1990 (Encore Presentation): The Academy Didn't Do the Right Thing

(Originally published on August 25, 2002) On this encore presentation of Oscars Playback editors and experts Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen close out the 1980s with the 1990 Oscars ceremony -- an infamous event where "Driving Miss Daisy" won Best Picture and "Do the Right Thing" wasn't even nominated. It's also the first time Billy Crystal hosted the Academy Awards -- and things didn't start off as smoothly as one might expect. Email us at [email protected]. Like what you hear? Leave a review whenever you listen to podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this season finale episode of Oscars Playback, experts and editors Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen head back to 1989 to celebrate the worst Oscars ever. Produced by Allan Carr, the '89 Oscars are remembered not for the "Rain Man" wins in Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor, but for Snow White singing "Proud Mary" with Rob Lowe. But was the response to this terrible opening number overblown, particularly when compared to other terrible opening numbers throughout the decade? Joyce and Chris discuss that and 1988 in Film, when "Beetlejuice," "Die Hard," "Twins," "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," and other classics were first released. Finally, Joyce and Chris conclude this year's '80s edition of Oscars Playback by ranking the decade's Best Picture winners. Stay tuned next week for an encore presentation of Oscars Playback 1990, which Joyce and Chris first recorded in 2022. Joyce and Chris will be back to the Oscars Playback playground in 2025 with a trip into the 1970s. Email us at [email protected]. Like what you hear? Leave a review wherever you listen to podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Oscars Playback, experts and editors Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen head back to 1988 to celebrate the 60th annual Academy Awards when "The Last Emperor" won Best Picture and eight other awards in a clean sweep of its nominations, Eddie Murphy spoke truth to power about the Oscars' failure to recognize Black artists, and a contentious writers' strike kept the scripted material to a minimum. Joyce and Chris also celebrate the best films of 1987 -- "Predator" and "Adventures in Babysitting" (sorry to the other great films!) -- and wonder if Glenn Close should've won Best Actress over Cher. Email us at [email protected]. Make your predictions at https://www.goldderby.com. Love what you hear? Leave us a great review at your favorite podcast provider. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Oscars Playback, editors and experts Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen travel back to 1987 to revisit the 59th annual Oscars. The 1987 Oscars saw "Platoon" win Best Picture and Oliver Stone win Best Director, and Joyce and Chris discuss that win, the film's legacy, and the plethora of fantastic '86 releases. To make your own predictions, head to https://www.goldderby.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Oscars Playback, editors and experts Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen head back in time to 1986 when "Out of Africa" won seven Oscars, including Best Picture, despite being a movie no one seemed to even love. They discuss the legacy of the film, its defeat of "The Color Purple," and look back at the '86 Oscars ceremony. Joyce and Chris also trek through the year in film, when "Back to the Future" ruled (and still rules and probably should've won more than a single Academy Award). Email us at [email protected]. Make your own awards predictions at https://www.goldderby.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Oscars Playback, editors and experts Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen travel back 40 years to celebrate the 1985 Oscars and the best films of 1984 -- including seminal favorites like Ghostbusters, Beverly Hills Cop, Gremlins, Splash, Muppets Take Manhattan, The Karate Kid, and more. Oh, and then the Oscar movies, like the deserving winner Amadeus and some lesser-loved nominees. Email us at [email protected]. Make your Oscar picks at https://www.goldderby.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Oscars Playback, editors and experts Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen travel back to 1984 to celebrate the interminable 56th annual Oscars ceremony where "Terms of Endearment" got the shot and won five awards. Email us at [email protected]. Like what you hear? Leave a review wherever you listen to podcasts! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Oscars Playback, editors and experts Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen travel back to 1983 to celebrate the 55th annual Academy Awards where "Gandhi" dominated with eight wins, including Best Picture. Was this the right choice? Is "Oppenheimer" destined to be remembered like "Gandhi"? How horrible was this show's opening number? Joyce and Chris get into it all. Email us at [email protected]. Like what you hear? Leave a review at your favorite podcast provider! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Oscars Playback, editors and experts Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen spend a day on Golden Pond to relitigate the 1982 Oscars, when Chariots of Fire upset Reds to win Best Picture on the back of a Vangelis score. Email us at [email protected]. Like what you hear? Leave a review at your favorite podcast provider. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome back to Season 3 of Oscars Playback. On this special episode, experts and editors Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen head back to 1981 to talk about the 53rd annual Academy Awards, where "Ordinary People" beat "Raging Bull" for Best Picture and Martin Scorsese lost his first Best Director Oscar of many. Stay tuned this season for more '80s Oscar episodes and email us at [email protected] to talk about the decade in film. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices