Hello, everybody. Of course a lot of things have happened this week including the aftermath of the health care reform bill now into law; but as promised, this is a very special blog as when it's springtime, it could mean only one thing: Sexiest Woman of 2010!!!

That's right! For the last few days, I've been creating the modifying the starting field of 90 for this year's tournament. In light of last year when Lisa Edelstein upset everybody in the final round that lasted only a couple days, this year I've decided to pull out all the stops to make sure we play things fair and square. Therefore, the field this year will be like no other, with dozens of brand new faces to go along with the old favorites we've known and loved for years.

Enough chitchat; on to the field starting with the Juniors:

Group A
Kristin Cavallari
Miley Cyrus
Dakota Fanning
Selena Gomez
Blake Lively (last year's top co-Junior)
Audrina Patridge
Rihanna
Kristen Stewart
Ashley Tisdale

Group B
Amanda Bynes
Kaley Cuoco
Ashley Greene
Vanessa Hudgens
Victoria Justice
AnnaLynne McCord
Lea Michele
Taylor Momsen
Hayden Panettiere
Emmy Rossum

Group C
Lauren Conrad
Miranda Cosgrove
Hilary Duff
Julianne Hough
Demi Lovato
Leighton Meester
Emma Roberts
Amanda Seyfried
Jessica Stroup
Taylor Swift (last year's top co-Junior)

And now, the Seniors...

Group D
Kristen Bell (2007 runner-up and 2008 winner)
Courteney Cox
Dana Delany
Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson
Lauren Graham (2005 winner)
Anne Hathaway
Stacy Keibler (2003 third-place finisher)
Mila Kunis
Jennifer Lopez (2001 runner-up)
Reese Witherspoon

Group E
Paula Abdul
Christina Aguilera (1999 runner-up)
Jessica Alba (2000 and 2003 winner)
Sandra Bullock (who has been in the news as of late as far as Jesse James is concerned)
Shannen Doherty
Mariska Hargitay
Jennifer Love Hewitt (2002 third-place finisher)
Beyonce Knowles
Eva Longoria Parker
Shakira

Group F
Christina Applegate
Jessica Biel
Mariah Carey
Jennifer Garner (2005 runner-up)
Teri Hatcher
Alicia Keys
Demi Moore
Britney Spears (1999 winner and 2000-2001 third-place finisher)
Olivia Wilde
Kate Winslet

And finally, the Underdogs...

Group G
Cheryl Burke
Marion Cotillard
Kim Kardashian
Diane Kruger
Olivia Munn
Nancy O'Dell
Stephanie Pratt
Zoe Saldana
Lindsey Vonn
Emma Watson

Group H
Cheryl Cole
Cat Deeley
Kara DioGuardi
Christina Hendricks
Samantha Harris
Stana Katic
Avril Lavigne
Sarah Jessica Parker
Karina Smirnoff
Alison Sweeney

Group I
Dianna Agron
Erin Andrews
Brooke Burke
Kristin Chenoweth
Tina Fey
Katharine McPhee
Marisa Miller
Katy Perry
Nicole Scherzinger
Kate Walsh (last year's top Underdog and third-place finisher)

(NOTE: The field may change at any time)

Now a lot of you are wondering, "Where is Jennifer Aniston?!" Well, as runner-up both last year and in 2006 (as well as finishing third in 2005 and 2008), she gets an automatic bye for the first two rounds.

Okay, here's how the whole show will go...

Top 60 ladies after Round 1 (20 Juniors, 20 Seniors, 20 Underdogs) advance to Round 2 where only 30 will remain (ten from each category). But when we get to Round 3 with Aniston joining the party, the categories are removed and it's anything goes from here on out as the field decreases to 20 for Round 4.

The top ten ladies after Round 4 will go on to face last year's winner Lisa Edelstein in the fifth and final round; if everything goes according to plan, that will be around mid-November!!!!

