The 84th Academy Awards

By Daily Mail Reporter

Last updated at 8:45 AM on 24th February 2012

Tasty: Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck bites into a mini chocolate Oscar during a media preview of food and beverages to be served at the Governor's Ball immediately following the awards

All shall have prizes: The chocolate replicas on display before being handed out to the A-listers attending the Governor's Ball

Hi-tech: An Oscar image is printed atop chocolate, served with 3D glasses as part of the dessert menu for the ball

Finely balanced: The 'Chocolate Staircase' is designed to be eaten while wearing 3D glasses, a nod to several of this year's nominees

Merriment: Julia Fitzroy pours a glass of Red Carpet Glamour for mixologist Adam R. Seger

Hors d'oeuvre: Wolfgang Puck's classic dish, smoked salmon on Oscar fatbread with caviar

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2105704/Oscars-2012-Countdown-84th-Academy-Awards-Hollywood-rolls-red-carpet.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Best ever Oscar gowns

While the main focus is the films, the gowns worn by leading ladies at the Academy Awards always grab a hefty share of column inches.

Every year there are one or two standout affairs which stay in the memory long after the trophies have been carried home.

Pink is a favourite red carpet choice for Gwyneth Paltrow

who at the 2007 ceremony went for old-school Hollywood

glamour in a salmon-hued, bias-cut gown by Zac Posen

A vision in Versace, Jessica Alba chose a gold gown to

accentuate her glowing look at the 2006 Oscars

Reese Witherspoon chose an ultra-feminine vintage

Dior creation with pink ribbon and silver rosebud

detailing to pick up her 2006 best actress honour for

Johnny Cash biopic Walk The Line

Having been nominated for best supporting actress in Brokeback

Mountain in 2006 Michelle Williams turned up in an eye-catching

Vera Wang creation.

In 2005 Cate Blanchett, who seems untouched by the

passage of time, was the epitome of silver screen elegance in

a light gold Valentino couture gown with chocolate brown

cummerbund and matching bag

Erin Brockovich star Julia Roberts must have been thrilled

with her choice of vintage Valentino for the 2001 awards,

after her best actress win placed her firmly in the spotlight

Fun facts and figures about the Academy Awards

Oscar by the numbers: the Top Ten factoids

Thursday, February 23, 2012

By Barbara Vancheri, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

1. 265 features were eligible for the 2011 Academy Awards.

2. The ceremony will start at 8:30 p.m. Sunday on ABC, but the network's pre-show begins at 7 p.m. with Robin Roberts, Tim Gunn, Louise Roe, Jess Cagle and Nina Garcia. In the hour immediately before the ceremony, ABC's "Oscars Red Carpet Live" will be the only broadcast from the red carpet.

3. This list will grow but presenters so far: Halle Berry, Rose Byrne, Bradley Cooper, Tom Cruise, Penelope Cruz, Cameron Diaz, Michael Douglas, Tina Fey, Tom Hanks, Angelina Jolie, Milla Jovovich, Ellie Kemper, Jennifer Lopez, Melissa McCarthy, Wendy McLendon-Covey, Chris Rock, Maya Rudolph, Ben Stiller, Emma Stone, Meryl Streep, Kristen Wiig, Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis. Also, Miss Piggy and Kermit.

4. The largest Cirque du Soleil cast ever assembled will present an exclusive performance on Sunday. It will be accompanied by music by Danny Elfman, who scored the music for Cirque du Soleil's "IRIS, A Journey through the World of Cinema." More than 50 international artists from Cirque du Soleil productions around the world will converge in LA for the event.

5. This will be Billy Crystal's ninth time hosting the Oscars. His first was in 1990.

"He's a great improviser, and I'm sure that will be called into play," the show's producer, Gil Cates, told the PG at the time about Mr. Crystal. That was especially valuable in an ambitious show that had crews stationed in London, Moscow, Sydney, Buenos Aires and Tokyo.

6. If Viola Davis isn't crowned best actress, Meryl Streep could go home a three-time winner. Her nomination for "The Iron Lady" is her 17th overall and 14th for leading actress.

Her nominations for best actress: "The French Lieutenant's Woman," "Sophie's Choice" (for which she won), "Silkwood," "Out of Africa," "Ironweed," "A Cry in the Dark," "Postcards from the Edge," "The Bridges of Madison County," "One True Thing," "Music of the Heart," "The Devil Wears Prada," "Doubt" and "Julie & Julia."

Her supporting nominations were for "The Deer Hunter," "Kramer vs. Kramer," for which she won, and "Adaptation."

