The Governor's awards ceremony took place last night, where Golden Age actress Maureen O'Hara, costume designer Jean-Claude Carriere and filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki were honored with honorary Oscars for lifetime achievement, while actor/singer/activist Harry Belafonte received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian award. The event has also, somewhat cynically, become the first place for potential Oscar nominees to hobnob with Academy members, meaning that of the huge crowd that showed up last night, few of them were likely there to hear the speeches from the honorees. But since they deserve their moment in the sun (that is what the event is for, after all), here are the videos of last night, provided by the Academy.
After being tributed by Susan Sarandon and Chris Rock, Harry Belafonte's fiery acceptance speech was the best of the night:
94-year-old Maureen O'Hara (who probably should have won this years ago), was honored by Clint Eastwood and Liam Neeson before receiving her award for starring in such classic films as The Quiet Man, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, Miracle on 34th Street and The Parent Trap, among others:
And the legendary Hayao Miyazaki, who wasn't even there to receive his competitive Oscar when he won for Spirited Away in 2003, made a rare appearance after being touted by John Lasseter as, along with Disney himself, one of the two most important figures in the history of animation:
