Thursday, February 25, 2016

2016 Oscars Quiz




The 88th Academy Awards will be held on Sunday, February 28, 2016 and will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California.  As you prepare for the big night, why not challenge yourself and try Number 16's sixth annual Oscars quiz.  There are 10 questions.  Good luck!


NUMBER 16 OSCARS QUIZ 2016

1.  Sylvester Stallone's highly successful 1976 boxing film, Rocky, was nominated for 10 Academy Awards.  How many did Oscars did the original Rocky win?


Stallone as Rocky

A.  Rocky swept the 1977 Oscars, winning all 10 of the Academy Awards for which it was nominated.

B.  It won five Oscars.

C.  I won seven Oscars.

D.  It won three Oscars.

E.  It failed to win any of the ten Academy Awards for which it was nominated.



2.  Leonardo DiCaprio has received six Academy Award nominations, but has never won an Oscar. This year, he is nominated in the Best Actor category for his role in The Revenant.  For which movie did Leo win his first Oscar nomination?





A.  The Aviator

B.  What's Eating Gilbert Grape

C.  Blood Diamond

D.  Titanic

E.  Romeo and Juliet



3,  The late Audrey Hepburn was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role five times.  She won once.  For which film did Audrey Hepburn win the Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role?





A.  Roman Holiday (1953)

B.  Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)

C,  The Nun's Story (1959)

D.  Sabrina (1954)

E.  Wait Until Dark (1968)



4.  Marilyn Monroe never won an Academy Award, but did she ever receive an Oscar nomination?





A.  Yes, Marilyn was nominated for her performance in Bus Stop (1956).

B.  Yes, she was nominated for Niagara (1953) .

C.  Yes, she was nominated for The Prince and the Showgirl. (1957)

D.  Yes, she was nominated for Some Like it Hot (1959).

E.  No, she never received an Oscar nomination.




5.  What was the first colour film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture?

A.  The Wizard of Oz

B.  Ben-Hur

C.  Gone with the Wind

D.  Rebecca

E.  The Grapes of Wrath



6.  Which of these nominated films won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1941?

A.  How Green Was My Valley

B.  Citizen Kane

C.  The Maltese Falcon

D.  Here Comes Mr. Jordan

E.  Suspicion



7.  Has any foreign language film won the Academy Award for Best Picture?

A.  Yes, Italian actor, director and screenwriter Roberto Benigni's Life is Beautiful (1997) won the Best Picture Oscar at the 1999 ceremony.

B.   Yes, the 1938 French language film Grand Illusion won the Academy Award for Best Picture.

C.   Yes, the 1960 Italian film Two Women, starring Sophia Loren, won the Oscar for Best Picture in 1961.

D.  Yes, the 1987 Danish film, Babette's Feast, won the Academy Award for Best Picture.

E.  No.  To date, no foreign language film has won Best Picture.



8.  Who won the Oscar for Best Actor at the 12th Academy Awards, held on February 29, 1940?

A,  James Stewart for Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

B.  Robert Donat for Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939)

C.  Clark Gable for Gone with the Wind (1939)

D.  Laurence Olivier for Wuthering Heights (1939)

E.  Mickey Rooney for Babes in Arms (1939)




9.  Has Warren Beatty has been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role four times.  Has he ever won?




A.  Yes, he won the Best Actor Award for the movie Reds.

B.  Yes, he won for Bonnie and Clyde.

C.  Yes, he won for Heaven Can Wait.

D.  Yes, he won for Bugsy.

E.  No, Warren Beatty has never won an Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role.



10.   Who was the first woman to host the Oscars?

A.  Celeste Holme

B.  Shirley MacLaine

C.  Claudette Colbert

D.  Liza Minnelli

E.  Whoopi Goldberg




ANSWERS

1.  D

The original Rocky won three Oscars in 1977.  It won Academy Awards for Best Picture, Director and Editing.  Sylvester Stallone was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role, but did not win. Peter Finch was awarded the Best Actor in a Leading Role Oscar posthumously for his performance in Network.


2.  B

Leonardo DiCaprio received his first Oscar nomination in the Best Supporting Actor category for his performance in What's Eating Gilbert Grape.  DiCaprio played Arnie Grape, a boy with developmental handicap, alongside Johnny Depp, who portrayed Arnie's brother, Gilbert Grape.


