More Oscar Bozos

March 21, 2001 — -- When that envelope is torn open and the world holds its collective breath, some big Hollywood star will be reduced to a babbling idiot — and millions of people just love it.

Every year there's at least one new Oscar Bozo. Two weeks ago The Wolf Files wheeled out some old favorite bloopers and asked readers for some new ones.

We immediately discounted the Sally Field 1984 Oscar moment, when the newly crowned Best Actress gushed, "I can't deny the fact you like me. Right now, you like me!" That's too easy.

We also discounted past Oscar host David Letterman's tedious "Uma-Oprah" jokes.

But we investigated all promising suggestions, and herewith present this new batch of Oscar goofs and gaffes. Beneath it lies the best of last year's batch, as determined by some 250 e-mails.

The Readers' Picks

The King of Fools Award: To James Cameron. The Titanic director copped Leonardo DiCaprio's big line from the film, unabashedly shouting "I'm king of the world!" as he waved his trophy. In a halfhearted attempted to pay some tribute to the real Titanic tragedy, he then asked the audience for a moment of silence "in remembrance of the 1,500 men, women and children who died when the great ship went down." Then, he reverted to hyperventilating hysteria and yelled "Now let's party till dawn!"

The Fairy Tale Disaster Award: To Rob Lowe. In perhaps the most embarrassing Oscar opening, the 1988 organizers scripted a song and dance routine between Snow White and Lowe, who was introduced as her "blind date." Disney was so distressed that it sued.

The Windbag Award To Greer Garson. According to Oscar legend, she spent 90 rambling minutes at the podium after winning Best Actress in 1942 for Mrs. Miniver. But cooler heads say it was closer to seven minutes. Predictably, she began her speech by saying, "I'm practically unprepared."

The Brevity Is the Soul of Wit Award: To Alfred Hitchcock. After winning the Irving Thalberg Memorial Award in 1967 in recognition of his illustrious career, he muttered "Thank you," and walked offstage.

The Silent Oscar Award: To Hal Roach, who received a special honor in 1991 for bringing Laurel & Hardy and many other classics to the big screen. Billy Crystal introduced him, and the audience gave him a booming ovation. But when everyone sat down, Roach, a centenarian, began speaking, without a mike. The audience and TV viewers just stared for several moments, unable to hear him. Crystal quipped, "I think that's fitting since Mr. Roach started in silent film." It was Roach's last public appearance. He died six months later.

The Give This Guy Viagra Award: To Roberto Benigni, the 1998 double Oscar winner (Best Actor, Best Foreign Film) for Life Is Beautiful. In broken English he proclaimed, "My body is in tumult … I would like to be … lying down and making love to everybody." He later added, "I am-a so happy, I want to wag-a my tail!"

Hey, Are You Guys Against Me? Award: To 1964 presenter Sammy Davis Jr., who was handed an envelope for the wrong award. Representatives from Oscar's counting unit at Price Waterhouse had to rush onstage to stop him from blurting out a mistake. He quipped, "Wait'll the NAACP hears about this."

The You Can See Me Now Award: To Barbra Streisand. She and Katharine Hepburn tied for Best Actress in 1968. In the excitement, she tore her Scaasi bellbottoms on her way to collect the statue. Then, under the spotlight, her outfit appeared distressingly see-through. She raised her Oscar and said to it, "Hello, gorgeous!"

The More Outrageously Dressed Than Cher Award: To costume designer Lizzy Gardiner, who wore a gown crafted out of some 200 American Express gold cards (in her name). Perhaps it was a commentary on her film, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. Remarking on the film's $12,000 costume budget, she said backstage, "We absolutely didn't think we would win."

The Excess Sibling Affection Award: To Angelina Jolie, daughter of Jon Voight, who won a Best Supporting Actress statue last year for Girl Interrupted. When her name was announced she gave her brother a fulsome smooch with her bee-stung lips. She told the crowd, "I'm in shock. And I'm so in love with my brother right now, he just held me and said he loved me." She later married actor Billy Bob Thornton.

The Not An Oscar Moment But We'll Throw It In Anyway Award: To Kristie Alley, who won an Emmy for Cheers in 1989 and said, "I'd like to thank my husband, Parker [Stevenson], for giving me the big one for the last eight years."Famous Oscar Blunders

The Oscar D'Amore Award: To Cuba Gooding Jr., who exclaimed "I love you" 14 times — thanking everyone from God to Tom Cruise — after winning Best Supporting Actor for Jerry Maguire in 1996. Even after the orchestra interrupted him, he continued: "Everybody who was involved in this, I love you! I love you! I love you!"

The Nature Calls Award: To Meryl Streep, who left her just-claimed Oscar for Kramer vs. Kramer on the back of a toilet during the 1979 festivities.

The Au Naturel Award: To actor David Niven. In 1974, a streaker ran behind him as he was announcing the Best Picture award. The nudist flashed a peace sign — not to mention the Full Monty — to a shocked audience. Without missing a beat, Niven said the man would always be remembered "for his shortcomings."

The Inverted Oscar: To Ronald Reagan. In 1947, he narrated a silent montage of past Oscar winners. Much to Reagan's surprise, the crowd was laughing hysterically as he said, "This picture embodies the glories of our past, the memories of our present and the inspiration of our future." What he didn't know: The reel was upside down.

The Oscar Mayer Weiner Award: To Jack Palance, for dropping to the stage floor and doing one-armed pushups to celebrate his Best Supporting Actor award for City Slickers.

The Oscar Imposter Award: Marlon Brando, who sent "Sasheen Littlefeather" to the stage to reject his Best Actor award in 1973 for The Godfather in protest of Hollywood's treatment of American Indians. Later, it was discovered that her real name was Maria Cruz, that she wasn't an Apache, and that in 1970 she had won the Miss American Vampire contest.

The Oscar Instigator Award: To Vanessa Redgrave in 1978, for using her acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actress for Julia as a diatribe against "Zionist hoodlums." Dozens of police officers had to quell a protest outside the theater. Playwright Paddy Chayefsky, who followed her onstage, quipped, "A simple 'thank you' would have been sufficient."

The Must-Have-Been-Bottle-Fed Award: To director Bernardo Bertolucci. Accepting an award for The Last Emperor in 1987, he referred to Hollywood as the "Big Nipple."

The You Crack Me Up Award: To comedian Marty Feldman, for presenting the 1976 Live Action Short Oscar. Calling the two winning producers to the stage, he threw the statue to the floor, then handed a shard of the award to each one. He said, "It said, 'Made in Hong Kong' on the bottom."

The Where Am I Now? Award: To Alice Brady, who won a Best Supporting Actress award for In Old Chicago in 1937. Brady wasn't present, but a man walked up and accepted the award on her behalf. After the show, neither he nor the Oscar was ever seen again.

The Who Am I Now? Award: To Spencer Tracy, who won Best Actor in 1937 for Captains Courageous. The inscription on his gold statue read "Dick Tracy."

The Get This Over With Award: To Sir Laurence Olivier. In 1985, the 78-year-old Shakespearean forgot to name the Best Picture nominees. He simply opened the envelope and proclaimed, "Amadeus!"

Buck Wolf is a producer at ABCNEWS.com. The Wolf Files is a weekly feature. If you want to receive weekly notice when a new column is published, join the e-mail list.