The Academy Awards were once an elegant, dignified ceremony. The Host was always entertaining and fun.

Watching the Red Carpet was like an appetizer. Sometimes it would begin before noon. Hours of “fashion” to enjoy and make fun of. It was the activity my daughter and I could do together without our baggage getting in the way. It became our “thing.” One year, we could not watch the awards together. That was the year we watched and commented over the phone. Our husbands thought we were nuts.

After my granddaughter was born, we inducted her into Oscar Mania. We added dressing up like we were there to our agenda. We took turns being interviewed on the Red Carpet. We would do a serious one. Then a silly one. Year after year, our tradition continued. We inducted a second granddaughter. Then we incorporated the “Oscars Spa Weekend.”

Nominated actors (a.k.a., us girls) could reserve a suite at the Marvelous Greenfield Mountain Retreat in the Stanislaus National Forest. There, they would be pampered, catered to, and escape the paparazzi and other prying eyes. Many took advantage of the superior spa treatments, especially the Norwegian youth serum, which tightens facial skin and eliminates dark circles caused by lack of sleep before the big event.

The morning before the event (closer to the afternoon), clients were served a fabulous brunch, then were escorted to their planned activity, before getting gussied up for the Red Carpet. Activities could be yoga, meditation, or massage. Bubble baths, followed by a facial, were a favorite among the younger crowd.

Last year, we all dressed to the nines and went out to the Oscars. Nevada City’s movie theater was streaming “The Oscars.” Seeing them on the large screen was fun. But something was missing. The theater was filled with dressed-up people, who were excited among themselves. Yet, the BIG excitement of the Oscars was not there.

It occurred to me then that the Oscar Ceremony was different. The entire atmosphere had changed. It no longer felt elegant and high-class. Somehow, things got more casual and less special. A few years ago, the seating arrangements changed into round tables like at a wedding reception. That was weird. I’m glad they adopted the row-by-row seating again.

The not-cool-at-all tantrum that Will Smith threw caused quite the negative impact. And not just to the Academy. All corners of the globe witnessed the event. Chris Rock must have gained a lot of kudos for keeping his cool. I wished that Jada had slapped him (Will) silly before he got up from his seat. I was embarrassed to watch this unfold At The Oscars. It reminded me of the Ricki Lake Show.

The 2026 ceremony was non-political. A pleasant surprise. One silly musical number would have been OK. Several of them, I lost count, were annoying and forgettable. The Oscar winners were people I did not know. I recognized 3 actors. That really saddened me, because I’m a movie buff and watch thousands of movies. I was really thrown by the number of people who were lost in the last year. I knew a lot of them.

Next year, who knows? The 3 musketeers did not get together this year to walk the Red Carpet or give speeches. I suppose that is a sign that the Academy Awards have lost their magic for us. Once we mourn our Oscar fun, we must rise up and adopt a new “thing.”

That’s going to be a challenge.