I got introduced to Neil Patrick Harris in the early 90s, through his first TV show ‘Doogie Howser, M.D.”, which was one of my favorite shows. Later I did not track his career seriously , but read about his recent shows like ‘How I met your mother’ and spotted him in a small cameo in the recent blockbuster hit ‘Gone Girl’.

So, it was good to see him host the 2015 Oscars show. Overall, an ok performance.

Here are a few things that caught my attention.

• The opening songs were pretty decent and the shadows play was neat.
• Video projection/laser base door entry along with ushers, for the presenters was cool.
• Transition effect used to show oscar nominiess in makeup category worked well
• John Travolta with a wig…hmm!!!!
• The set and the background projection used for the song ‘Glory’ performance was very good.

Tailpiece: I first saw Oscar Awards live telecast in 1988. As it was my first ever viewing (not sure if it were the first on Indian TV), I even recorded it on a VCR. Since then, barring a few misses here and there, I ended up watching the awards ceremony very year. Doordarshan, Star Movies, ABC etc, TV channels changed, but the ritual remained.

So, what did I remember the most about my first i.e.60th Academy awards function…Cher, of course 🙂

Related links: NYTimes on Oscars 2015; The Guardian on Oscars 2015