"I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts": 1989 OSCARS OPENING ACT

And they make fun of me for singing a Phil Collins song?

Here's an interview with Bruce Vilanch about this Oscars that's worth watching. Apparently there was an iteration of that number that included Mayim Bialik and the Nicholas Brothers.

Proud Mary was a hit at the time?!

The actress who played Snow White gave a really fun interview a few years ago. She said that the most important lesson she learned while working with Allan Carr was: "Never trust a man in a kaftan!"

That should totally become DL's new slogan.

Produced by our dear departed eldersister the Fabulous Miss Allen Carr!

That's been discussed a lot on the Datalounge

Here also

I have often wished that I could have video footage of me and the group that I was watching this telecast with. I remember mouths agape and shuddering laughter, but I want to see all of our faces in reaction as the number continued on and on, getting worse with each passing second.

The Snow White really does give a great interview.

Did Rob Lowe ever have leading man status in a hit film after this?

I am somewhat relieved that the Nicholas Brothers were spared this “crown” in their career.

Nevertheless, this opening has proven the most memorable in Oscar history. I love Alan Carr for letting his gayness go so far off the leash!

Lily Tomlin is awesome

Was this before Rob Lowe's video scandal? "Keep the cameras rolling" was either prescient or extremely awkward.

That “I Wanna Be An Oscar a Winner” part was so much worse.

I still can’t look at Corey Feldman without my body temperature plummeting.

How ballsy was the Snow White actress to appear before such a huge viewing audience (&, perhaps even more so, in front of many of the biggest stars in the world)?!

Time has been kind to this opening number. It's better than some of the recent opening numbers for the Tonys.

I'm looking at you Spacey.

[quote]Apparently there was an iteration of that number that included Mayim Bialik and the Nicholas Brothers.

Are we to assume that this was intended to make it better?

The mind boggles.

Thanks for posting that, r11. I didn’t think it was nearly as spectacularly terrible as the Rob Lowe/Snow White debacle, but it was entertaining, especially as a roster of nepostism failures, future-has-beens, never wases, and curiosities from the past.

Blair Underwood and Patrick Dempsey came out of the number fine, as did Ricki Lake, who looks surprisingly at home on the stage. Those three probably had the biggest careers of the group. Holly Robinson was okay, though a bit shrill, and her outfit was bizarre.

Corey Feldman was terrible. He’s clearly in his Wacko Jacko imitation phase, complete with the jet black hair.

My favorite surprise was Melora Hardin, who played Jan on The Office and had a role on Transparent as the jilted and bitter lesbian lover of one of the daughters. How did she garner a spot on the “Oscar Winners of Tomorrow”?

NB: I don’t believe anyone on that stage was ever even nominated for a statue.

I can't look away from his neck fat, R2.

R11, that was Lucille Ball's last appearance on the public stage. She died shortly thereafter.

Every second is cringe-worthy. The dug-up some D-list stars to parade before the camera for 3 seconds each.

Clearly they thought Rob Lowe was going to be The Superstar of Tomorrow.

Who played Snow White? I wonder if it was her first- and last- professional gig?

Only Allan Carr could imagine the Male Theater Usher Rockettes.

Carrie Hamilton was in there., and both of Carrie Fisher's sisters.

[quote][R11], that was Lucille Ball's last appearance on the public stage. She died shortly thereafter.

Do you think she saw that and thought that if that was the future of Hollywood she wanted no part of it?

This FINALLY explains to me that cheeky joke in Disney's "Lion King".

Cyd Charisse looked lovely in that Oscars opening though. Fabulous dancer, even in old age.

What was the point of inviting all those old stars there if they received so little screentime (with the exception of Cyd Charisse)? Poor Alice Faye had only four seconds of screentime but she still found time to almost fall over in one of them.

I first learned about it a few years ago after watching this episode of Queer Duck (see 1:03):

Tony Martin on stage with wife Cyd Charisse and ex-wife Alice Faye. Did they arrive together?

Did Lucy really think those Bob Hope jokes were funny?

I liked it! Cyd Charisse was great.

Funny how so many stars are stil recognizable: Tom Hanks, RDJ, etc.

And they rhymed “down in the dumps” with “Judy’s red pumps!”

I actually think more highly of Rob Lowe because of that number with Snow White.

"I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts" was a hit record for Merv Griffin.

You know, watching this again, I still think a lot of Debbie Allen's choreography was way worse. At least there were some production values and also, not remarked upon, an hommage to the end of "The Gang's All Here" with the Grauman's huge headress instead of Carmen Miranda bananas. But Rob Lowe really couldn't sing, and "Proud Mary" was from another decade and had no relation to the movies. But they still had Rob Lowe singing it with Snow White a second time!

The eighties were a shitty decade

Bob Hope embarrassed himself less on [italic]The Golden Girls[/italic] that same year.

[quote] The eighties were a shitty decade

Not for me, I was born then.

The whole thing came out of Beach Blanket Babylon at Club Fugazi in San Francisco. What was fun on a small night club stage fell apart when blown up to gargantuan proportions.

It was still fun!

Terrible but terribly fun.

Lorna Luft was the first one asked to play Snow White, but turned it down.

Poor Jaqueline Bissett who gets snubbed while every other mortified celebrity nearby gets a handshake.