More From The Academy Awards Bartender Files
Categories: Academy Awards, Blog, Celebrities, Movies ShareFor the last four years I’ve bartended at the Academy Awards and will do so again this year. This is part two of my experiences (Part one)
As I mentioned yesterday, Oscar money isn’t all in the tips. Ebay is what makes the event really worthwhile. The amount of dough people pay for stupid memorabilia is ridiculous. But that’s the kind of stupid I like. First on the annual auction block is the Oscar pin we have to wear, which serves as a classy sort of access pass. In addition, I can usually get my hands on a few programs left on the bar. Then there’s usually some sort of booklet or trinket given out at the Governor’s Ball (which is the official after party that everybody ditches within an hour). Since I don’t work that party, those are a little harder for me to come by but sometimes I can find a forgotten one on my way out. At the end of the day, fifteen minutes of computer work ends up bringing in as much or more money than eight hours of hard labor. What a mixed-up world we live in.
Speaking of the Governor’s Ball, that’s definitely the most spectacular part of the whole event- even more than the theatre set. It’s quite amazing the way the Grand Ballroom is transformed every year. They bring in brand new plush carpeting, huge chandeliers and then completely cover the walls and ceiling with decorative treatments. One year it was old-Hollywood elegance in creams and blacks, another year it was hip rounders on risers in shades of brown. It’s a sharp contrast from the bland Kodak Theatre lobby I have to look at all day in which they do absolutely no decorating.
On the terrace outside the ballroom, there’s a long line of booths about five feet wide, all occupied by various news and gossip organizations. They decorate their respective booths to resemble their show’s theme and then they interview anybody who will give them the time of day. If you’ve ever wondered how some crappy show got a big star to come down to their “set” for an interview, now you know how it’s done.
Some other tidbits:
Still to come: Oscar security, the speeding ticket story then this year’s recap
Rick wrote:
SWAG for the Homeless
A “simply marvelous” way for Hollywood to celebrate its
accomplishments would be to donate and auction those Oscar gift bags to help rebuild homes in the devastated city of New Orleans ? Donations to New Orleans Habitat for Humanity would allow at least 1 home to be built for every gift bag.
Just a thought.
http://dailyskew.blogspot.com/
Jenée wrote:
The bulk of the gift bag recipients don’t earn the kind of big bucks that make it easy to toss off $100,000 worth of merchandise to charity. The A-list nominees and presenters who can afford to do that probably contribute a decent amount to charity in other ways- if not out of the goodness of their hearts, then for publicity sake.
David Harris-Gershon wrote:
Funny…I thought the cool thing to do was leave yourself at the bar, pretending it’s no big deal if you’re lifted.
mattiasson.net wrote:
[...] Det verkar som om den årliga “Oscar-manian” nu har nått sin kulmen så här dagen efter evenemanget. Blogosfären formligen kryllar av referenser till Oscarsgalan , filmerna, priserna, ja till och med Ebayförsäljningar av memorabilia . [...]
problematik.net wrote:
[...] kommentare zu’wieso sollte man bei der oscar-verleihung arbeiten?’ RSS feed fuer kommentare und trackback URI fuer ‘wieso sollte man bei der oscar-verleihung arbeiten?’ [...]
George Myers wrote:
Adrien Brody wrote:
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I Googled for something completely different, but found your page…and have to say thanks. nice read.