Several noteworthy names were left out of this year’s “In Memoriam” segment at the Oscars, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Among the snubs, the story reports, were “Glee” star Cory Monteith and “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” star James Avery.
The segment did give a nod to many stars and celebrities who passed away in the past year, including Harold Ramis, Philip Seymour Hoffman, James Gandolfini, Shirley Temple Black, Tom Sherak and Roger Ebert, the story notes.
The piece also acknowledged Sarah Jones, a camera assistant who died when she was struck by a train during pre-production on “Midnight Rider,” a biopic about Gregg Allman.
“But the Oscars left out several noteworthy stars and public figures who died during the past year," the story reports. "In addition to the names above, the Oscars’ segment skipped Nelson Mandela (subject of the biopic for which U2 was nominated for best original song), Dennis Farina, Gary David Goldberg, Marcia Wallace, Lisa Robin Kelly, Lee Thompson Young, and musicians Phil Everly, Phil Ramone, Lou Reed and Pete Seeger.”
The article adds: “In the past, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has received heat for leaving out Donna Summer and Lupe Ontiveros (2013), Jeff Conaway (2012), Corey Haim and actress Betty Garrett (2011), Farrah Fawcett (2010), George Carlin (2009) and Brad Renfro (2008).”
The names included are put together by a committee that’s asked to focus on people who have made significant contributions to the industry, as well as to touch on different areas of the film industry.
James Avery
While the passing of these people is certainly sad, most of the names mentioned are either television actors (for the most part) or recording artists. Both categories have their own awards shows (Emmy’s and Grammy’s) on which to be memorialized. Are not the Oscar’s supposed to be focused on the feature-film industry?