Set to greet the stars as they start their memorable journey down the 2013 Oscars red carpet, ESPN’s Chris Connelly recalls a moment memorable to him in red carpet history.
“I can recall the late Julia Phillips … showing off her Oscars ballot once. Back then, it looked like a hospital menu,” Tweeted Connelly on Sunday.
Julia Phillips, who passed away in 2002 of cancer, produced classics including “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “Taxi Driver,” and “The Sting.” “The Sting” won best picture, making her the first woman to produce a film that won best picture. She also wrote a scathing account of her experiences in Hollywood, titled, “You'll Never Eat Lunch in This Town Again.”
An award-winning sports writer, Connelly has also hosted MTV shows and has written for a number of other publications including Rolling Stones Magazine and Premiere. He will fill the shoes of David Karger who greeted the stars at the 2011 and 2012 awards.
Karger is still active this Oscars day. He has been covering Oscars news for Fandango, including making a prediction for the winners of best picture and best director.
There are three possibilities, says Karger. First, Lincoln will win both (most often the same film wins both, notes Karger).
“It has the most nominations which usually means the movie’s going to win,” Karger says in an episode of “Front Runners” on the Fandango website.
Second, Steven Spielberg may still win best director for “Lincoln,” but “Argo” could win best picture. Third, “Argo” could get best picture, and Ang Lee could get best director for his work on “Life of Pi.”
Connelly’s interviews with celebrities on the red carpet will be streamed live on Oscar.com in the Backstage Pass section, as well as through the official Oscars smartphone application.
