Angelina Jolie Gets Honorary Oscar
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Board of Governors has awarded Angela Lansbury, Steve Martin and Angelina Jolie Honorary Oscars for 2013. The ceremony was held in Hollywood and present guests include some of the top Hollywood stars: Harrison Ford, George Lucas, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Hanks, Jake Gyllenhaal, Amy Adams, Diane Keaton and Judd Apatow. The ceremony also gave public recognition to Piero Tosi, an Italian designer, who was not present at the ceremony.
While filming Lara Croft: Tomb Raider in 2001 in Cambodia, Jolie became interested in refugee issues and started working for the United Nations Refugee Agency in order to offer support to refugee’s well-being and human rights. For more than ten years of her intensive work she was promoted to a special organization envoy and has been awarded the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for her work.
At the Saturday ceremony Jolie appeared with Brad Pitt. A number of Hollywood stars came up to the scene to pay tribute to Jolie, but most interesting speeches were given by George Lucas and Gena Rowlands. Rowlands has worked with Jolie in Playing By Heart in 1998 and has expressed her current amazement by the accomplishments of Angelina Jolie: she is a mother of countless children, both adopted or not; she an actress, a writer and a director, and she is engaged with Brad Pitt. How much time can she possible invest in charity? Lucas on the other side has put a heavy accent on Jolie’s motherhood. He says that he personally advised her to become a mother, but her activities have topped all of his expectations.
When Jolie received Oscar, the first person she thanked was Brad Pitt with the words that nothing is impossible with him around. Then she carried on about her passion for refugees. The actress said that when she first met refugees, she started thinking on a whole different level. That experience has helped her realize that she has been rewarded with life in luxury, while some people on the planet have nothing to eat. While we are worried about ridiculous stuff, they are facing existential issues. They have to worry about their daily bread, about the clothes of their children getting home or going to school.
