Several weeks ago, the National Board of Review feted TCM host Robert Osborne with the Everson Award for Film History. This long-time Hollywood Reporter columnist has played a vital role in bringing movie classics to modern day TV audiences. In a wide-ranging interview in the New York Post, the author of the official Oscar book opens up about life in Tinseltown and recalls some of the more memorable Academy Award ceremonies of yesteryear.

Among his favorite moments were accompanying Bette Davis to the 1978 awards — she was presenting the Hersholt Humanitarian Award to Charlton Heston — and being a seat filler at the 1970 ceremony. As he recalls, when Richard Burton did not return after making an award, he took his empty seat next to a less than delighted Elizabeth Taylor. "She said, 'That bastard. He's backstage drinking, and I want to be back there, but I promised him I'd stay here through the whole damn show.' By the time the show was over, she was ready to kill." READ MORE

(Photo: TCM)