It's going to be very exciting with every vote, so mark your calendars for April 8 when the Sexiest Woman of 2010 tournament kicks off with the first round preliminaries! And oh yeah...unlike last year, there's no accompanying video on YouTube for this. So long and stay strong!

Hello, everybody. Well, I don't know what was even more nail-biting on Sunday: The road to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA basketball tournament or the road to the Sweet 216 on Capitol Hill as that number was all it took to pass a make-or-break health care reform bill that was over a century in the making. And by God, it did pass 219-212. I tell you...I was on the edge of my seat keeping an eye on the "Yes" votes waiting for that magic number to hit their way.

President Obama will sign the bill into law Tuesday, and it will take a few years to be put into effect. The bill will give 32 million Americans health insurance, which will put us a step closer into full universal health care with 95% coverage.

I have said on this blog in 2007 that the whole health care system in the United States has been broken for decades and is in need for a head-to-toe overhaul; otherwise, we would be fallen in line. What the Clinton administration couldn't do in 1993 (which led to the Republicans cleaning house the following year); the Obama administration did over the weekend. We have prayed for years for our country to be granted universal health care, and despite Bart Stupak being called "Baby killer!" after the vote, our prayers were finally answered. No more flatlines; there's a new pulse beating in America as we already experienced the real March Madness.

Spring has sprung, and that could mean only one thing that starts in spring: No, not the new season of "Dancing With The Stars", but something I've been doing since 1999: SEXIEST WOMAN OF 2010!!!!!!!

That's right! It's that time once again when we ask the question of all questions: Who will be crowned Sexiest Woman of the Year by year's end? If you recall, last year's finals was very short-lived when Kate Walsh at first had the lead, then Lisa Edelstein from out of nowhere did the impossible and scored the biggest upset in the 12-year history of the tournament and won with Jennifer Aniston once again coming close (Walsh finished third).

Also last year, we had the starting field of 120; this time, it's back to 90. Who will those 90 be as they have one chance to dethrone Edelstein for the title? You'll find out next week as I'll unveil the Juniors, Seniors, and Underdogs; and let me tell you this...it'll be a field like never before, and I want to emphasize the words "never before"! So long and stay strong!

Hello everybody, as we are on the verge of what could be a monumental turn of events in the history of American politics. By the time this blog is put to bed, we would be hours away from the House's do-or-die vote on the the health care reform bill Sunday...one that is over seven decades in the making, though we tried an attempt before.

For the last few days, President Obama has been working the phones and meeting face-to-face with our Representatives, especially the Democrats who want to hit the all-important target number of 216 votes needed to pass the bill. For those of you who have been in space and don't know what I'm talking about, here's what's at stake:

• The bill would expand health insurance coverage to 32 million Americans, giving us 95% full coverage
• Health insurance would be affordable to the middle class and small businesses
• Insurance companies would be held accountable to keep premiums down and prevent denials of care and coverage
• Medicare benefits would be improved with lower prescription costs for those in the "donut hole"
• And most of all, the deficit would be reduced by more than $100 billion to $1 trillion over the next two decades.

On Friday, Obama made what could be his final push for reform at a rally in Virginia, which was followed Saturday by a meeting with Democrats at the Capitol.

While victory may be guaranteed, the Republicans are saying otherwise. As we have seen in the last eight months or so, tea parties from all over the country have been helping send Obama the message. But we have already learned a lesson in the early '90s when Bill Clinton's health care plan crashed and burned, and we don't want to see deja vu all over again. Forget the NCAA tournament; the real March Madness will end on Capitol Hill Sunday with the one vote that could end a century of hell on earth in this country. The time for reform really is now!

You can tell that spring is the favorite time of year for CBS's Jim Nantz: first with the NCAA basketball tournament and after that, Tiger Woods returning to action at the Masters as that announcement was made this week. This comes as text messages from Tiger to alleged mistress Joslyn James from July to October 2009 were released; some of them are too explicit to even post here, but you can read them for yourself.