7. Hollywood celebrates itself in so many ways with "The Artist" a love letter to cinema; "Hugo" paying tribute to film pioneer Georges Melies, portrayed by Ben Kingsley; and "My Week With Marilyn" about the making of "The Prince and the Showgirl" featuring Marilyn Monroe and Sir Laurence Olivier, played by Oscar nominees Michelle Williams and Kenneth Branagh.

In "Midnight in Paris," Owen Wilson plays a hack screenwriter who dreams of better, more literate things, and the documentary short "God Is the Bigger Elvis" is about starlet Dolores Hart, who traded Hollywood for life as a Benedictine nun.

8. As usual, Pittsburgh has connections to Sunday's show: Nick Nolte is nominated for "Warrior," filmed in Pittsburgh in 2009; Rooney Mara, with family ties to the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants, is a first-time nominee for "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," and Aliquippa native turned New Zealander Joe Letteri is nominated for visual effects for "Rise of the Planet of the Apes."

9. When winners express surprise at the heft of the Oscar, they're not kidding. It weighs 8 1/2 pounds and stands 13 1/2 inches high, and if you happen to be in New York this weekend, you can find out yourself at the "Meet the Oscars, Grand Central" exhibition at Vanderbilt Hall in Grand Central Terminal.

It opened Wednesday and will give fans the chance to have their photo taken holding an Oscar statuette. They also can see the actual Oscars that will be presented to the best actor and actress, before they're shipped back to LA on Saturday for the show.

Also on display: The Oscar won by Michael Douglas for "Wall Street" and statuettes in various stages of completion by maker R.S. Owens & Co. in Chicago. Hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. today through Sunday, and admission is free.

10. It's all over but the counting and the shouting.

Final ballots were mailed Feb. 1 to the 5,783 voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and they were due back Tuesday at 5 p.m. Ballots are being tabulated by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the names of winners placed in sealed envelopes to be opened Sunday.

In 78 years on the job, PwC has counted approximately 450,000 ballots and stuffed 2,600-plus winners' envelopes. It takes 1,700 staff hours every year to count and verify the ballots, with three days needed to count the final ballots.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12054/1211897-60.stm

cute ocsar biscult!!

Kate Blanchett was mwervellous

My favorite Oscar gowns are...

Penelope Cruz

Sarah Jessica Parker

Sandra Bullock

Cameron Diaz

Gwyneth Paltrow

Jennifer Aniston

Anne Hathaway

Who sizzled at the 2012 Oscars?

Emma Stone in Giambattista Valli

Emma Stone gown may have matched the red carpet, but she still

stood out at the 2012 Oscars.

Tina Fey in Carolina Herrera

Angelina Jolie in Atelier Versace

Angelina Jolie did her simple, sexy thing in a black strapless gown with a high

slit.

Michelle Williams in Louis Vuitton

Judy Greer in Monique Lhuillier

Princess Charlene of Monaco

Nina Garcia in Jean-Paul Gaultier

Leslie Mann in Roberto Cavalli

Gwyneth Paltrow in Tom Ford

Rose Byrne in Vivienne Westwood

Penelope Cruz in Armani Prive

Berenice Bejo in Elie Saab

Emma Stone is Regal in a High-Necked Red Giambattista Valli Gown at the 2012 Oscars

Posted on February 26, 2012 - 6:30pm by Jess

Emma is wearing Louis Vuitton jewelry, including a bracelet that she described to Ryan Seacrest as looking "like a chain link fence." Her hair is pulled back into a complicated up-do, and her usually natural makeup has definitely been amped-up to match the rest of her look.

http://www.hollywire.com/2012/02/emma-stone-regal-high-necked-red-giambattista-valli-gown-2012-oscars

Say Hello to our Style Crush!

WOW! Emma Stone totally cemented her style credentials last night when she appeared at the Oscar Awards wearing an incredible Giambattista Valli Haute Couture silk gown complete with bow detail and grosgrain belt. Yes, that’s right ladies, Emma is so fabulous that the red-head can even wear scarlet (well almost, the dress is technically fuschia - but a very red-y hue) on the red carpet!

Effortlessly elegant, she complimented her dramatic neck-bow detail gown with three incredible Louis Vuitton pieces; she wore a bracelet and earrings from their High Jewellery Collection and a clutch embroidered with sequins. The beautiful rather chunky, standout bracelet from Louis Vuitton’s Prefall 2012 collection is a new interpretation of the Charm bracelet, an iconic piece of jewellery originally created for the French fashion house by Marc Jacobs in 2001 which lent a fabulously modern tone to Emma’s look. Meanwhile, the white gold with red spinels and diamond earrings she wore (that are part of the L'Ame du Voyage high jewellery collection) complemented the colour and cut of her Valli gown perfectly.

http://www.graziadaily.co.uk/fashion/archive/2012/02/27/emma-stone.htm?slideshow=true&slideImage=0#articletitle

Emma Stone looked radiant in her outstanding berry-colored Giambattista Valli gown, but we particularly loved her perfectly pretty and polished updo. The sleekness and simplicity brought out the rich hue of her hair and the pinned loops added just the right amount of interest when contrasted with her voluminous neck bow.

