Widely-panned Oscar show suffers drop in ratings

Yeah, I have to agree with those – including Roger Ebert – who say that last night’s Academy Awards show was one of the worst in recent memory.

By the end of it, co-host James Franco was looking embarrassed but kudos to his partner Anne Hathaway who gave it 100 percent from the first moment to the last and kept things semi-interesting with more outfit changes than you get at a Cher concert.

There were so many things wrong with the show from the clumsily put-together history lessons to the lack of suspense with every front-runner winning as expected. But good writing could have elevated things as could have a good comic host like Steve Martin or Billy Crystal who would be able to react to some of what was happening on stage.

What would they have had to say about Melissa Leo’s F-bomb for example?

But I did think Natalie Portman gave a lovely acceptance speech and Colin Firth’s was funny and how nice it was to see Christian Bale get a little choked up. Funniest line came from the bushy-haired short film winner Luke Matheny who said what everyone was thinking: “Wow. I should have gotten a haircut!” Then there was Hathaway in a tuxedo who was joined by Franco in drag. Franco cracked that he had already gotten a call from Charlie Sheen. And finally, I also loved, loved, loved the finale when Staten Island’s PS 22 choir performed Somewhere Over the Rainbow and all of the night’s winners emerged from backstage.

It was kind of funny to see the night’s potty mouth, Miss Leo, standing among all the youngsters as she clutched her Oscar.

Speaking of youth, the team of Franco and Hathaway was designed to lure a younger demographic to the Oscar show. It did not work. The show was down 7 percent in the preliminary numbers among adults 18-49. EW.com reports that the telecast delivered a 24.6 household rating and a 14.5 household number among adults 18-49. Still, these numbers improve on Oscar ratings from 2008 and 2009.