The academy has changed the game again for the next Oscars, reports Steve Pond at The Wrap. Now, not only will they have 10 best picture nominees to choose from, but they also will have a new way of deciding the winner. Instead of having voters make their top pick in the best picture race, they will be asked to rank the 10 best picture nominees in order of preference.

For details on how the new voting process will work, check out this post over on the Company Town blog.

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Whenever I make award pontifications, I think it's important to sell them with P.T. Barnum-like brio, braggadocio and guts. Assure readers that they're "100% perfect predictions" — "can't be wrong!" Make the bombastic experience fun and thus invite readers to roar right back at you: "An Oscar for Miley Cyrus? You're an idiot!"

Oh, isn't that why we're all here at Gold Derby, dear friends?

Now I see that Lane Brown is hyping "Vulture's Infallible, Late-August Oscar Predictions!" Oh, ecstasy! Brown admits, "We've seen almost none of the probable contenders yet, we have absolutely no idea," Brown adds, but still sallies forth to make brazen forecasts "based on films' trailers and pedigree, things we read on Twitter, and our own infallible intuition."

Hooray! That's our invitation to attack. Now let's go at it. I freely confess that I haven't seen 95% of these films either and I don't follow Twitter as closely as Vulture, but, hey, Oscarology is bloodsport and we're all in it for the bath.

Yes, of course, Clint Eastwood's biopic starring Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela, "Invictus," will automatically make the best picture list and could even win ("Gandhi," that bland hymn to India's champion of nonviolence, beat the beans out of "E.T."), but "Where the Wild Things Are"? Oh, Vulture. The air is thin up on your mountaintop perch. Have you seen the trailer? It looks like Benny Hill meets Teletubbies.

You can probably strike Charlize Theron off your short list for best actress. "The Burning Plain" was supposed to be a hot Oscar ticket last year, but apparently it fizzles now. Variety calls the directorial debut of celebrated scripter Guillermo Arriaga ("Amores Perros," "21 Grams," "Babel") a "head-scratcher" with "few emotional hooks" performed by an "OK-to-good cast."

There are lots of other little things I could peck at. "The Road" got detoured off last year's derby track too. Does that portend problems this year — or were they fixed in the editing room? Terrence Malick ("Tree of Life") deflated Oscar expectations in the recent past ("The New World," 2005).

I love the fact that Vulture put "In the Loop" on its best pic list. Yes, we can dream! (Even if it's delusional — snobbish Oscar voters are notorious for having no sense of humor. Suddenly, there's optimism this year, though, because the best picture list expands to 10 entries.)

The ladies of "The View" were so sure the Daytime Emmy for best hosting would go to someone else that they did not bother journeying westward for last night's awards. Were Barbara Walters ,Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Elisabeth Hasselbeck and Sherri Shepherd even watching the CW telecast when their names were announced?

Daytime Emmy history certainly backed up their decision to be no-shows. Since Dinah Shore won the first hosting Daytime Emmy in 1974 for her talker "Dinah's Place," no multiple-host nominees have ever prevailed. Indeed the only time perennial runner-up Regis Philbin won this award was in 2001 when he was in between co-hosts. He could never win with Kathie Lee Gifford and he has yet to repeat with Kelly Ripa by his side.

While the revolving cast members of "The View" were nominated as outstanding talk show hosts in each of the first 11 seasons, they never won the award. The ladies of "The View" blamed their losing streak on the possibility that voters always found at least one of them to dislike at various times. Yet they always went to the Daytime Emmy awardcasts and accepted their seemingly inevitable loss with style and grace. What irony to finally win when the Daytime Emmys were held without the usual fanfare. 

Creator and occasional co-host Barbara Walters wasn't there to deliver the speech she has had in her purse since 1998. That first year, the original co-hosts — Meredith Vieira, Star Jones, Debbie Matenopoulos, Behar, and Walters — lost in a three-way race to both Oprah Winfrey and Rosie O'Donnell.

"The View" just finished its 12th season, drawing over 4.2 million viewers a day and scoring well in key demographics. Critics raved about the lively discussions that dominated the front half of the hour-long talker. That made this year's snub for best talk show even more surprising. The show won just one of its 11 consecutive daytime Emmy bids, when it tied with "The Wayne Brady Show" in 2003.