3,  A

Hepburn and Peck in Roman Holiday


Audrey Hepburn with Oscar for Roman Holiday


In 1954, Audrey Hepburn received the Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in the 1953 film Roman Holiday.  She won for her portrayal of a bored and overprotected princess who runs off to Rome and falls in love with an American journalist (Gregory Peck).

Hepburn was nominated for Best Actress in Leading Role for Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Nun's Story, Sabrina and Wait Until Dark, but did not win.  At the Oscar ceremony on March 29, 1993, she was given the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award posthumously (she died in January, 1993).  The award was accepted by her son, Sean H. Ferrer,


4.  E

Marilyn Monroe never received an Oscar nomination.  In 1957, she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actress-Comedy/Musical for Bus Stop, but did not win.  She did, however, win a Golden Globe in 1960 for Best Motion Picture Actress-Comedy/Musical for her performance in Some Like it Hot.  Marilyn was also nominated for two British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards - Best Foreign Actress for The Seven Year Itch in 1956 and Best Foreign Actress for Best Foreign Actress for The Prince and the Showgirl in 1958.


5.  C

Gone with the Wind (1939) was the first colour film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.


6,  A

How Green Was My Valley won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1941. Although Orson Welles' classic Citizen Kane was nominated for Best Picture, it was not selected in that category. Surprisingly, Citizen Kane only received one Oscar, for Best Original Screenplay.


7.  E.

No.  To date, no foreign language film has won Best Picture.  Life is Beautiful, Grand Illusion, and Babette's Feast were chosen as Best Foreign Language Film, but not Best Picture.  Two Women was not even nominated for Best Foreign Language Film.  However, Sophia Loren won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1961 for her performance in the film.  She was the first person to win the Best Actress Award for a foreign language film.  Roberto Benigni was the second to win for a non-English speaking role (and the first male).  He received an Oscar for Best Actor in Leading Role for Life is Beautiful in 1999.


8,  B

Robert Donat

British actor Robert Donat received the 1939 Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in Goodbye, Mr. Chips.  Donat, who did not attend the ceremony, was awarded the Oscar over Clark Gable's portrayal of Rhett Butler in the hugely successful Gone with the Wind.  With the exception of Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, Gone with the Wind swept all the major Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director (Victor Fleming), Best Actress (Vivien Leigh), Best Supporting Actress (Hattie McDaniel) and Best Screenplay (Sidney Howard).


9.  E.

No.  Warren Beatty has never won an Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role.  He was nominated for Best Actor in a Lead Role for his performances in   Bonnie and Clyde (1967), Heaven Can Wait (1978), Reds (1981) and Bugsy (1991), but did not win.  However, received an Academy Award in the category of Best Director for Reds.  In addition, Beatty was honoured with the Irving C. Thalberg M Thalberg Memorial Award at the Oscars in the year 2000.



10.  C

Claudette Colbert and Paddy Chayefsky at the Oscars in 1956

Actress Claudette Colbert was the first woman to host the Oscars.  She hosted the 28th Academy Awards in 1956 with co-hosts.  Shirley MacLaine co-hosted the 47th Academy Awards in 1975. Celeste Holm co-hosted the 29th Academy Awards in 1957.  Liza Minnelli co-hosted the 55th Academy Awards in 1983.  Whoopi Goldberg has hosted the Oscars four times (1994, 1996, 1999 and 2002), more than any other woman..  She also has the distinction of being the first woman and the first African-American to host the Oscars solo.



- Joanne

The Product Placement Oscars


The Product Placement Oscars
The Product Placement Oscars by Watches2U.

Friday, February 19, 2016

Throw the Perfect Oscars Party


If you are planning an Oscars party for Sunday, February 28th, here is an infographic with some great suggestions for you.


