What would actually take place, on the night of 29 March 1989, would unleash a moment of such infamy that it would lead the New York Times’s Janet Maslin to remark: “The 61st Academy Awards ceremony began by creating the impression that there would never be a 62nd.”.
Another excruciating musical number happened later, with Bob Hope and Lucille Ball introducing a 10-minute sequence dedicated to the “stars of tomorrow”, in which Christian Slater sword-fought and Corey Feldman was forced to imitate Michael Jackson (supposedly because the choreographer, Kenny Ortega, became obsessed with the fact he’d worked with the musician).
Then, Snow is introduced to her “blind date” for the night: Rob Lowe, at the time a member of Hollywood’s “Brat Pack” and someone with genuine cultural cachet – up until this very moment, at least.
Meanwhile, an army of dancers awkwardly shuffle a crowd of old Hollywood stars in and out of view, including Vincent Price, Dorothy Lamour, and Cyd Charisse.
But more than 30 years later, the 1989 Oscars may teach us a few things about awards season spectacle.
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