By Lisa de Moraes
Friday, January 6, 2006
The board of governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has chosen the co-star of "Death to Smoochy" and "Big Daddy" to host its prestigious Academy Awards ceremony, which this year will again be broadcast on ABC.
"What a terrific addition to our roster of great hosts!" academy President Sid Ganis said in yesterday's announcement of the selection of Jon Stewart -- better known to small-screen aficionados as the host of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show."
And we're here to let you know that the March 5 trophy show will be a load of fun to watch -- Stewart got high marks for hosting the Grammy Awards in 2001 and 2002 -- and will be low-rated. Not because of Stewart, though he is not a household name, but because this year was a real box office dog. Oscar numbers have everything to do with that year's horse race and virtually nothing to do with the host.
Longtime host Billy Crystal reportedly took himself out of the running this year, citing scheduling conflicts. Last year's host, Chris Rock, was not asked back, probably because he was not particularly good at it, and besides, he failed to bring in the younger crowd the academy and the network thought he'd snag.
With Rock as emcee, the Oscarcast scored a smaller rating among 18-to-49-year-olds -- the age bracket ABC sells to advertisers -- than the previous year's show, hosted by oldster Crystal.
That's because last year's big winner was the three-hankie flick "Million Dollar Baby," while in '04 the box office blockbuster "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" wiped out the competition.
Another case in point: The year that David Letterman hosted the Academy Awards -- and was universally panned for his performance -- the show snared its biggest audience in more than a decade, more than 48 million viewers. Just once since then has Letterman's Oscarcast audience been bested -- in 1998, the year "Titanic" mopped up.
That year's show was hosted by Crystal, who was then in his fifties and promoting the upcoming release of "My Giant," his tour de force flick. And, speaking of younger viewers, that '98 Oscarcast still holds the crown as the highest rated among kids, teenagers, 18-to-34-year-olds, 18-to-49-year-olds, 25-to-54-year-olds and 50-plus-year-olds since Nielsen began disseminating demographic information in the early '90s.
For sure, Rock did do a bit better among 18-to-34-year-olds than Crystal did in '04. On the other hand, Rock's performance with that age group was not nearly as good as Crystal's when he hosted in '00, nor did Rock do as well as silver-haired Steve Martin in '01, or grandma Whoopi Goldberg in '02.
And among teenagers? Rock was no Crystal '04.
All of which may explain why, in his canned quote included in yesterday's announcement, Stewart had the good sense to say: "As a performer, I'm truly honored to be hosting the show. Although, as an avid watcher of the Oscars, I can't help but be a little disappointed with the choice. It appears to be another sad attempt to smoke out Billy Crystal."
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Despite the best efforts of the conservative Christian group American Family Association, by press time only two NBC affiliates in smaller markets had said they would not air tonight's first episode of "The Book of Daniel," a drama series about an Episcopal minister with a Vicodin habit who sees and talks to Jesus.
"New NBC show demeans Christians. Act now! Time is short!" AFA said on its Web site, instructing its followers to call their NBC station to protest, or send the group's form letter of protest before "Book of Daniel" debuts, which also means before they've seen one minute of it. AFA also says that the show is written by "a practicing homosexual who describes himself as being 'in Catholic recovery' and is interested in Buddhist teachings about reincarnation."
Meanwhile, the Episcopal Diocese of Washington wonders where the AFA comes off speaking for the church and has launched its own "The Book of Daniel" Web log on which viewers can comment.
The limited series stars Aidan Quinn as the Rev. Daniel Webster, whose oldest son is gay and struggling with the loss of his twin brother; whose teenage daughter is selling pot to finance her manga obsession; whose teenage adopted son is something of a skirt chaser; and whose wife is coping with the loss of her child with the help of lunchtime martinis. Garret Dillahunt ("Deadwood") plays Jesus, who, according to NBC, "serves as a sounding board and encourages Webster to find the answers to his questions within himself."
The AFA has "zero audience in the Episcopal Church. . . . They are at odds with us on almost every major issue of public concern," Jim Naughton, spokesman for the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, told The Post's John Maynard.
"So, the idea that these people are setting themselves as arbiters of how our church should be portrayed on television is ridiculous."
NBC affiliates in Terre Haute, Ind., and Little Rock have announced they will not air the first episode of the series. (Both stations are owned by Nexstar Broadcasting Group, based in Irving, Tex. Little Rock is the country's 57th-ranked TV market and Terre Haute is No. 150 out of 210 markets.)
KARK-TV in Little Rock said viewer protest was behind its decision to pull the show. In that market, NBC has arranged for the show to air tonight on the WB affiliate.
But on the Web site for WTWO-TV in Terre Haute, General Manager Duane Lammers said he was pulling the show for two reasons entirely other than its content.
"Our relationship with NBC always provided for the right to reject programming. I am reaffirming that right to let them know I will not allow them to make unilateral decisions affecting our viewers. Second, I want to draw attention to the worst offenders of indecency on television . . . the cable industry, which faces no decency regulations, nor a license renewal. If my action causes people in our community to pay more attention to what they watch on television, I have accomplished my mission."
Okey-dokey.
NBC, meanwhile, was sticking with its official statement, issued while, we assume, dancing the happy dance over all the free publicity.
That statement is as follows: " 'The Book of Daniel' is a fictional drama about an Episcopalian priest's family and the contemporary issues with which they must grapple. We're confident that once audiences view this quality drama themselves, they'll appreciate this thought-provoking examination of one American family."
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