Was Peter O'Toole “prophetic” in 2004, when he initially rejected the Honorary Oscar from the Academy, based on his belief that he was still in the run for a legit recognition, not quite ready yet for a career achievement trophy (In the end, you may recall, O'Toole consented and accepted the award). I mention that, because O'Toole astoundingly subtle performance as the seventysomething thespian should earn him his eighth Oscar nomination (and perhaps the coveted award itself), when Miramax opens the movie stateside December 15.

Sept 8. 2006–Ellen DeGeneres was named host the 79th Academy Awards telecast, to air Feb. 25.
Laura Ziskin, who's the producer of the show, first came up with the idea while watching DeGeneres host the 2001 Emmys. “I was so blown away by her,” Ziskin said.

Will Brits Dominate Again the Oscars–As of Sep, the lead contender in the Best Actress category is Helen Mirren for the political serio comedy, “The Queen,” and the predominant contender in the Best Actor league is Peter O'Toole for the drama “Venus.”

One of the few film noirs to be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar, “Chinatown” received as many nominations (11) as Francis Coppola's “The Godfather: Part II” (also made by Paramount), but received only one, for Robert Towne's Original Screenplay. Coppola's second, better segment of The Godfatyher swept six major Oscars: Picture, Director, Screenplay (Adapted), Supporting Actor (Robert De Niro) Art Direction (Dean Tavoularis and Angelo Graham), and Original Dramatic Score (Nino Rota and Carmine Coppola).

The Queen Premieres at Venice Fest, and opens Sep 30 after NYFF

As of late August, Helen Mirren emerges as the frontrunner in the Best Actress Oscar category for her astonishing performance as Queen Elizabeth II in Stephen Frears' terrifically entertaining, socially poignant “The Queen,” a chronicle of the tumultuous, shifting relationship between the monarch and prime-minister Blair right after Princess Diana's 1997 tragic death.