Day: March 25, 2022

Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for March 27: Oscars dominate

1) Academy Awards, 8 p.m. ET, ABC. The bad years – with no host, no music and little fun – are apparently behind us now. This will have three hosts — comedians Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes and actress Regina Hall. The best-song nominees, exiled to the pre-show last year, will be performed by Beyonce (shown here), Billie Eilish, Reba McEntire and Sebastian Yatra. And eight of the 23 categories will be handled before the telecast, leaving more time for entertainment. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 25, 2022

News and Quick Comments

Overlooked “Bruno” crashes the Oscars

Did the best song get overlooked for the Oscars?
Some people seem to think so. “Don’t Talk About Bruno” (shown here), from “Elcanto,” wasn’t even nominated — but now it will be performed at the Academy Award ceremony, at 8 p.m. ET Sunday on ABC.
“’Bruno’ is everywhere,” Will Packer, co-producer of the telecast, said at press conference Thursday.
It reached No. 1 on the Billboard chart … the first Disney-animation song to get there since “A Whole New World” in 1993, Ariana Brockington wrote in a Yahoo News story. Even “Let It Go,” which seemed to be omnipresent, only reached No. 5. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 25, 2022

Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for March 28: Grammys lead a music surge

1) Grammy awards, 8 p.m. ET Sunday, CBS. After a Covid surge, the Grammys were delayed by nine weeks and moved to Las Vegas. Now they’re here, with Trevor Noah as host. Performers include Billie Eilish (a week after her Oscars performance), Olivia Rodrigo, BTS, Brothers Osborne (shown here), Brandi Carlile, Lil Nas X with Jack Harlow and more. Jon Batiste leads with 11 nominations, with eight for Justin Bieber, Doja Cat and H.E.R.; Eilish and Rodrigo have seven. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 25, 2022