Murphy's Law

In his blog, Jeffrey Wells relays news from L.A. Times columnist Joel Stein that Eddie Murphy bailed out on the Oscars ceremony right after he lost out to Alan Arkin. My initial reaction was disgust, but the longer I think about it, the more sure I am that Murphy not only did the right thing, but the honest thing. If you have no class, that makes the act of showing class a flat-out lie. Murphy was angry he lost, hated everyone around him for voting for Alan Arkin instead of him, and thus no longer wanted to remain in their company. I also identify with Murphy for getting out of Dodge, because the show was so boring to watch it must have been tough for even the winners to sit through the whole thing. I know I didn't - I spent the final hour playing video games on mute while listening to the telecast from another room.

Also, this is the funniest thing Murphy has done in 18 years. Wouldn't it be cool if others followed his lead and started jetting after someone else was named the winner? The theater would only be a fifth full by the end of the night. I also wish people would start taking their losses harder. I wanted to see the producers of "Little Miss Sunshine" trip "The Departed" producer as he walked down the aisle. I wanted to watch Peter O'Toole feebly climb up the stage and wrassle the Oscar away from Forest Whitaker. I want Kate Winslet to wail in agony next time she loses out for best actress.

And I definitely want Murphy to be nominated and lose again.