Remember when the Best Original Song Oscar was actually a hit song?

[Bytor2112]

Honestly, who is going to rush out and buy 2012 winner "Man or Muppet"? Also, I think that it was a disgrace to have only 2 songs nominated this year. I liked it better when the actual band would come out and play the song or a singer would come out and sing "their" song, not Beyonce coming out and singing everyone else's song, like they did one year.

I can understand that they want to try and speed up the broadcast, but having 4-5 songs sung during the event would only add about 20 mins or so, which is lots of time if they cut out some of the other filler crap that they put in.

Check out the winners starting from 1970, and look and see how many were actual hit songs, and alot of nominees through 1970-2000 had huge hits as well, they just happened to be beat out that year by a bigger song:

1970 (43rd) "For All We Know" — Lovers and Other Strangers • Music: Fred Karlin • Lyrics: Robb Royer and Jimmy Griffin
1971 (44th) "Theme from Shaft" — Shaft • Music and lyrics: Isaac Hayes
1972 (45th) "The Morning After" — The Poseidon Adventure • Music and lyrics: Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn
1973 (46th) "The Way We Were" — The Way We Were • Music: Marvin Hamlisch • Lyrics: Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman
1974 (47th) "We May Never Love Like This Again" — The Towering Inferno • Music and lyrics: Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn
1975 (48th) "I'm Easy" — Nashville • Music and lyrics: Keith Carradine
1976 (49th) "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)" — A Star Is Born • Music: Barbra Streisand • Lyrics: Paul Williams
1977 (50th) "You Light Up My Life" — You Light Up My Life • Music and lyrics: Joseph Brooks
1978 (51st) "Last Dance" — Thank God It's Friday • Music and lyrics: Paul Jabara
1979 (52nd) "It Goes Like It Goes" — Norma Rae • Music: David Shire • Lyrics: Norman Gimbel
1980 (53rd) "Fame" — Fame • Music: Michael Gore • Lyrics: Dean Pitchford
1981 (54th) "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" — Arthur • Music and lyrics: Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, Christopher Cross and Peter Allen
1982 (55th) "Up Where We Belong" — An Officer and a Gentleman • Music: Jack Nitzsche and Buffy Sainte-Marie • Lyrics: Will Jennings
1983 (56th) "Flashdance... What a Feeling" — Flashdance • Music: Giorgio Moroder • Lyrics: Keith Forsey and Irene Cara
1984 (57th) "I Just Called to Say I Love You" — The Woman in Red • Music and lyrics: Stevie Wonder
1985 (58th) "Say You, Say Me" — White Nights • Music and lyrics: Lionel Richie
1986 (59th) "Take My Breath Away" — Top Gun • Music: Giorgio Moroder • Lyrics: Tom Whitlock
1987 (60th) "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" — Dirty Dancing • Music: Franke Previte, John DeNicola and Donald Markowitz • Lyrics: Franke Previte
1988 (61st) "Let the River Run" — Working Girl • Music and lyrics: Carly Simon
1989 (62nd) "Under the Sea" — The Little Mermaid • Music: Alan Menken • Lyrics: Howard Ashman
1990 (63rd) "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)" — Dick Tracy • Music and Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim
1991 (64th) "Beauty and the Beast" — Beauty and the Beast • Music: Alan Menken • Lyrics: Howard Ashman (posthumous winner)
1992 (65th) "A Whole New World" — Aladdin • Music: Alan Menken • Lyrics: Tim Rice
1993 (66th) "Streets of Philadelphia" — Philadelphia • Music and lyrics: Bruce Springsteen
1994 (67th) "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" — The Lion King • Music: Elton John • Lyrics: Tim Rice
1995 (68th) "Colors of the Wind" — Pocahontas • Music: Alan Menken • Lyrics: Stephen Schwartz
1996 (69th) "You Must Love Me" — Evita • Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber • Lyrics: Tim Rice
1997 (70th) "My Heart Will Go On" — Titanic • Music: James Horner • Lyrics: Will Jennings
1998 (71st) "When You Believe" — The Prince of Egypt • Music and lyrics: Stephen Schwartz
1999 (72nd) "You'll Be in My Heart" — Tarzan • Music and lyrics: Phil Collins
2000 (73rd) "Things Have Changed" — Wonder Boys • Music and lyrics: Bob Dylan
2001 (74th) "If I Didn't Have You" — Monsters, Inc. • Music and Lyrics: Randy Newman
2002 (75th) "Lose Yourself" — 8 Mile • Music: Eminem, Jeff Bass and Luis Resto • Lyrics: Eminem
2003 (76th) "Into the West" — The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King • Music and Lyrics: Fran Walsh, Howard Shore and Annie Lennox
2004 (77th) "Al otro lado del río" — The Motorcycle Diaries • Music and Lyrics: Jorge Drexler
2005 (78th) "It's Hard out Here for a Pimp" — Hustle & Flow • Music and Lyrics: Juicy J, Frayser Boy and DJ Paul (Juicy J & DJ Paul are members of Three 6 Mafia. Frayser Boy has collaborated with Three 6 Mafia but is not a member.)
2007 (80th) "Falling Slowly" — Once • Music and Lyrics: Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová
2008 (81st) "Jai Ho" — Slumdog Millionaire • Music: A. R. Rahman • Lyrics: Gulzar
2009 (82nd) "The Weary Kind" — Crazy Heart • Music and Lyrics: Ryan Bingham and T-Bone Burnett
2010 (83rd) "We Belong Together" — Toy Story 3 • Music and Lyrics: Randy Newman
2011 (84th) "Man or Muppet" - The Muppets • Music and Lyrics: Bret McKenzie


Here is the complete list of winners and nominees since it started: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy..._Original_Song