Arts & Entertainment

By David Germain

Horton may hear a Who, but the rest of us may hear a lot of hoopla, and it’s not all the charming sort you expect from a benign Seussian world.

By Khristina Narizhnaya

The other day at the Met, two women were bent over a computer screen.

“Are you going to write something?” one asked the other.

By Alex Sundby

It seems fitting that Beth Brown made history, such as it was, on a Leap Day. On Feb. 29, 1928, under the headline “First ‘Gag’ Woman,” the show-business tabloid Variety noted that director William DeMille (older brother of famed director Cecil B. DeMille) had hired Brown as a gag woman for his film, “Tenth Avenue.”

ED KOCH

The former mayor thinks the Academy got it wrong by passing over “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” – though Julian Schnabel did score a nomination for Best Director. “Even though I don’t like his politics,” Koch chooses Johnny Depp’s performance as aggrieved, homicidal barber Sweeney Todd for Best Actor. For Best Actress, Koch – who moonlights as a film critic – goes with Julie Christie, who “tore my heart apart” in her turn as an Alzheimer’s-afflicted woman who embarks on a new romance in “Away From Her.”

By Heather Corcoran

This isn’t your average Oscars year.

Fears about a struggling economy, war and climate change may have spurred the filming of some of the best American films in recent memory, observers say.

Football season may be over and the baseball season is still months away, but that doesn’t mean that gambling connoisseurs don’t have a way to satisfy their fix. Online wagering presents an interesting substitute for gamblers who need to fill the void that presents itself in the sports offseason. “Survivor,” “The Apprentice,” “American Idol,” the presidential election and, yes, the Oscars are all options to bet some bucks on via Internet gambling Web sites. For those who believe they’re privy to the award night winners, here’s a list of odds from bookie Web sites if you dare to test your know-how.

Oscar Party Planning
Some Manhattan movie buffs who aren’t satisfied with watching the Oscars on their large-screen TVs are unfurling red carpets outside their brownstones and enlisting relatives to pose as paparazzi.

The Rise Of The Whitest White Kids U'Know
By Heather Corcoran

How many people can you offend in 30 minutes? Ask The Whitest Kids U’Know, five comedians who might claim the title of TV’s raciest act.

George Clooney is well on his way to cementing his leading-man status in celluloid history. This year, he adds to his already impressive resume with his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor.

By Christy Lemire

‘27 Dresses” is so chock full of romantic-comedy clichés, it almost plays like a parody.

Katherine Heigl’s Jane is always a bridesmaid and never a bride, a role she’s performed 27 times already because she’s so adept at anticipating and meeting her friends’ every prenuptial need.