Certainly there is an ease among this current panel that was missing for much of the show's first decade. For the first nine years, Star Jones was one of the co-hosts and her popularity plunged in direct relation to her ever-shrinking waistline. Once Jones was jettisoned in 2006, hopes were high that bringing on board Rosie O'Donnell as the new moderator would change the show's Emmy fortunes.

After all, O'Donnell had enjoyed a long love affair with the Daytime Emmy Awardsfor her own talker. She had won six consecutive hosting Daytime Emmys beating, among others, "The View" panel. Alas, while her run-ins with conservative co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck made for gripping TV, they did not sit well with Daytime Emmy voters who preferred the softer edges of Ellen DeGeneres.

While the second round of reviews for "I Look to You" are not as strong as those from last week, Whitney Houston could still be a major presence at this year's Grammy Awards. Remember Hollywood loves a comeback, and Whitney Houston certainly epitomizes that.

As Jon Pareles of the New York Times wrote in his review, "Seven years after her last album of pop songs, two years after her divorce, Whitney Houston re-emerges with full diva qualifications on 'I Look to You,' released Monday. Most of its revelations aren’t verbal; they’re in the husky, vehement sound of her voice."

For Allison Stewart of the Washington Post "I Look to You", "is a finely calibrated, just-modern-enough mix of mom-friendly club bangers and dauntless ballads that, in retrospect, seems like the only album she could have made."

However, Jim Farber of the New York Daily News sounded a cautionary note: "Houston still owns an instrument most singers would kill for, with a broad range and a respectable force. And she gets to apply it to some catchy and pleasing new songs here. But there's no getting around the fact that something key is gone. Namely, her genius. The tone of epic clarity, the lungs of steel, the notes that seemed to sail higher than any musical staff could hold -- all those things are behind her now." 

And Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune wrote, "Despite the machinations of top-tier producers and songwriters such as R. Kelly, Diane Warren, Akon, Stargate and David Foster, nothing else feels quite as elegantly ebullient. Nor does she ever cut loose; at times it feels as if Houston is just a pretty ornament on her producers' tracks. In the past, her voice was big enough to tower over lackluster material, but no more."

Houston's record label Artista was so sure of the success of "I Looked to You" that it moved the release date up to today – the cut-off for Grammy Awards eligibility. Houston won the first of her six Grammys way back in 1985. But her most recent victory was a full decade ago. 

After 22 years on the air, "The Bold and the Beautiful" finally won its first victory as best drama series when the Daytime Emmy Awards were bestowed at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles. It had been nominated for the top Emmy several times, but many award gurus believed it might never win, being a half-hour program competing against one-hour rivals.

See a list of Daytime Emmy winners here. Also check out the list of winners at the Creative Arts ceremony. Read the transcript of our live chat session here.

Another big shock at the Daytime Emmys was the victory by "The View" for best talk-show host, a category that has never been won by a multiple-host program over more than 35 years. Historically, there's a strong bias in favor of single-host programs winning in the separate category as best talk-show too, but "The View" did manage to break that jinx once — in 2003 when it tied with "The Wayne Brady Show." This year Emmy watchers were outraged that "The View" wasn't nominated for best talk show, only reaping a bid in the host race. Its stars, Joy Behar, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Whoopi Goldberg, Sherri Shepherd and Barbara Walters didn't bother to travel from New York to Los Angeles for the ceremony. "We're accepting it on their behalf," presenter Jennie Garth said when no one appeared at the podium to claim the statuette for best hosting. However, co-presenter and "90210" costar Lori Loughlin warned, "We're not giving it back!"

There were lots of first-time winners at the Daytime Emmys, including Tamara Braun ("Days of Our Lives") as best supporting actress and "Days" co-star Darin Brooks as best younger actor. Accepting his trophy, Brooks got bleeped by TV censors, then gushed, "Ooo, did I swear? I knew that was going to happen!" That "Days" reaped two acting honors surprised many Emmy watchers. The program is often shrugged off by the conservative TV industry at awards time because it skews to a young, hipster demographic.