- Joanne


 how-to-throw-the-perfect-oscars-party
How to throw the perfect Oscars party infographic by The Rug Seller

Friday, February 12, 2016

For Valentines's Day - More great quotes on love



On Valentine's Day, I enjoy sharing some quotes and reflections about love with you.  Since it's that time of year again, here are some more thoughts about romance just for you.  The first quote I want to share with you is from Bob Marley (1945-1981), famed Jamaican reggae singer, songwriter and musician.  The words are beautiful, but I have to take issue with the first and last lines.  With regard to the first line, I think that people can fall in love again if their soulmate dies.  It may not be exactly the same, but it is a shared intimacy that does not diminish of nullify the previous relationship.  With regard to the last line, no one should regard another human being as his or her "only hope and security." No matter how strongly we love someone, it is unhealthy to be so emotionally dependent on someone else.


Only once in your life, I truly believe, you find someone who can completely turn your world around. You tell them things that you've never shared with another soul and they absorb everything you say and actually want to hear more. You share hopes for the future, dreams that will never come true, goals that were never achieved and the many disappointments life has thrown at you. When something wonderful happens, you can’t wait to tell them about it, knowing they will share in your excitement. They are not embarrassed to cry with you when you are hurting or laugh with you when you make a fool of yourself. Never do they hurt your feelings or make you feel like you are not good enough, but rather they build you up and show you the things about yourself that make you special and even beautiful. There is never any pressure, jealousy or competition but only a quiet calmness when they are around. You can be yourself and not worry about what they will think of you because they love you for who you are. The things that seem insignificant to most people such as a note, song or walk become invaluable treasures kept safe in your heart to cherish forever. Memories of your childhood come back and are so clear and vivid it’s like being young again. Colours seem brighter and more brilliant. Laughter seems part of daily life where before it was infrequent or didn’t exist at all. A phone call or two during the day helps to get you through a long day’s work and always brings a smile to your face. In their presence, there’s no need for continuous conversation, but you find you’re quite content in just having them nearby. Things that never interested you before become fascinating because you know they are important to this person who is so special to you. You think of this person on every occasion and in everything you do. Simple things bring them to mind like a pale blue sky, gentle wind or even a storm cloud on the horizon. You open your heart knowing that there’s a chance it may be broken one day and in opening your heart, you experience a love and joy that you never dreamed possible. You find that being vulnerable is the only way to allow your heart to feel true pleasure that’s so real it scares you. You find strength in knowing you have a true friend and possibly a soul mate who will remain loyal to the end. Life seems completely different, exciting and worthwhile. Your only hope and security is in knowing that they are a part of your life.





- Bob Marley






The course of true love never did run smooth.





- William Shakespeare (1564-1616), English playwright, poet
From A Midsummer Night's Dream
Act I, Scene l






Love is like the wind, you can't see it but you can feel it.





- Nicholas Sparks, (1965- ), American writer
From A Walk to Remember








You don't love someone because they're perfect, you love them in spite of the fact they're not.






- Jodi Picoult (1966- ), American author
From My Sister's Keeper




love is the voice under all silences, 
the hope which has no opposite in fear, 
the strength so strong mere force is feebleness: 
the truth more first than the sun, more last than star






- E,E, Cummings (189 -1962), American poet, writer
From being to timelessness as it's to time




Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired.






- Robert Frost (1874-1963), American poet
As quoted in a review of A Swinger of Birches (1957) by Sydney Cox in Vermont History, Vol. 25 (1957), page 355



Love never dies a natural death.  It dies because we don't know how to replenish its source.  It dies of blindness and errors and betrayals.  It dies of illness and wounds; it dies of weariness, of witherings, of tarnishings.





- Anaïs Nin (1903-1977), author, born in France to Cuban parents
From Cities of the Ineriors








The Rose


Some say love, it is a river
That drowns the tender reed.
Some say love, it is a razor
That leaves your soul to bleed.
Some say love, it is a hunger,
An endless aching need.
I say love, it is a flower,
And you its only seed.

It's the heart afraid of breaking
That never learns to dance.
It's the dream afraid of waking
That never takes the chance.
It's the one who won't be taken,
Who cannot seem to give,
And the soul afraid of dyin'
That never learns to live.

When the night has been too lonely
And the road has been too long,
And you think that love is only
For the lucky and the strong,
Just remember in the winter
Far beneath the bitter snows
Lies the seed that with the sun's love
In the spring becomes the rose.






- Lyrics by Bette Midler (1945- ), American singer, songwriter, actrees








- Joanne