For a brief moment in time, an entire audience in a packed theater and viewers tuning into televisions all across the country hold their collective breath in anticipation of one iconic phrase: “And the Oscar goes to …”
The start of each new year ushers in the notoriously exorbitant and glamorous awards show season, an annual ritual for a culture that celebrates the best in the previous year’s entertainment. The shows have become a spectacle that includes celebrity couples donning luxuriously expensive and often revealing evening wear, dumbfounding red carpet entrances and the occasional nipple slip. Oh yeah, and the awards themselves.
It is this haute display that keeps drawing in a faithful audience of both pop culture addicts and awards show junkies year after year after year.
But what keeps fans of the entertainment world wanting more, and why is it so worthwhile to watch awards shows that some people consider frivolous and irrelevant popularity contests?
Watching award shows like the Grammys, Emmys and Academy Awards can give one a pretty good insight into the world of the most popular — or perhaps even the most obscure — movies, music and TV. Viewers of The Academy Awards relive that movie-theatre experience as clips from their favorite blockbusters accompany the nomination. If someone was unaware of what’s popular or was just not paying attention to mainstream music, watching the Grammys might fill him or her in on what was big last year.
According to Johnny Dee of The Guardian, “They [awards shows] often highlight TV programs, films and albums you've missed and generally give a pat on the back to people who, for the most part, make our lives more entertaining.”
Awards shows are also, as Dee points out, almost like a game.
“As a viewer there is much sport to be had. First, there's the game of guessing who will win. Then, if the show is live, there's the hope that somebody will make a tit of themselves or change people's perceptions by actually being quite funny and charming.”
The latter of Dee’s arguments might also serve as proof of why awards shows are so amusing to watch.
Critics though, always cite that shows such as these are quite narcissistic in nature. But in the same way a crazy sports fanatic cheers on his or her favorite team or player on game day, I root for my favorite artists and actors during awards season. Besides all of the craziness, the performances, and the glitz and glamour of these awards show, what keeps me tuning in is the fact that my favorite artists, musicians and actors are being recognized for their talents. This is my Super Bowl, my championship of the arts.
This year, you better believe that I will be watching out for every red carpet trip, every unexpected fall, every Kanye West interruption and every last one of Lady Gaga’s wardrobe changes. It’s just what you do during awards season.
Reach the columnist at jermac@asu.edu
