On awards shows...

Well, good readers, we just wrapped up the granddaddy of all awards show, "The Oscars". And according to early figures, ratings for this program are sinking faster than Kelvin Sampson's hopes for the College Basketball Hall of Fame!

So why the drop? Could be a lot of things... the lingering effects of the writer's temper tantru--I mean strike... The fact that America's fastest-growing spectator sport ran so late on Fox. Or perhaps it's something else... something more basic.

I think folks are getting tired of these awards shows trying to one-up each other in terms of oppulence and tacky self-promotion. The long-winded speeches and political appeals by the winners, the overblown tribues, and the arrogance that people will take over FOUR FRICKIN HOURS to watch this claptrap. If I'm going to be watching something for four hours, there'd best be some helmets, shoulder pads, and a good chance someone's getting a bone broken!

Frankly, I was tickled when the Golden Globes went to a press conference format because of the strike. It was quick, to-the-point, and it was frickin' interesting! Hell, I'm probably like most of the viewers and tuned in last night at 10:30... after all, that's when the big awards are presented.

Don't get me wrong, art direction and costumes and best sound mixing by a lesbian asian woman is all interesting, but I think you could have a very nice, 2-hour viewer-friendly program with all the catagories if you cut out the oppulence and self-righteous self back-slapping.

Until the folks in Hollywood get this through their thick, cocaine-addled skulls, the Oscars and other self-important "awards" shows will continue to see their TV ratings drop like the proverbial stone.