The first Oscars ceremony in 1929 was all of 15 minutes long. Last year, it was nearly 4 hours. Part of the reason for the length is the fact that nearly everyone honored with an award gets to make a speech, and in that speech they try to remember and thank the many “little people” who contributed to their success. It’s nice to be generous and to recognize the folks who helped you reach the top…but come on, some of these speeches go on far too long.
Producers and directors try to keep the show moving by cueing the live orchestra to “play them off” the stage after 45 seconds passed, but some don’t take the hint. This year, things will be a bit different. Instead of giving verbal thanks, nominees have been asked to list the names of those they’d like to thank should they receive the opportunity. And then, when their time comes, the names will scroll across the bottom of the screen, ticker-tape fashion, while the awardee focuses on delivering a short and pithy acceptance speech. It will be interesting to see if this works. By the way, can you guess which actor/actress has been thanked the most by his/her peers? Check it out here!
On a side note, the “swag bag” this year will be worth upwards of $220,000. Among other things it will include a vaporizer, a breast lift, and a sex toy. GQ categorizes each item ranging from basic to “trashy” to respectable. According to an article in The Atlantic, not everyone was happy with the assortment of gifts and the Academy has sued the marketing firm that put the package together. Sigh…it’s getting harder and harder for the 1% to enjoy their conspicuous consumption.
That’s crazy that an award show would last 4 hours!!!… This has to affect the rating because i don’t even watch the Oscars, but if it contains nothing but long speeches i really wouldn’t show any interest. There should be a easier way of thanking people and if not they should just understand and wait to the show is over for a personal thank you. I really think these long speeches scare viewers away. its hard to keep anyone entertained for 30 minutes let alone 4 hours that’s just ridiculous
I feel that fours hours is a good amount of time for an award show. You look at the entertainment that have lined up between musical acts and random videos playing it does take up most of the time. If you think about it if they just got straight to the point on who won the show would only take 15 minutes, however they do want to honor everyone who has worked hard and deserved the night for themselves. This helps the entertainment world tremendously as well because it get’s everyone to sit around and watch the awards which makes people want to watch those shows or movies which helps with ratings. I guess you can say that award shows brings people together.
Entertainment in our society is a huge deal especially when looking at television and certain events like the Academy Awards. It is interesting to see how things constantly change over time. It is mentioned in class that it is important to please the viewers and audience and to make changes so that whatever is being broadcasted is successful. I am very surprised how the time went from 15 minutes to 4 hours. I could not imagine the Academy Awards only being 15 minutes. Today this is a huge event and since film has grown so has the award show. I think that no matter what changes are made people will still continue and watch and enjoy the Academy Awards but the thing that might change with certain changes is the overall ratings.
This is a issue that highly affects the ratings of the Oscars year after year. Personally, I think that four hours is a little excessive for an award program, however people do wait all year to see the results. In class we have talked about the changing of television, radio, and film through out the years. This is something that shows a great example of how much film and television play a role in our lives. Being that it grew from being only 15 minutes long in 1929 to now four hours long, you can see the growth and influence of how television and film affect careers, as well as viewers.