The Masters are the Super Bowl of golf, and even though ratings for this year's tournament are expected to be high with Tiger back on the green, the ad rates have already been locked in before his decision. That's because Augusta National Golf Club (which runs the Masters) stipulates that only four minutes of commercials must be run per hour, compared to 12 or so minutes at other tournaments including the U.S. Open, British Open, and PGA Championship.

Also, being right there to witness it all will be a challenge. A one-day pass could run up to $1,000, and cameras and mobile devices/phones are not allowed at Augusta National. But whatever; we'll see if the Tiger will really roar in his comeback bid for the green jacket as the Masters get underway on April 8.

And last but not least...earlier this week came the shocking news (which I reported on this blog) that Kate Winslet and Sam Mendes are separating after seven years of marriage; this comes after Kate attended this year's Oscars to present Best Actor to Jeff Bridges.

Kate picked up Best Actress last year for "The Reader", and now it appears that the fabled Oscar Curse has hit her successor, Sandra Bullock! Why is that? Bullock may have claimed her Oscar for "The Blind Side", but we have learned that she has been blindsided herself as tabloid reports boasted that while filming her movie, husband Jesse James was getting freaky with Michelle "Bombshell" McGee. The only difference: Jesse's and Michelle's bodies are loaded with tattoos; Sandra's isn't.

Sandra knew something was up as she canceled her trip to Britain to promote "The Blind Side" there (after all, movies with an American football theme rarely do well overseas) while James issued this apology: "The vast majority of the allegations reported are untrue and unfounded. Beyond that, I will not dignify these private matters with any further public comment. There is only one person to blame for this whole situation, and that is me. It's because of my poor judgment that I deserve everything bad that is coming my way. This has caused my wife and kids pain and embarrassment beyond comprehension and I am extremely saddened to have brought this on them. I am truly very sorry for the grief I have caused them."

Okay, I ain't buying this one bit. Over the years, Sandra has dated the likes of Tate Donovan to Matthew McConaughey, but what did she really see in Jesse? They may look happy together as evidenced at the Golden Globes and Academy Awards, but you know there is an opposite side we've never seen, and it was already exposed that Jesse is a cheater.

I don't know if Sandra will either forgive him to take him to divorce court, but one thing's for certain: Jesse James really is a dead man after all! So long and stay strong.

Hello, everybody. 8 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes, and 9 seconds with an average speed of 5.15 miles per hour was all it took for Lance Mackey to breeze through the Burled Arch in Nome at close to 3:00 pm Alaska Time this afternoon to claim his fourth Iditarod title in a row and in near record time! His rewards were the same as the last three times: $50,000 and a new Dodge truck.

Hans Gatt of Whitehorse, Canada would follow him to Nome arriving at 4:04, and four-time champion Jeff King was next just an hour ago at 5:22 pm. But right now, the most popular Lance in sports is not Armstrong, but Mackey as he has once again defied the odds as winner and still champion of The Last Great Race. So long and stay strong.

Hello, everybody. Not much going on, but as I tweeted earlier today, Kate Winslet and director Sam Mendes are calling it quits after seven years of marriage.

Winslet won an Oscar last year for "The Reader" while Mendes has an Oscar himself for directing "American Beauty"; he also directed Kate in "Revolutionary Road", reuniting her and "Titanic's" Leonardo DiCaprio. A rep for the couple says in a statement, "They are saddened to announce they separated earlier this year. The split is entirely amicable and is by mutual agreement. Both parties are fully committed to the future joint parenting of their children." And by their children, we're referring to son Joe and daughter Mia, the latter from Kate's first marriage to Jim Threapleton.

Now this comes just after Kate presented Best Actor to Jeff Bridges at last weekend's Oscars. But you also noticed that Sam wasn't present with her at that and the BAFTA awards a couple weeks prior; she was out there all alone. And according to sources, Kate has been "bored with Sam", and that the break-up took place last summer.