Christopher Plummer Academy Awards 2012 Best Supporting Actor Winner

First Posted: 02/26/2012 10:07 pm Updated: 02/26/2012 10:07 pm

After over five decades in film, actor Christopher Plummer can finally call himself an Oscar winner. The 82-year-old star won Best Supporting Actor at the 84th annual Academy Awards on Sunday night for his performance in "Beginners." It's a historic victory for Plummer, as he becomes the oldest actor to ever win an Oscar.

"You're only two years older than me, darling; where have you been all my life?" Plummer said while accepting the award. With wins at the Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild Awards and even the Independent Spirit Awards, Plummer was the odds-on choice to take home the trophy.

Audiences adore "The Sound of Music," but star Christopher Plummer says the role was "awful and sentimental and gooey."

The venerable actor -- who starred in everything from "The Sound of Music" to "Up" before scoring Oscar gold by playing a terminally sick man who recently came out as homosexual in "Beginners" -- defeated fellow old-timer Max Von Sydow ("Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close"), Nick Nolte ("Warrior"), Kenneth Branagh ("My Week With Marilyn") and Jonah Hill ("Moneyball") in the category.

His only other Oscar nomination came in 2009, when he was up for Best Supporting Actor after playing Tolstoy in "The Last Station."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/26/christopher-plummer-best-supporting-actor_n_1303014.html?ref=entertainment

Angelina was gorgeous! Simple yet sophisticated.

Emma Stone at the 2012 Vanity Fair Oscar Party

hosted by Graydon Carter at Sunset Tower

on February 26, 2012

in West Hollywood, California

The 23-year-old actress in Chanel

I'd watched out the 84th Academy Awards on Television;When Saving Face is awarded the best  documentary I feeled too much prouded on being an Asian.

The pics of 84th Academy Awards posted here are awesome........

Salma Hayek at the 2012 Vanity Fair Oscar Party

hosted by Graydon Carter at Sunset Tower

on February 26, 2012

in West Hollywood, California

Salma Hayek in Yves Saint Laurent

Sofia Coppola at the 2012 Vanity Fair Oscar Party

hosted by Graydon Carter at Sunset Tower

on February 26, 2012

in West Hollywood, California

It's not a party until someone shows up in a formal jumpsuit. Thankfully, Sofia Coppola followed through in a black halter Yves Saint Laurent jumpsuit with bold gold accents, expertly accessorized with thick black-and-cold cuffs and soft, pale pink makeup.

Jessica Chastain about to mingle with the arriving party crowd at Vanity Fair

Mila Jovovich looks fantastic in a white Elie Saab Haute Couture gown

Neil Patrick Harris aka Barney Stinson in How I Met Your Mother

arrived with fiancé David Burtka

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes

Jennifer Lopez wowed with a very plunging neckline

Gerard Butler at the Vanity Fair After Party

Irina Shayk in Abed Mahfouz

Sofia Coppola in Yves Saint Laurent

Carolina Herrera in Carolina Herrera

Victoria Beckham in Victoria Beckham

Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes, Victoria Beckham and David Beckham attend the 2012 Vanity Fair Oscar Party

Alexandra Edenborough & Gary Oldman

George Clooney and Sandra Bullock onstage during the 84th Annual

Academy Awards

Servers deliver popcorn

Without a doubt, Brad and Angelina are still the sexiest twosome in Tinseltown.

Busy Philipps and Michelle Williams in the audience

Presenters Rose Byrne and Melissa McCarthy

Presenters Jennifer Lopez and Cameron Diaz

Presenters Robert Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow

Presenters Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy

Screenwriters Nat Faxon, Alexander Payne and Jim Rash accept the Best Accepted Screenplay

Award for 'The Descendants'

Christopher Plummer accepts the Best Supporting Actor Award for

'Beginners'

Presenter Christian Bale

Presenter Tom Cruise

Presenter Michael Douglas

Songwriter Bret McKenzie accepts the Best Original Song Award for

'Man or Muppet' from 'The Muppets'

Brad Pitt

Uggie the dog wears a custom-made Chopard bowtie of 18 carat dog-

boned shaped gold charm and satin

i don't know but there was not a single dress this year that WOWed me.

