Didn't Rush say Al spent $500,000 of his own money promoting the film to the Academy members? And who said Hollywood couldn't be bought....but then I guess that is what Hollywood is all about...Money and Power.
I spent the weekend watching old movies like Lawrence of Arabia, Patton, and Casablanca...ah for the good old days when Hollywood was about spending money on making good entertainment.
I agree with you about the "old Hollywood". For the past few years I attend (as one of the organizers) and "Anti-Oscar" Party in Manattan usually held at Kennedy's Restaurant on 57th Street. It is always held the night of the Oscars. The guests wear name tags of the favorite actor/actress- I was Audrey Hepburn- and bring Trivia questions on the movie classics of yesteryear (i.e.Lawrence of Arabia, Gone With The Wind,etc). We eat dinner, chat and ignore the Oscars. There are no more Stars today - just "celebrities".
You are right, there was a time when Hollyweird was not so weird and made good movies. I tried to watch "Departed" the so called best movie but it was too disgusting. If they took the "F" word out, it would have been a silent film.