'A `KING' SWEEP THERON, PENN TAKE ACTING OSCARS.Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Writer ``The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'' fulfilled every expectation - and then some. In a historic sweep, the final installment in the J.R.R. Tolkien trilogy won 11 Oscars in 11 nominated categories, including Best Picture, at the 76th annual Academy Awards, held Sunday night Sunday Night, later named Michelob Presents Night Music, was an NBC late-night television show which aired for two seasons between 1988 and 1990 as a showcase for jazz and eclectic musical artists. at the Kodak Theatre The Kodak Theatre is a live theatre in the Hollywood and Highland retail, dining, and entertainment complex on Hollywood Boulevard and North Highland Avenue in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles. in Hollywood. The 11 wins for ``Rings'' tied it with ``Titanic'' and ``Ben-Hur'' for the most in Academy Award history. Its perfect record, though, is unprecedented. The biggest previous sweeps belonged to Vincente Minnelli's 1958 musical ``Gigi'' and Bernardo Bertolucci's 1987 epic ``The Last Emperor''; both went nine for nine. (The first film, ``Fellowship of the Ring,'' won four Oscars out of 13 nominations, while the second, ``The Two Towers,'' went two for six.) The coronation of the ``Rings'' - the first fantasy film to win Best Picture - included three Oscars for writer-director Peter Jackson, capping a long and enormously successful seven years spent devoted to bringing the trilogy to the screen. The New Zealand-made films have grossed more than $1 billion worldwide. ``Wow, you're giving us an incredibly overwhelming night,'' Jackson said, calling the trilogy ``the most incredible working experience of my life.'' Backstage, Jackson told reporters that working on the films ``was a privilege,'' adding, ``it nearly killed me, but right now I'm fine.'' Charlize Theron won the Best Actress Oscar for playing serial killer serial killer Forensic psychiatry A person who commits serial murders Prototypic SK White ♂ age 30; 97% are ♂; 80% are sociopaths. See Dahmer, Depraved heart murder, Ice Man. Cf Megan's law, Son of Sam law. Aileen Wuornos in ``Monster.'' The role marked an extreme makeover, both physically (she gained 30 pounds and wore heavy makeup) and dramatically for Theron, a former model from South Africa South Africa, Afrikaans Suid-Afrika, officially Republic of South Africa, republic (2005 est. pop. 44,344,000), 471,442 sq mi (1,221,037 sq km), S Africa. who had largely played girlfriend-type roles previously in her career. ``I know everybody in New Zealand's been thanked, so I'm going to thank everybody in South Africa, my home country,'' Theron said. She then thanked her mom. ``You have sacrificed so much for me to be able to live here and make my dreams come true, and there are no words to describe how much I love you,'' Theron said. Best Actor honors went to Sean Penn, who played an ex-con consumed with avenging his daughter's murder in ``Mystic River For other uses, see Mystic River (disambiguation) The Mystic River is the name of a short river in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. Its name derives from the Native American word "Missi-Tuk", which translates to "great tidal river", and it lies to the .'' Penn, winning his first Oscar in his fourth nomination, took the stage while many in the audience stood and cheered. ``Thank you,'' Penn said. ``If there's one thing that actors know - other than there weren't any WMDs - is there isn't anything such as the 'best' in acting, and it's proven by the great actors I was nominated with.'' Sofia Coppola won the Best Original Screenplay prize for ``Lost in Translation,'' making the Coppolas the second three-generation Oscar-winning family in Academy Award history. (The Hustons - Walter, John Walter, John (born 1739, probably in London, Eng.—died Nov.16, 1812, Teddington, Middlesex) English newspaper publisher. Initially a coal dealer and marine-insurance underwriter, Walter acquired the patent for a printing system in 1783 and in 1785 in London began to and Anjelica - were the first.) Coppola's father is five-time Oscar winner Francis Ford Coppola Noun 1. Francis Ford Coppola - United States filmmaker (born in 1939) Coppola , who was an executive producer on ``Lost in Translation.'' Her grandfather, the late Carmine carmine /car·mine/ (kahr´min) a red coloring matter used as a histologic stain. indigo carmine indigotindisulfonate sodium. car·mine n. Coppola, won for musical score on ``The Godfather Part II.'' ``Thank you to my dad for everything he taught me,'' Coppola said. But, for the most part, the evening belonged to ``The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.'' Only two other movies managed to win more than once - ``Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World'' won awards for sound editing and cinematography cinematography: see motion picture photography. cinematography Art and technology of motion-picture photography. It involves the composition of a scene, lighting of the set and actors, choice of cameras, camera angle, and integration of special , while ``Mystic River,'' in addition to Penn's win, snagged the Best Supporting Actor supporting actor n → attore m non protagonista Oscar for Tim Robbins Timothy Francis Robbins (born October 16, 1958) is an American Academy Award-winning actor, screenwriter, director, producer, activist and musician. He is the longtime partner of actress Susan Sarandon, with whom he shares liberal political views. . ``It's now official,'' host Billy Crystal said midway through