Kate and Leo got hot and heavy in two films, but I don't see them doing that in real life anytime soon. Also, this is part of what has been called "The Oscar Curse": Julia Roberts, Reese Witherspoon, Halle Berry, Charlize Theron, and now Kate Winslet have fallen victim to it, while Nicole Kidman and Gwyneth Paltrow remain curse-proof. Sandra Bullock better watch her guard!

Now...the latest on Iditarod 38, or as I like to call, "The Lance Mackey Show" as the defending champion remains on cruise control for a quadruple victory. He checked in at Elim at 12:51 Alaska time this afternoon and out 15 minutes later, with White Mountain as the next stop.

Meanwhile, it's already a battle for second place between Hans Gatt and Jeff King with Gatt still in front; Ken Anderson and Hugh Neff round out the top five.

Right now, Front Street in Nome is already rolling out the welcome mat for Mackey and the big finish is now estimated to be between Noon-3:00 pm Alaska Time tomorrow afternoon (4-7pm Eastern/1-4pm Pacific). I'll try to be able to watch the finish live online; if not, there's always the tweets followed by the full details on tomorrow's blog. So long and stay strong.

Hello, everybody.

First up...the sudden death of Corey Haim early Wednesday morning at age 38 that took everybody by surprise.

The Canadian-born former teen heartthrob rode high in the 1980's with "The Lost Boys" (alongside another Corey -- Corey Feldman) and "License To Drive" (which introduced the world to Heather Graham, a decade before "Boogie Nights" and others to come including last year's "The Hangover"). But in later years, his career and him in general took a turn for the worse, as he was plagued with drug problems. Also, according to Feldman, he attempted suicide numerous times though he had some projects under his belt.

Corey's death came just months after drugs killed Brittany Murphy and later heiress Casey Johnson. It's sad that one of "The Lost Boys" is now one himself.

Now, the latest on Iditarod 38, as Jeff King was first to the Yukon River early Friday morning reaching Ruby. His reward? $3,500 cash and an eight-course meal from the Millennium Hotel Anchorage which consisted of Alaskan king crab, bison stew, grilled halibut with citrus sauce, lemon sorbet, potatoes, brown sugar and carrots, and blackberry jubliee. This may be King's last Iditarod, and if he wants to end it on a high note with a fourth trip to Nome he better maintain his lead...or else.

And speaking of which, as of Saturday morning King is still in the lead exiting Kaltag but barely with Lance Mackey not far behind and Hugh Neff in third in Nulato. The big finish in Nome is expected to be between early Tuesday morning to Wednesday evening, so will King cling on to dear life to prevent Mackey from getting a four-peat? We'll find out.

(UPDATE: Mackey has just taken the lead exiting Kaltag with Hans Gatt now in second and Jeff King third)

Things went back to normal after last weekend's Academy Awards, as Mo'Nique was back to work on her BET talk show after claiming Supporting Actress. And here's one tidbit you don't know about: Usually, the Oscars the winners would pick up on stage would have to be taken back to the Academy to get them engraved. Not anymore; at the Governors' Ball, they would be done right on the spot! So first, you see Best Actress Sandra Bullock at the press room showing off her hardware to the world; then an hour or so later, it has the inscription on it for all times.

We all knew that that Oscar would belong to Sandra and it was well deserved. But in the case of one guy...well, let's just say it was like as if he won the lottery.

25-year-old filmmaker Brian Rowe of Los Angeles was watching the Oscars like everybody else, and with a T-shirt saying "I (heart) Sandra Bullock", his heart was pounding during the Best Actress segment. When the big moment came with Sean Penn saying "And the winner is...Sandra Bullock!", he totally went nuts all over the living room with screams of "Oh my God!!!" throughout; he literally couldn't contain himself! Hey, I was never like that when Halle Berry won!

