The 12 most memorable moments from the 87th annual Academy Awards

Posted on February 23, 2015

Originally Posted on Emerald Media via UWIRE

The most anticipated evening of the year for filmmakers, actors and movie-goers has come and gone, leaving an interesting plethora of winners at the 87th annual Academy Awards. Although host Neil Patrick Harris did not supply the audience with pizza or take an epic selfie, social media was still blowing up over moments that could not go unnoticed; the good, the bad and the ugly are laid out here, bolder than the Oscar statue himself.

1. Host Neil Patrick Harris opened with a Tony-worthy opening number, making us all feel like we were seeing a Broadway musical for free.

2. J.K. Simmon’s acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actor in Whiplash focused on appreciating your parents and calling them every day. “Don’t text them. Call them.”

3. Neil Patrick Harris’ dragged out funny bit consisted of him locking away his Oscar predictions in a clear box on stage and selecting Octavia Spencer to watch over the box for the entire duration of the show.

4. Tim McGraw sang Glen Campbell’s “I’m Not Going To Miss You”- a song in which Campbell wrote to his wife and children during his current struggle with Alzheimer’s Disease, and it touched us all.

5. When the post-commercial break took audiences backstage to find Neil Patrick Harris locked out of his dressing room in “whitie tighties”, yet ‘the show must go on’ as he ran on to stage to announce the next presenter.

6. Patricia Arquette’s winning speech for Best Supporting Actress in Boyhood, brought the audience to a hollering cheer as her message brought across wage equality to women and equality rights to all.

7. Jennifer Hudson proudly sang a song from Smash, as the memorial tribute slowly lit up the screen, yet the public seemed to be highly offended that the late Joan Rivers was not included in the tribute.

8. John Legend and Common brought the audience to their feet and most to tears after their performance of the song “Glory” from Selma, which also won the award for Best Original Song.

9. Ironically, Idina Menzel and John Travolta presented together, as Travolta joked about last year’s mispronunciation of Menzel’s name, which turned out to be one of the funniest parts of the show. Later the Internet exploded with commentary towards Travolta caressing Menzel’s face as he correctly pronounced her name.

Also, this happened.

10. Lady Gaga performed a tribute for the 50th anniversary of The Sound Of Music and we we’re all pleasantly surprised at how much we loved it. Julie Andrews made a speech following the performance that paired perfectly. On a side note, her ensemble on the red carpet was one of the most buzzed about outfits of the night.

11. Both the Best Actor and Actress awards were given to actors who portrayed characters suffering from terminal illnesses. These were Eddie Redmayne in The Theory of Everything and Julianne Moore in Still Alice.

12. Birdman took home the Best Picture award closing the show on a highly positive note.

Read more here: http://www.dailyemerald.com/2015/02/23/the-12-most-memorable-moments-from-the-87th-annual-academy-awards/
Copyright 2025 Emerald Media