Tag: oscars

See the 2020 Oscars’ ‘In Memoriam’ that honored Kobe Bryant

Here’s how the Academy Awards paid tribute to Bryant.

Spike Lee’s suit wasn’t the only tribute to Kobe Bryant on Sunday night at the 2020 Oscars.

The Los Angeles Lakers superstar was also the first face that viewers and the crowd of Hollywood’s biggest names saw at the Dolby Theatre when the Academy Awards did its annual “in memoriam” segment.

While Billie Eilish sang a cover of The Beatles’ Yesterday, Bryant holding his Oscar for Dear Basketball was on screen, along with a quote from a 2008 interview: “Life is too short to get bogged down and be discouraged. You have to keep moving. You have to keep going.”

Here’s the moment:

Bryant was also mentioned in a speech when his animated short, Hair Love, won. Former NFL wide receiver Matthew Cherry accepted the award and dedicated it to Bryant: “May we all have a second act as great as his was.”

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Spike Lee wore a special Kobe Bryant suit to the Oscars

Spike Lee wore a custom suit and a pair of Kobe Nike’s to pay tribute to the former NBA legend.

Spike Lee arrived to the Oscars in Los Angeles with a heavy heart on Sunday as he paid tribute to his friend, Kobe Bryant, by wearing a custom suit that honored the former NBA great.

Bryant and eight other people, including his daughter Gianna, died two weeks ago in a helicopter crash near Los Angeles.

Bryant won an Oscar for the Best Animated Short Film in 2018 for his film “Dear Basketball.”

Lee is a big basketball fan who has long been seen sitting courtside at Knicks games at Madison Square Garden.

His special purple suit on Sunday had the No. 24 on the front and back and he also wore a pair of Nike Kobe 9 Elite “Strategy” shoes. 

Well done, Spike Lee.

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Former NFL wide receiver gets an Oscar nomination for moving animated short

Matthew A. Cherry went from the NFL to an Oscar nom.

Kobe Bryant went from pro athlete to Oscar winner thanks to his work on Dear Basketball, the animated short film that won in 2018.

Now, he could be joined by Matthew A. Cherry.

Cherry was a wide receiver in the NFL who shuttled between practice squads and active roster for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Cincinnati Bengals, Carolina Panthers and Baltimore Ravens after he had a great college career with Akron.

Since he left the league, he became a filmmaker who has directed music videos for some big names and some television shows. He also was an executive producer for Spike Lee’s BlackKklansman. Most recently, he created an animated short, Hair Love, that was a hit both on screen and on the New York Times Bestseller list thanks to a book adaptation.

On Monday, Hair Love was nominated for an Oscar, with the announcement coming from actress Issa Rae, who voiced the film:

You can watch the short right here, and it’s incredible and moving, well worth the seven minutes it takes to watch:

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