Final Oscar Ballots Mailed to Voting Members

Wednesday, February 8, 2006

Final ballots for the 78th Annual Academy Awards will be mailed today to the 5,798 voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Completed ballots must be in the hands of Pricewaterhouse-Coopers by 5:00 p.m. PT, Tuesday, February 28. Any ballot received after the deadline will not be counted.

Listed on the ballots are nominees in 19 Oscar® categories. Separate ballots for 5 award categories (foreign language film, short and feature-length documentaries and animated and live-action short films) will be distributed after verification of mandatory member attendance at screenings.

Once the auditing firm has tabulated the votes, the winners’ names are placed in sealed envelopes to be opened on Oscar Night®. Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements for 2005 will be presented on March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network beginning at 5:00 p.m. PST. A one-hour red carpet arrivals show will precede the telecast at 4:00 p.m. PST.

Trivia question: final ballots for the 77th Academy Awards were mailed last year to 5,808 voting members. Why the decrease in voting members?

London Critics Circle Film Awards

Wednesday, February 8, 2006

The 26th Annual LONDON CRITICS' CIRCLE AWARDS will be presented at the Dorchester Hotel in London. The event will be hosted by broadcaster Mariella Frostrup and Critics' Circle Film Section chairman John Marriott. The London Critics Circle Film Awards recognize the best in British and International film talent. They are also the only UK film awards which raise money for charity, contributing to the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. Nominations were announced December 14, 2005, with Pride & Prejudice garnering the most nods, followed closely by The Constant Gardener. Johnny Depp is nominated in the Actor of the Year category for his portrayal of Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He is competing against Heath Ledger (Brokeback Mountain), Bruno Ganz (Downfall), Don Cheadle (Hotel Rwanda) and Viggo Mortensen (A History of Violence). Juliette Binoche (Hidden), Naomi Watts (King Kong), Catalina Sandino Moreno (Maria Full of Grace), Laura Linney (Kinsey) and Maria Bello (A History of Violence) were recognized in the Actress of the Year category. The org also bestows awards to the British Actor and Actress of the Year, which includes nominees Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz for The Constant Gardener. That movie is competing against Crash, A History of Violence, Brokeback Mountain and King Kong for the Film of the Year award. Nominations for Director of the Year went to Fernando Meirelles (The Constant Gardener), Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain), Paul Haggis (Crash), Peter Jackson (King Kong) and David Cronenberg (A History of Violence).

Daytime Stars Announce Daytime Emmy Noms

Wednesday, February 8, 2006

Nominations Announcement for 33rd Annual DAYTIME EMMY AWARDS®

DAVID CANARY, MICHAEL EASTON, KIMBERLY McCULLOUGH AND SCOTT CLIFTON ARE AMONG THE SCHEDULED PRESENTERS FOR THE 33rd ANNUAL DAYTIME EMMY® AWARD NOMINATIONS, LIVE, FEB. 8, ON ABC DAYTIME'S THE VIEW

Plus a Surprise Appearance by One of Daytime Television's Biggest and Brightest Stars

One of Daytime television’s biggest and brightest stars joins five-time Emmy® Award winner David Canary (Stuart/Adam Chandler), along with fellow All My Children co-stars Alexa Havins (Babe Chandler) and Emmy Award winner Jacob Young (JR Chandler); Emmy Award winner Robin Strasser (Dorian Lord), Michael Easton (John McBain) and Renée Goldsberry (Evangeline Williamson) of One Life to Live; Scott Clifton (Dillon Quartermaine) and Emmy Award winner Kimberly McCullough (Robin Scorpio) of General Hospital; Austin Peck (Austin Reed) of Days of our Lives; Heidi Meuller (Kay Bennett) of Passions; Bradley Cole (Jeffrey O’Neill) of Guiding Light and Terri Colombino (Katie Peretti) of As the World Turns, as ABC Daytime’s popular talk show, The View, hosts the live nomination ceremony for The 33rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards, Wednesday, February 8 on the ABC Television Network (check local listings for times).

The View co-hosts Barbara Walters, Meredith Vieira, Star Jones Reynolds, Joy Behar and Elisabeth Hasselbeck will also partake in the announcement of nominees in all the major categories.

The 33rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards will air live on the ABC Television Network from Hollywood’s Kodak Theater, home of the Academy Awards®, on Friday, April 28, 2006. This will mark the first time the Daytime Emmys will be broadcast from Hollywood in the 33-year history of the Awards ceremonies.