Photo:Greg Harbaugh /©A.M.P.A.S. -- Academy Award nominees at the traditional Oscar luncheon, (center) Glenn Close, Jean Dujardin, George Clooney, February 6, 2011 Beverly Hills

A lot of smiles at the Oscar luncheon in Beverly Hills on Monday, February 6.  The traditional get together for Academy Award nominees includes a photo shoot. A series of pictures from that event  as well as video highlights  are on the official Oscar website.

The 84th Academy Awards ceremony will be broadcast live around the world later this month on Sunday, February 26, from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.

The nominees for the 84th Academy Awards are getting a lot of attention — the day after the big announcement. Yesterday, “Hugo” picked up 11 nominations — the most of any film — including best picture and best director. The movie is a 3D drama adventure about a 12-year-old boy who lives in a Paris train station tending to the clocks and his quest to fix a mysterious machine left by his father.  The film is based on the book, “The Invention of Hugo Cabret,” by American author and children’s book illustrator, Brian Selznick.

Here are some of the major nominations for the 2012 Oscars from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences:

Best Picture

The Artist
Thomas Langmann, Producer
The Descendants
Jim Burke, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor,
Producers
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
Scott Rudin, Producer
The Help
Brunson Green, Chris Columbus and
Michael Barnathan, Producers
Hugo
Graham King and Martin Scorsese, Producers
Midnight in Paris
Letty Aronson and Stephen Tenenbaum, Producers
Moneyball
Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz and Brad Pitt,
Producers
The Tree of Life
Nominees to be determined
War Horse
Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, producers

Actor in a Leading Role

Demián Bichir
A Better Life
George Clooney
The Descendants
Jean Dujardin
The Artist
Gary Oldman
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt
Moneyball

Actress in a Leading Role

Glenn Close
Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis
The Help
Rooney Mara
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep
The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams
My Week with Marilyn

Best Director

The Artist
Michel Hazanavicius
The Descendants
Alexander Payne
Hugo
Martin Scorsese
Midnight in Paris
Woody Allen
The Tree of Life
Terrence Malick

For a complete list of the nominees as well as a chance to pick your favorites go  to the official Oscars website . The winners will be announced at the lavished Academy Awards ceremony set to be broadcast live, around the world,  on Sunday, February 26 beginning at 4 p.m. Pacific Time.

The confusion surrounding the 84th Academy Awards ceremony has cleared and the big event appears to be back on track today. Late yesterday, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced entertainer Billy Crystal would be hosting next February’s Oscar telecast. Here’s the official press release.

Beverly Hills, CA (November 10, 2011)– Producers Brian Grazer and Don Mischer have announced that Billy Crystal will serve as host for the 84th Academy Awards. “I’m thrilled to welcome Billy back to the Oscar® stage,” said Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences president Tom Sherak. “He’s a comic legend and Oscar icon, and it feels good to have him back where he belongs.”

Commented Grazer, “Like so many others, I’ve been eager to see Billy host again. It’s very gratifying that he agreed to do it with Don and me at the helm.”

Said Mischer, “With Billy, we’re moving forward with one of the greatest hosts in Oscar history. His return to the Oscars® is, in a sense, a celebration.”

This will mark Crystal’s ninth time as host. Only Bob Hope has hosted more Academy Awards presentations, with 19 ceremonies between 1940 and 1978. Crystal last hosted the Academy Awards in 2004.

“Some of the best moments of my career have happened on the Oscar stage. I am thrilled to be back there. Actually, I am doing this so that the young woman in my pharmacy will stop asking me my name when I pick up my prescriptions,” said Crystal.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar® presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

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The Oscar telecast is the biggest event in Hollywood. The 84th Academy Awards ceremony is not until next February, but there is already plenty of real life drama surrounding it. The spark in a firestorm of controversy was lit over the weekend by movie director Brett Ratner who made an anti-gay slur and resigned on Monday as the producer of the upcoming Oscar broadcast because of it. The Los Angeles Times website has the back story on that here.

Ratner decision to step aside prompted actor/comedian Eddie Murphy to bow out as Oscar host. In a statement released by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences today, Murphy said,”… I was truly looking forward to being a part of the show that our production team and writers were just starting to develop, but I’m sure that the new production team and host will do an equally great job.”

Late today, The Academy announced Oscar winning producer Brian Grazer would be taking over as the producer of the prestigious award show: “”Brian Grazer is a renowned filmmaker who over the past 25 years has produced a diverse and extraordinary body of work,” said Academy President Tom Sherak. “He will certainly bring his tremendous talent, creativity and relationships to the Oscars…”

“It’s very gratifying to be part of a show that honors excellence in the medium to which I have devoted so much of my career,” said Grazer in that announcement. In 2001, Grazer won a Best Picture Oscar for “A Beautiful Mind.” His numerous film credits include “Apollo 13,” “Kindergarten Cop,” “8 Mile,” and current projects “Tower Heist,” and “J.Edgar.” This will be his first time as producer of the Oscar telecast. The Academy Awards will be televised live on February 26, 2012 in more than 200 countries around the world.