First-time champ Vincent Irizarry ("All My Children") shared the laurels for best supporting actor with another rookie victor, Jeff Branson ("Guiding Light"), who acknowledged cancellation of his program, gasping, "72 years! I give this to all of us."

Another first-time champ was Julie Berman ("General Hospital"), who exclaimed as she claimed the younger-actress trophy, "Oh, my God! Oh, my God! This is so scary. I haven't shaken this much since I auditioned for this part!"

Among repeat winners was Christian LeBlanc ("Young and the Restless") as best actor. Susan Haskell ("One Life to Live") won best actress for the first time, but previously triumphed in the supporting-actress race back in 1994.

"Rachael Ray" proved that its upset victory over "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" last year as best talk show (entertainment) was no fluke. After Ellen's program won the talk-show category four years in a row, Rachael's yakfest took its second consecutive victory.

Historic victories occurred at the Daytime Emmys, including first-time wins by "The Bold and the Beautiful" as best drama series and "The View" as best talk-show host. Read more here. See a list here of winners of Daytime Emmys at the Creative Arts ceremony held on Saturday night.

DRAMA SERIES
"The Bold and the Beautiful"

ACTOR
Christian LeBlanc, "Young and the Restless"

ACTRESS
Susan Haskell, "One Life to Live"

SUPPORTING ACTOR
(Tie)
Jeff Branson, "Guiding Light"
Vincent Irizarry, "All My Children"

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Tamara Braun, "Days of Our Lives"

YOUNGER ACTOR
Darin Brooks, "Days of Our Lives"

YOUNGER ACTRESS
Julie Berman, "General Hospital"

Poor Judge Judy. Again, she lost the Emmy verdict to "Cristina's Court" when winners were announced for the Creative Arts categories at the Daytime Emmys  on Saturday night. See the full list here.

Below, snarky reax from our forum posters. See more in our message boards.

Crystal: I've seen "Cristina's Court" and it's awful. Who is voting on that category?

FGTfan: Ina Garten wins best Culinary Host!! GO "BAREFOOT CONTESSA"!!

PaulIV: How does "ATWT" win casting?

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More than 600 people joined the chat session we conducted live during the Daytime Emmy telecast on Sunday night. Check out the transcript below.

Here is our exclusive report on who won and what occurred during the ceremony. If you're curious to know who we expected to win in advance of the show, snoop through our posters' predix in these categories: best drama series, lead actor, lead actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, younger actor, younger actress, talk show (entertainment). talk show (informative), talk show host, game show, drama writing, drama directing. 

See more about the Daytime Emmy in our forums, which are always buzzing with chat about all showbiz awards.

RELATED POSTS

Slugfest at the Daytime Emmys: Christian LeBlanc vs. Anthony Geary

Truly bold Daytime Emmy predix: 'Bold and the Beautiful' will win best drama for the first time ever

Who'll win Daytime Emmy for best supporting actor: Van Hansis or Vincent Irizarry?

Daytime Emmy diva smackdown: Who'll win supporting actress?

Darin Brooks vs. Bryton McClure for Daytime Emmy as best younger actor

Julie Berman or Rachel Melvin to win Daytime Emmy as best younger actress?

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Our posters Daniel "742" Montgomery and Matthew "Boidiva02" Cormier completely — as in totally, utterly — disagree when handicapping the Daytime Emmy race for best soap directing. They give the three contenders opposite ranking.

Also check out our posters' predix in these races: best drama series, lead actor, lead actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, younger actor, younger actress, talk show (entertainment). talk show (informative), talk show host, game show, drama writing, drama directing. See more Daytime Emmy predix in our forums.

BEST DRAMA SERIES DIRECTING: 742's PREDIX
(Listed by likelihood of winning)
1. "One Life to Live"
2. "Days of Our Lives"
3. "All My Children"

742'S COMMENTARY: Herein lies a battle for the soul of daytime drama ... OK, maybe not, but this race does present an interesting microcosm of daytime's best and worst impulses. It's obvious to me which show should win, but less obvious which will.