Anyway, the video of all this is already a worldwide hit on YouTube, and I even e-mailed and later called Brian on Thursday about it asking if it was staged or was it all real. No need for a response, because knowing he's been a huge Sandra fan for much of his life, his reactions were 100% real. But what if it was Meryl Streep on stage instead of Sandra? He would've been bawling like there was no tomorrow!

And last but not least...In January, I had Sandra at the top of my first Celebrity Twitter Wish List as one of the many celebs I want to see on there. But last time on my Oscar recap blog, I said that husband Jesse James -- who has a Twitter handle himself -- has been getting all the congratulatory tweets on her behalf. Well, I have an open message to Jesse, and I hope he can relay this to his now award-winning wife:

GET SANDRA BULLOCK A TWITTER ACCOUNT OF HER OWN!!!!!!!

That's right!!!! Another devoted Sandra fan (not Brian Rowe, but somebody else) put up a Twitition some months ago demanding you, Jesse, to follow all the other celebrities' lead to get Sandy on Twitter herself. She has lots of free time between now and her next project, and you're pretty much paying the bills for her, so teaching Sandra the ropes might do the trick. A Facebook page might help in the process of getting it verified as well.

If everything goes according to plan, I can see about 30,000 to 50,000 followers after the first week compared to 21,800 compared to yours. Sandra Bullock is on top of the heap again with Oscar gold as the ultimate career highlight; now it's time for you, Jesse James, to step up to the plate and return the favor to her fans all over the world...especially of course that Brian Rowe guy.

By the way...Kevin Spacey is the most-followed Oscar winner on Twitter with over 1.6 million followers followed by Tom Hanks with 300,000 and Marlee Matlin with around 37,000 (Meryl Streep, who Sandra beat last Sunday for the big prize, has only 1,900). I'm sure Sandra can do better than that, and trust me...she will. So long and stay strong!

"Hurt Locker" leaves "Avatar" blue-faced at the Oscars!

Hello, everybody. As always, they were not broadcast live at 4:00 pm here in Alaska, but for 3 hours and 37 minutes the 82nd Annual Academy Awards on Sunday with hosts Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin kept things lively for every moment.

And in the case of "The Hurt Locker", it was a very lively affair for them as the big winner of the night with six Oscars including Original Screenplay, Best Picture of 2009, and for the first time ever -- a female taking Best Director, as Kathryn Bigelow beat out ex-husband James Cameron for that prize. But his "Avatar" didn't go home empty-handed, picking up Cinematography, Visual Effects, and Art Direction.

Christoph Waltz and Mo'Nique as expected claimed Supporting Actor and Actress for "Inglourious Basterds" and "Precious" respectively (for Mo'Nique, it came just 60 years after Hattie McDaniel became the first ever black Oscar winner for "Gone With The Wind"); Jeff Bridges got Best Actor for "Crazy Heart"; and the heavily favored Sandra Bullock, 24 hours after being dis-honored with a Worst Actress Razzie ("All About Steve"), capped off her year to remember with Best Actress gold for "The Blind Side." More on her in a moment. And for the third time...I got all my picks right on the nose!!!!

Meanwhile, "Up" got Animated Feature; Argentina's "El Secreto du Sus Ojos", Foreign Language Film; and Original Song went to "The Weary Kind" from "Crazy Heart."

Now, on to the show: Neil Patrick Harris opened with a song-and-dance number before segueing to Martin and Baldwin handling the festivities for the rest of the night. And I thought they moved things along pretty well, even cracking a Toyota joke during the monologue.

But the best highlight of the show was Brat Packers Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy, and Judd Nelson, as well as Matthew Broderick, Jon Cryer, and "Home Alone's" Macaulay Culkin all on stage paying an emotional tribute to fellow director and friend John Hughes with his family in the audience.

