10:24AM, Nov 04, 2009
Saturday Night Live veterans Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin are joining forces to co-host the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. It's the first time two performers have presented from the same stage since 1929.
It's the debut of Baldwin, the star of Beetlejuice and The Hunt for Red October, but funnyman Martin is an old hand, marshalling the event in 2001 and 2003.
"I am happy to co-host the Oscars with my enemy Alec Baldwin." said the 64-year-old star, who landed an Emmy nomination for his first Oscars gig.
"I don't play the banjo, but I'm thrilled to be hosting the Oscars," replied Baldwin, who has appeared before as a possibly recipient, most recently for The Cooler in 2004.
The fact that Martin and Baldwin aren't a pre-existing comedy team appealed to the producers, who are keen to inject more comedy into the ceremony.
"One way to make it fresher," producer Bill Mechanic said, "was to find people who aren't doing the same thing they always do."
However, they are appearing together in Nancy Meyer's comedy It's Complicated alongside Meryl Streep in December.
During the '70s and '80s, the Oscars often opted for multiple hosts with Helen Hayes, Alan King, Sammy Davis Jr. and Jack Lemmon doing the honours in 1972 and Chevy Chase, Goldie Hawn and Paul Hogan making it a trio in 1987.
However, the Academy hasn't relied on two performers since 1957, when Jerry Lewis and Celeste Holm teamed up. Technically, it wasn't considered a co-hosting situation as they each presented their segment of the show from New York and Los Angeles.
The only time two hosts have shared the same stage was at the first ceremony in 1929, presided over by Douglas Fairbanks and William C. DeMille.
The 82nd Oscars will be held on March 7 2010 at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles and will be screened live and exclusively on Sky Movies. Highlights will appear on Sky1 the following day.
