WMAQ Channel 5 - NewsCenter5 - "Oscar Losers of 1980" (1981)

Here's a segment of NewsCenter5 on WMAQ Channel 5, in which critic Roger Ebert (or as he was shown in the lower-third, "Roger Ebert At The Movies") spotlights some of the films that were conspicuously missing from the Oscar nominations, to wit:

- "The Empire Strikes Back" ($180 million at the box office, only given an honorary nod for special effects)

- The Chicago-made blockbuster "The Blues Brothers"

- "Popeye" (Shelley Duvall as Olive Oyl was snubbed for Best Actress honors)

- "American Gigolo" (Richard Gere was turned away from a chance for the Best Actor award for this film that made him a superstar)

- "The Jazz Singer" (none of Neil Diamond's songs from this 1980 remake ever got nominated for Best Song)

- "Nine to Five" (Dolly Parton missed being nominated for Best Supporting Actress for this picture, though the title song got a Best Song nomination)

All in favor of "serious" pictures that, more or less, tanked at the box office.

Roger concludes his analysis by contrasting Dino de Laurentiis' plea to have King Kong (of his 1976 remake) nominated for Best Actor, with Clint Eastwood's orangutan co-star of "Every Which Way But Loose," Clyde.

Also featuring Linda Yu at the beginning, who introduces his report; and, at the end, Mike Jackson, who noted that Miss Piggy also hadn't been nominated.

This aired on local Chicago TV in early 1981.

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