There was also the ubiquitous "In Memoriam" montage set to music by James Taylor performing "In My Life", though there was a lot of outcry over Farrah Fawcett being excluded. Let's set things straight about this before I continue:

1. Farrah was known primarily for her television work than feature films, and
2. She was already included in the "In Memoriam" piece at the Primetime Emmy Awards last September! Now do you understand?

Anyway...another moment was Ben Stiller going "Avatar" on us presenting Best Makeup in blue Na'vi makeup.

But the skies above the Kodak Theatre prior to the show was more gray than blue, though the tented red carpet turned into the world's largest greenhouse with blossoming fashions aplenty. We saw Meryl Streep as classy as she can be, Anna Kendrick elegant in Elie Saab, Cameron Diaz looking marvelous in metallic Oscar de la Renta, Miley Cyrus feeling like a woman in Jenny Packham, and Rachel McAdams awash also in Elie Saab.

So...who blossomed the most? Has to be Sandra Bullock; she definitely looked like an Oscar winner in her Marchesa with hubby Jesse James as her accessory. And for Gabourey Sidibie, Diane Kruger, Mariah Carey, and Zoe Saldana? Too much Miracle-Gro!

For the first time in over seven decades, we had ten films up for Best Picture. And only one of them had to stand out from the pack with Kathryn Bigelow finally doing something Jane Campion couldn't in 1994 when she lost to Steven Spielberg: Becoming the first female Best Director winner. As for Jeff Bridges? His father Lloyd must be smiling up above knowing that one of his sons finally caught the big one.

But in the end, Oscar Night 2010 ultimately belonged to a woman who was voted "Most Likely To Brighten Your Day" by her senior class at Arlington, Virginia's Washington-Lee High School in 1982. And in the years since, she has indeed brightened everybody's days, starting out on the short-lived TV version of "Working Girl" then working alongside Sylvester Stallone in "Demolition Man" before "Speed" would put her on the map followed by "While You Were Sleeping" and "The Net" to come.

The two "Miss Congeniality" movies would keep her busy during the 21st Century, then "Crash" and "The Lake House", reuniting her with "Speed's" co-star Keanu Reeves. And then came 2009, with "The Proposal" and "The Blind Side" both raking in enough money to put her back in the spotlight. Now, over two decades of living and breathing her career has paid off for the better, as Sandra Annette Bullock has a second man in her life to go along with Jesse James: a gold-plated fellow named Oscar!

Mo'Nique said it best during her speech: It's the performances, not the politics, that make you a winner. And that was what the 82nd Annual Academy Awards were all about, as the night's theme should well be "I Am Woman, Hear Me Roar!"

By the way...ratingswise, the Oscarcast was a hit, up 20% from last year.

Now that I've got the Oscars out of the way...I'm just getting started, folks!

Within moments after her win, Sandra Bullock immediately became a trending topic on Twitter. However, it's Jesse James that's getting the congratulatory tweets on her behalf because he has a Twitter, she doesn't.

Since my first wishlist, fellow Oscar winners Julia Roberts and Reese Witherspoon established their own homes on Facebook instead of Twitter as well as Sarah Jessica Parker who has both. And even though they have been tape delayed in Alaska as I mentioned on top, I have been following this year's awards on Twitter. But enough babbling; here now is my second Celebrity Twitter/Facebook Wish List:

• Michelle Pfeiffer (see August 13, 2007 blog)
• Tara Lipinski (hey, fellow Olympian Evan Lysacek has an account, so why not her? And after all, she isn't doing anything!)
• Hilary Swank (who wowed us five years ago in a backless gown when she picked up her second Best Actress and once again at the Vanity Fair party on Sunday in a low-cut number)
• Kate Winslet (last year's Best Actress had a Twitter before, but somehow deleted it)
• Lori Loughlin (if a middle-aged hottie like Demi Moore has a Twitter, so can her!)
  

Once again there are others, but I'll save them for next time.