"All My Children" delivers a stunt: A tornado is a-comin' to Pine Valley, and its citizens are scattered about town in various forms of distress. The direction emphasizes the production values, and that's unfortunate. The episode is a showcase for lousy CGI, unconvincing green-screen backgrounds, and people and objects falling down in slo-mo. The performances were clearly an afterthought. Even consummate pros like David Canary and Darnell Williams seem like they can scarcely remember their lines. "AMC" was surely inspired by "General Hospital," which has had much success at the Emmys by submitting episodes of hotel fires and train crashes, and Emmy voters liked this mishmash enough to nominate it, so it might win just on the basis of being the most directed.

"One Life to Live" submitted a gimmick. As Rex (John-Paul Lavoisier) is treated for a gunshot wound, he dreams that he is a contestant on a game show to prove he is a worthy father (the dream scenes were filmed on the set of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?"). There are moments of visual wit (Rex's life-support monitors transition into game-show monitors) and emotional impact (an overhead shot of a prayer circle), but overall I wasn't impressed. It feels like little more than an excursion to a neighboring set ("OLTL" and "Millionaire" both film in Manhattan), making what should be a life-or-death struggle more an exercise in quirkiness. But perhaps I'm missing something. This episode won the Directors' Guild of America Award.

"Days of Our Lives" submitted good storytelling. Period. To compare it to "AMC" and "OLTL's" submissions is an object lesson in how to do more with less. "Days" also submitted a catastrophic event: an impending plane crash. But unlike "AMC," "Days" keeps it simple. I counted only two sets: the interior of the plane and an office on the ground where family and friends wait for news. Intense turbulence is suggested by effective rattling noises from the fuselage. The emotional urgency is sold by the actors, shown frequently in tight, evocative close-ups. There are no ostentatious effects, no sparks flying, no pyrotechnics, no exterior shots of a CGI plane plummeting. You don't need them. You could have filmed these scenes in a cardboard box and the cast and crew could have sold it.

Just as our pundits pick "The Bold and the Beautiful" to win best drama series at the Daytime Emmys on Sunday night (CW network, 8 p.m. EDT/ PDT), Matthew "Boidiva02" Cormier and Chris "Vivaforever" Benjamin believe it will claim the scribes' race too.

Also check out our posters' predix in these races: best drama series, lead actor, lead actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, younger actor, younger actress, talk show (entertainment). talk show (informative), talk show host, game show, drama writing. See more Daytime Emmy predix in our forums.

BEST DRAMA SERIES WRITING: VIVAFOREVER'S PREDIX
(Listed by likelihood of winning)
1. "The Bold and the Beautiful"
2. "General Hospital"
3. "All My Children"
4. "One Life to Live"

VIVAFOREVER'S COMMENTARY: "The Bold and the Beautiful" is the clear front-runner mainly because it's the only great submission in the bunch. The two episodes join together as a nice stand-alone event. It's pure soap opera at its heart, which makes it work. They avoided the unnatural expositional dialogue we generally get by weaving in quick flashbacks to give us an idea of what happened. The writers really covered all angles when dealing with such a personal family tragedy. This felt believable as a family that receives a devastating call and makes their way to the hospital. There were miscommunications, raw emotions and the writers showcased this by taking a "less is more" approach to the writing. There were many quiet moments without dialogue where the characters reflected in their own way. The emotional montage of Storm remembering growing up with his sisters was one of the finest uses of that device I've ever seen.

"General Hospital" is next for an episode that is enhanced by the other two nominees. Its producers chose an episode that showcased the ensemble cast and the strengths of the writing team as a whole. This episode presents a situation that will affect so many of the characters on a personal level for months, even years to come. That's what soap writing is about and why this episode worked. It's not over the top. You have a child that's hot and a mother notifying the family and getting them to the hospital. Unlike the "B&B" submission (which felt like more of a complete story), this episode left many different questions in the air. The weakest parts of this episode were the romantic scenes between Liz and Jason. They don't connect with the main story and seem tacked on for no apparent reason. Other scenes, like the romantic bantering between Alexis and Jerry Jacks, were a nice contrast to the heavy drama. Despite my enjoyment of this episode, I do wonder how it would've held up in a stronger pool of episodes.