the ceremony. ``There's nobody left in New Zealand New Zealand (zē`lənd), island country (2005 est. pop. 4,035,000), 104,454 sq mi (270,534 sq km), in the S Pacific Ocean, over 1,000 mi (1,600 km) SE of Australia. The capital is Wellington; the largest city and leading port is Auckland. to thank.'' Winners in categories that didn't include ``LOTR'' expressed gratitude and relief for the wide berth. The evening's most overt political statement came when filmmaker Errol Morris won in the Best Documentary category for ``The Fog of War,'' his fascinating portrait of Robert McNamara For the figure skater, see . Robert Strange McNamara (born June 9, 1916) is an American business executive and a former United States Secretary of Defense. McNamara served as U.S. Secretary of Defense from 1961 to 1968, during the Vietnam War. , U.S. secretary of defense for much of the Vietnam War Vietnam War, conflict in Southeast Asia, primarily fought in South Vietnam between government forces aided by the United States and guerrilla forces aided by North Vietnam. . ``Forty years ago this country went down a rabbit hole in Vietnam and millions died,'' Morris said. ``I fear we're going down a rabbit hole once again, and, if people can stop and think and reflect on the issues in this movie, perhaps I've done some damn good here.'' Morris' comments were well-received and gave Crystal one of his best punch lines of the night. ``I can't wait for his tax audit,'' Crystal said. Supporting Actor winner Robbins confined his political comments to a peace-sign lapel pin A lapel pin is a small pin often worn on the lapel of a dress jacket. Lapel pins can be purely ornamental or can indicate the wearer's affiliation with an organization or cause; for example, American Flag lapel pins became very popular in the United States, especially among . Instead, after thanking ``Mysic River'' director Clint Eastwood, long-time partner Susan Sarandon and numerous others, Robbins offered support for anyone who has been a victim of domestic violence. ``In this movie, I play a victim of abuse and violence, and if you are out there and are a person who has had that tragedy befall be·fall v. be·fell , be·fall·en , be·fall·ing, be·falls v.intr. To come to pass; happen. v.tr. To happen to. See Synonyms at happen. you, there is no shame and weakness in seeking help and counseling,'' Robbins said. ``It is sometimes the strongest thing you can do to stop the cycle of violence.'' Studio politics were nonexistent non·ex·is·tence n. 1. The condition of not existing. 2. Something that does not exist. non . Nobody from Pixar Animation took a potshot pot·shot also pot shot n. 1. A random or easy shot. 2. A criticism made without careful thought and aimed at a handy target for attack: reporters taking potshots at the mayor. at Disney; outspoken Michael Eisner critic Roy Disney didn't win in his nominated category so he didn't have a chance to rant the Disney chairman. ``Finding Nemo'' director Andrew Stanton accepted the Oscar for Best Animated Film, saying, ``I'm going to be forever grateful to the cast and crew of 'Finding Nemo' for giving their incomparable talents to this little fish story I had.'' It was the first win in the category for Pixar Animation, which recently broke off contract talks with Disney to renew their partnership. Backstage, Stanton was asked if the award would help the company as it begins negotiations with other studios. ``Well, it never hurts,'' Stanton said. ``This just legitimizes that we are on the right track.'' Renee Zellweger, who had been nominated for three consecutive years, finally won, taking home the Best Supporting Actress award for her portrayal of a spunky spunk·y adj. spunk·i·er, spunk·i·est Informal Spirited; plucky. spunk  i·ly adv. frontier gal in ``Cold Mountain.''
Zellweger shed a tear or two, then composed herself before walking to the podium. ``Thank you for never saying don't try,'' Zellweger told her family. Filmmaker Blake Edwards (``The Pink Panther,'' ``10,'' ``Breakfast at Tiffany's'') received an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement. Jim Carrey presented the award to physical-comedy expert Edwards, who sped on stage in a wheelchair, which then crashed through a breakaway wall. ``My mother thanks you, my father thanks you, and the beautiful English broad with the incomparable soprano and promiscuous vocabulary thanks you,'' said Edwards, referring to his wife and frequent star, Julie Andrews. CAPTION(S): 9 photos Photo: (1 -- 3 -- color) Best Actress Charlize Theron, left, played serial killer Aileen Wuornos in ``Monster'' while Sean Penn, right, won Best Actor for his role in ``Mystic River.'' Peter Jackson, far right, was named Best Director for ``The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.'' (4 -- color) Billy Crystal returns as host of the Academy Awards. (5 -- color) Sofia's win puts Coppola family in tie with Hustons. Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer (6 -- color) Best Actress nominee Samantha Morton arrives for Sunday's big event. John McCoy/Staff Photographer (7 -- 9 -- color) Top, Best Director winner Peter Jackson, at microphone, leads cast and crew from Best Picture winner ``The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.'' Above, Fans gather to get a glimpse - and snap a pic - of their favorite stars on the red carpet outside the Kodak Theatre on Sunday. Left, actress Charlize Theron poses for photographers on her way into the Academy Awards. Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer Ric Francis/Associated Press |
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