Now onto the 38th running of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, where over 70 of the world's finest mushers have one goal in mind: to prevent Lance Mackey from claiming a fourth straight title as they take on 1,150 miles of the most challenging terrain known to man while facing who knows what along the journey to Nome. As of Monday afternoon, Sebastian Schnuelle, John Baker, and Warren Palfrey have all exited Rainy Pass while Mackey is 15th.

Of course the race is just getting started, and you know Mackey as always will make his move when the homestretch comes. Who will be the first to cross the famed Burled Arch in Nome for $50,000 (yes, it's down from the usual $69,000) and the keys to a new Dodge Truck? We'll find out in the next week-and-a-half.

And last but not least: Okay, I'll admit it...I'm a soft-core porn junkie.

With the current state of TV nowadays with "Real Housewives" this and "Jersey Shore" that, the late night fare offered on Cinemax has always been a sensual respite with shows like "Life On Top", "Lingerie", and "Zane's Sex Chronicles" airing at random. Alright, so I sampled hardcore porn as well, but it's not my cup of tea.

The idea for this topic came a few weeks ago while browsing through a Castle Megastore here in Fairbanks (my boss at work calls it White Castle) looking for any softcore fare on DVD. I was shocked to find out that rarely any of that are released on DVD, especially on Amazon, eBay, and even Netflix! And I should know because I had my first taste of softcore porn while staying at a hotel room in Juneau in 1994, only to realize my bill would run up to $45!

But how come softcore porn is never on DVD but the hardcore are? Is it because the producers couldn't find any good distributors to market them exclusively to online retailers like Amazon? Or is it because we're better off taping them off of Cinemax and then dubbing it to DVD ourselves?

I have ordered only a few of those softporn movies from Amazon over the years, but that ain't enough. After all, I don't mind seeing hot and heavy action, though many of us miss the funky '70s porno music that made us want to "get it on!" So long and stay strong!

Hello, everybody. The preparations continue down in Hollywood for Sunday's Academy Awards (which I'll get to in a bit), but first up...

Meet your new cast of "Dancing With The Stars", headlined by Kate Gosselin! Yes, the mother of eight will be showing the world if she have what it takes on the dance floor, and Kate's not alone. Joining her will be ESPN sportscaster Erin Andrews (who had her share of drama last year with the peephole scandal), "Baywatch" beauty Pamela Anderson, "90210" bad girl Shannen Doherty, Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger, Olympic gold medalist Evan Lysacek, Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin, comedienne Niecy Nash, "All My Children" hunk Aiden Turner, Chad Ochocinco of the Cincinnati Bengals, and "The Bachelor" Jake Pavelka.

But before the cast of characters was revealed, producers were in the middle of a cattle call for Tom Bergeron's new co-host to replace Samantha Harris. Brooke Burke and Mel B. reportedly auditioned, but there were 20 others including Stacy Keibler, who said on her Twitter she tried out as well.

By the way...whatever happened to Jann Carl and Ananda Lewis? They haven't been on TV in months and months, so they may have auditioned as well. The new season of "Dancing With The Stars" is March 22 on ABC, and by then, we'll have the answer as to who'll be grasping the bedazzled microphone. As for who'll grasp the mirrored ball trophy? My money's on Evan Lysacek; Buzz or Niecy will be the first to go.

But on Sunday, the whole world will be finding out who'll grasp that 8 lb. sculpted piece of 24-karat gold that is Oscar at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.

Bill Mechanic and Adam Shankman are the men in charge of this year's show, and they have tweaked things up a bit. First, Louis J. Horvitz was unavailable (again) and Bruce Gowers and Glenn Weiss were too busy (the former with "American Idol"), so they hired an unlikely director: Hamish Hamilton, known for directing concert videos featuring Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and U2, as well as the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show and several MTV Video/Europe Music Awards. But one thing you won't be seeing for the first time in 82 years: a live orchestra; they have done away with it.

