
3. Scorses finally gets his Martin Scorsese wins Best Director for "The Departed," in 2007, and jokingly asked during his speech, "Can you double-check the envelope?" Not sure how it took so long, but we were happy to see Scorsese receive the honor.
2. Best Kiss In 2008, Adrien Brody became the youngest actor ever to win Best Actor (27) for his role in "The Pianist," but his kiss to Halle Berry before giving his acceptance speech caused an even bigger buzz. He joked about it by bringing breath spray to next year's awards where he presented Best Actress award. Making fun of yourself is pretty much our favorite thing for celebrities to do, and anything unpredictable at the Oscars is always awesome.
1. Milestone No. 2 Tom Hanks presented the Best Picture award in 2010 to Kathryn Bigelow's film, "The Hurt Locker." Bigelow not only managed to best her ex-husband James Cameron's film Avatar, she also became the first woman to win the Best Director award. She didn't make the speech about being a woman; instead focusing on the film she won for and giving credit to the people who inspired it. Bigelow is a badass.
Some honorable mentions, that didn't make the top ten but still warrant remembering: 1. Kate Ledger accepting Best Supporting Actor award in 2009 for her brother Heath's role in "The Dark Knight," with their mother and father with her.
2. Philippe Petit balancing an Oscar statue on his chin after the film about him walking a tightrope between the Twin Towers won Best Documentary feature in 2009.
3. John Hughes tribute in 2010, where Jon Cryer, Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwald, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy, Macauley Culkin, and Matthew Broderick all came out to honor the director who was responsible for launching their careers.
4. At the 76th Academy Awards Peter Jackson's film "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" won a record-tying 11 Oscars, including three for writer, producer, and director, and the Academy finally stopped turning its nose up to fantasy cinema.
5. Bjork showing up in a swan dress in 2001
6. Jack Palace finally wins an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Curly in "City Slickers" in 1992, after over 40 years in the business. He dropped to the stage and did one-armed push-ups.
7. Cher presenting the award for Best Supporting Actor in 1986, wearing the most ridiculous outfit.
8. Anjelica Huston completing the trifecta of Oscar awards for her family, winning for "Prizzi's Honor." Her father, John, won for director and her uncle Walter won for acting.
9. Walt Disney rewarded with an honorary Oscar at the 11th Academy Awards for producing cinema's first animated film, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." The Academy also made 7 mini Oscars to accompany the real one. Genius.
10. Woody Allen making an exception to attend the 74th Oscars, to honor his city after 9/11. Rare Oscar moment at its finest.
11. Jennifer Garner tripping on the steps to present at the 79th Awards. Her quick response, "I do all my own stunts," made it look planned rather than an accident, and either way hilariously endearing.
12. Michael Moore wins Best Documentary at 75th Awards, the same month that the Iraq War began, using his acceptance speech to blast a "fictitious President" George W. Bush, receiving both boos and cheers. A rare tense moment at normally well-behaved Oscars is always entertaining, if not cringe-inducing as well.