Michelle Williams is probably the best one for me, as well as Penelope Cruz's.

i don't know but there was not a single dress this year that WOWed me.

Michelle Williams is probably the best one for me, as well as Penelope Cruz's.

Hmm but i like Emma Stone's dress!! Also Victoria Beckham's haha, i know hers might be a little simple but it her signature isn't it? and wow at the dog's Chopard 

Best Oscar Jewelry 2012

Oscars dresses may attract most of the attention, but equally dazzling are the brilliant jewels that accompany them on the red carpet.

She may not have taken home the award for Best Actress, but Michelle Williams was certainly one of the best dressed of the night. To up the glamour of her coral Louis Vuitton gown, Michelle drew attention to her collarbone with a rather spectacular Fred Leighton for Forevermark diamond choker and secured a 19th century bow brooch to her dress.

With one very exposed right leg and Brad Pitt on her arm, Angelina Jolie could have forsaken jewelry altogether and still have ruled the red carpet. But she didn't risk it, jazzing up her black velvet Atelier Versace gown with $2.5 million worth of diamonds.

Former StyleBistro guest editor Louise Roe accented her retro updo with a vintage white gold brooch. The floral Jacqueline Nerguizian accent featured six-carats worth of diamonds.

Although Natalie Portman's wedding ring stole some of the attention away from her vintage Dior gown (yes, she's now married), her V-shaped Harry Winston diamond necklace was the true piéce de résistance. Between that and her matching drop earrings, this was one of our favorite looks of the night.

Although she may have dressed like a modern day Grace Kelly, Penelope Cruz chose to accessorize with Marilyn Monroe's best friends: diamonds! This Chopard choker owes its shimmer to 56-carats worth of diamonds. Now that's what we call some serious bling.

What does one wear with one of the night's hottest gowns? Gwyneth Paltrow accented her caped Tom Ford dress with a million dollar Anna Hu bracelet. The cuff is made from 2,368 diamonds and weighs a whopping 163-carats.

Milla Jovovich certainly didn't skimp on the sparkle. From her beaded Elie Saab gown to a bejeweled Edie Parker clutch, the former model was one of the night's biggest hits. Since Milla is Jacob and Co.'s spokesperson, she selected one of the brand's delicate bracelets and a gigantic diamond ring.

Ladies, take note. If you want a memorable look at the Oscars, wear emeralds. It worked for Angelina Jolie, Reese Witherspoon and now Berenice Bejo, who wowed with a pair of tiered green drop earrings by Chopard. White diamonds, platinum and white gold came together to create this perfect ear candy.

Jane Fonda held court at the annual Vanity Fair Oscar soiree in a stunning bib necklace with 310 brilliant-cut diamonds. Barbarella didn't stop there, also wearing a pair of ruby cabochon earrings made of no less than 278 diamonds.

Kristen Wiig left critics divided with her tiered nude J. Mendel gown, but her jewelry selection was decidedly less controversial. Art Deco-inspired Neil Lane bracelets took our breath away, while nearly black Chanel nail polish gave her style subtle edge.

As smitten as we were with Missi Pyle's seafoam Oscars gown, her Chopard necklace had us equally transfixed. The teardrop-shaped choker is comprised of more than 80 white diamonds.

To focus attention on her gown's wrap neck, Penelope Ann Miller wore her hair in a teased updo, adding shine with these one-of-a-kind 11-carat earrings. The Blue Nile baubles played up the pizazz of her sequined gown.

After scoring big at the box office this summer with the smash hit The Muppets, Miss Piggy marked her triumphant return to the A-list in Fred Leighton's 55-carat diamond and platinum necklace and a matching 40-carat bracelet. The diva didn't stop there, also wearing a 70-carat amethyst and diamond ring from the '40s.

The Artist star Uggie was by far the cutest (and perhaps most dapper) Oscars attendee in a black satin bow-tie adorned with an 18-carat yellow gold bone engraved with his name. Love the Chopard collar? It will be auctioned off to benefit the Amanda Foundation, an LA-based animal rescue organization.

Natalie's stylist, Kate Young said that:

“Natalie’s dress is amazing. It’s an actual 1954 spring couture dress, from Rare Vintage on 57th street in New York. We borrowed it—it’s $50,000!—she was actually going to wear another dress but then I got a call from the woman at Rare Vintage and she was like, ‘You should see this dress for Natalie.’ So we went and she put it on, and it needed zero alterations, and Natalie was like, ‘This was meant to be, wasn’t it?’ And I said, ‘I guess it was.'

me: 50,000 wow!!!