And after last year, the list of presenters is made public once again; along with last year's winners, you'll also see Tom Hanks, Charlize Theron, Kathy Bates, Matt Damon, Robin Williams (all of them past winners), Queen Latifah, "Twilight's" Taylor Lautner and Kristen Stewart, Tina Fey, Jennifer Lopez, Tyler Perry, Miley Cyrus, Samuel L. Jackson, John Travolta, and many more.

"Avatar" and "The Hurt Locker" are coming in as the front-runners; both are up for nine awards including Best Picture. The other eight films vying for that big prize are "The Blind Side", "District 9", "An Education", "Inglourious Basterds", "Precious", "A Serious Man", "Up", and "Up In The Air." Yes, for the first time in decades, we've got ten films up for Best Picture of 2009!

"Up" is also up for Animated Feature, and it could make Oscar history by taking both that and Best Picture. "Beauty And The Beast" was the last animated film nominated for Best Picture in 1992, but "Silence Of The Lambs" cleaned house that year.

Jeff Bridges is expected to take Best Actor for "Crazy Heart", despite weak competition from Supporting Actor winners George Clooney and Morgan Freeman, Colin Firth, and Jeremy Renner. As for Best Actress, Sandra Bullock is in a showdown with 16-time nominee and double winner Meryl Streep, leaving past winner Helen Mirren and first timers Carey Mulligan and Gabourey Sidibe in the dust.

And now comes the moment you've been waiting a few paragraphs for: Whose homes will be adorned with the most famous piece of hardware in the world after Sunday night? Here are my predictions:

Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz (no contest)
Supporting Actress: Well, Mo'nique with Golden Globes and SAG honors may have got this in the bag, but looking back at my picks history, I'm always wrong. In 2007 I said that Eddie Murphy will take Supporting Actor for "Dreamgirls", but that ended up in the hands of Alan Arkin. However...we haven't had a black Supporting Actress winner since Whoopi Goldberg in "Ghost", and I think that 20 years is long enough; Mo'Nique should end that drought! And if not her, then Anna Kendrick or Maggie Gyllenhaal in an upset, but my pick is final.
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges (who else?)
Best Actress: Like I said, it's all about Sandra vs. Meryl; last year it was Kate Winslet vs. Meryl, and Kate won. Streep, being a great talent she is, may be the most-nominated actress ever, but Bullock has had a phenomenal 2009 headlined by "The Proposal" and "The Blind Side" raking in the bucks with the latter finally giving the honors she deserves. So in the end, I'd really love to hear Sean Penn say those life-changing words: "And the Oscar goes to...Sandra Bullock!"
Director: Kathryn Bigelow ("The Hurt Locker")
Best Picture: "Avatar" as first was the early favorite with a Golden Globe win, but not anymore. In 2006 I was rooting for "Brokeback Mountain" to take the big prize; but in the end, "Crash" crashed the gay cowboys' party. James Cameron may keep his trophy for "Titanic", but once again I'm playing it safe and say...war movies have traditionally taken Best Picture before; see "The Deer Hunter", "The Bridge On The River Kwai", "Patton", "Platoon", and most recently, "The English Patient." "The Hurt Locker" should continue that Oscar tradition.

Last year I swept the board, will I do it for a third time? We'll find out on Sunday when Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin host the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. And despite the show still being on tape delay at 7:00 pm here in Alaska (come on, you think there's no way for me to race home from work at 4:00?), it still wouldn't hurt spoiling ourselves while watching the show on who already won.

And like I've been doing for the last 11 years, I'll recap it all on Monday (the show, the fashions, and the stories behind the big wins) in what will no doubt be one blog that's filled to the brim! Along with the Oscars, I'll have my second Celebrity Twitter Wishlist as well as why do so many of the soft-core porn we see late nights on Cinemax are never out on DVD. That's all on Monday, so so long and stay strong!

(CORRECTION (3/22): The last black Supporting Actress winner after Whoopi Goldberg and now Mo'Nique was Jennifer Hudson for "Dreamgirls" in 2007)