by Courtney Linde

Staff Reporter

The Golden Globes have always been labeled Hollywood’s “biggest party of the year.”

A-list celebrities representing both TV and motion pictures jam pack the red carpet, causing one of the craziest media frenzies of the year.

“Who are you wearing?” and “Who is your date this evening?” are two of the most important questions asked, in addition to, of course, who will win the prestigious Golden Globe.

However, this year, a very different question was being asked in the weeks leading up to this most anticipated evening: Will the show go on despite what seems to be the never-ending writers’ strike? The answer: No.

The show was replaced by an hour-long press conference, hosted by Access Hollywood’s Nancy O’Dell and Billy Bush, who announced the recipients of this year’s awards.

Instead of strutting down the red carpet in the most extravagant Versace gown or Armani suit, the celebrities viewed the awards, just like the rest of us, from the comfort of their own home.

Was this an exciting press conference?

Let’s just say that it was more exciting to watch the announcements of who was nominated than to watch the “Results Show,” as American Idol calls it.

The hour-long news special consisted of the reading of the nominees and announcing the winners of each category.

O’Dell and Bush did a fine job with what they had to work with.

However, I did find one flaw in their presentation. When presenting the awards, the hosts continued to use the phrase, “and the winner is.”

Every person who is nominated is a winner in his or her own way, and the correct phrasing would be “And the Golden Globe goes to …”

This year’s recipients of the awards included a wide range of performances. There was not one nominated film that received more than two awards.

“Atonement,” “Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” “No Country For Old Men” and “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” received two Golden Globes each.

The TV categories followed the same path as the motion pictures.

HBO’s “Longford” walked away with three awards, while AMC’s “Mad Men” received two.

The cancellation of this awards show had an impact not only on those for who planned on attending, but also on NBC, the network that was responsible for airing the ceremony.

This has always been a huge night for TV ratings for the network.

The Academy Awards are coming up in the very near future. Unless the Writer’s Guild is able to come to a contract agreement, unfortunately, the most glamorous evening of the year will turn into yet another press conference.