Jesse James: Sandra Bullock 'Takes My Breath Away'
People By Alexis Chiu and Aaron Parsley
Facebook Twitter Yahoo Buzz E-mail Jesse James may be a tough guy who builds motorcycles and performs death-defying stunts, but he's not above the pomp of the Oscars – or being a plus-1 to the night's most celebrated actress, his wife Sandra Bullock.
"It's awesome," he told PEOPLE of being her date as they made their way into the Governor's Ball at the Hollywood & Highland Grand Ballroom after the Oscar ceremony Sunday. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to support my wife and her work. She does it all the time for me. She goes to Mexico, to the desert, to the hospital – a lot – to support me and my work. The least I can do is put on a suit and support her."
James may be more comfortable in his garage than on the red carpet, but he was bursting with pride as he checked out his wife and her shimmering, gold-beaded Marchesa gown.
"She's beautiful. She's amazing. She takes my breath away,” James said. "Sometimes I look at her and I do, I just lose my breath."
At the beginning of the show, Martin poses the rhetorical question, "Who doesn't love Sandra Bullock?," to which Baldwin replies, "Well, tonight we may find out." We're guessing that, after her award-worthy acceptance speech for playing the determined woman in The Blind Side, no one, the Best Actress losers included, doesn't love Bullock. "Did I really earn this," the first-time nominee begins, "or did I just wear y'all down?" She pays brisk tribute to each of her competitors: "Carey [Mulligan], your grace and your elegance and your beauty and your talent ... makes me sick." She thanks "everyone who's shown [me] kindness when it wasn't fashionable" and even "everyone who's been mean to [me] ... like George Clooney, who threw [me] in a pool." She adds, "I still hold a grudge." It is the 46th Clooney joke, on a night when he might be feeling a bit vulnerable: his movie Up in the Air, once the front runner for Best Picture, goes home awardless.
Turning serious, Bullock dedicates her award to "the moms that take care of the babies and the children, no matter where they come from." In a verklempt moment, she thanks her mother Helga Bullock for pressing artistic discipline and social responsibility on her. "I thank you so much for this opportunity that I share with these extraordinary women and" — acknowledging a kiss she shared with her co-winner at the Critics' Choice Awards — "my lover, Meryl Streep." Comedy, sentiment, an uplifting message and a little joke on the way out — an Oscar-worthy performance in a couple of minutes.
On the biggest night of her professional life, Sandra Bullock was typically self-deprecating, saying the Academy Award was never on her radar and urging up-and-comers to just be themselves rather than look up to her.
"I didn't aspire to this," the actress, 45, told reporters after winning the Best Actress Oscar for The Blind Side on Sunday. "I was in awe of it. I admired it. I got to watch it like everyone else did, or present, but it wasn't something that I said, 'One day when I get the Oscar.' "
Now that that day has arrived, she still doesn't see herself as an inspiration to younger actors. "Don't aspire to be in these shoes. Walk in your own," she said. "Everyone's unique, and that's what makes people exciting to watch, I think. So, just savor what you are and not what everyone else wants you to be."
Bullock wouldn't reveal what husband Jesse James whispered to her the moment her name was announced, but she jokingly expressed disbelief that he had tears in his eyes during her speech.
"Did he cry? He doesn't cry," she said. "He had something in his eye. It's very dusty from the dance music. I'd never divulge what Jesse says unless he divulges it first. It's between me and the man."
Later, at the Academy Awards Governors Ball, James admitted he was "feeling everything" and was incredibly proud of his wife of five years. "It's 10 [p.m.] now, we usually go to bed around 9, so we're partying," he added. "She looks amazing. I like her like this or first thing in the morning, equally as well."
Sandra Bullock’s Oscars Good Luck Charm from Leigh Anne Tuohy
People
While Oscar nominee Sandra Bullock certainly has her pick of baubles from any jeweler she’d like, the actress might just choose sentiment over statement for tonight’s red carpet. Leigh Anne Tuohy, the real-life woman whom Sandra portrayed in her Oscar-nominated role in The Blind Side, and her daughter Collins asked eco-friendly jewelry company Alex and Ani to create a special set of their Signature Expandable Bangles for the actress to say “we love you and good luck” at the Oscars. The mother-and-daughter team had a “good luck” charm, a guardian angel charm and even a Baltimore Ravens charm in honor of Michael Oher added to the set of bangles. We think the bracelets would look great with either of our gown predictions for Sandra, should she choose to wear them.
Sandra Bullock took the Golden Globe, the Screen Actors Guild award, the Critics' Choice Movie Award and is the odds-on favorite to win as Best Actress at Sunday night's 2010 Oscars – but those are for her true-life role in the drama The Blind Side.
For her multi-dimensional part of a newspaper crossword puzzle writer in the 2009 comedy All About Steve, Bullock has now claimed the fun award: the 2010 Golden Raspberry, or Razzie. And she personally showed up to Hollywood's Barnsdall Gallery Theater on Saturday night to pick it up – along with the Razzie that she and Bradley Cooper "won" for worst screen couple.
"I thought no one went to see this film, but I know that there are more than 700 members here," said Bullock, who made her entrance pulling a wagon filled with All About Steve DVDs to give the crowd.
"I brought the shooting script," she also said. "I'm willing to go through page by page, read the line the way I did it in the film and, if anyone wants to give me a line read of how I could've done it better ... We can do this till about 4 o'clock in the morning. Or you guys can just watch the movie and rethink your decision, and I'll show up next year and we can go out for a drink afterward."
Came time she and Cooper got the worst-couple award, Bullock said, "Again, if you had seen the film, seen it with your eyes, it's pretty much a film about a woman stalking a man. That doesn't really set up the premise for a loving couple. So giving us the worst couple award is kind of, duh."
At Saturday's ceremony, she said, "I said I would show up, and then I miraculously won!" As a result, she noted, she's helped prove once again that in Hollywood "all you have to do is show up and you get an award."
ACADEMY AWARDS
March 7, 2010
The Kodak Theater
Los Angeles, California
OUR TIME GALA
April 19, 2010
NYU's Skirball Center & Rosenthal Pavilion
New York City, New York
DISCLAIMER
The Sweethearts is owned and
operated by Ali. This site is a non-profit fan
resource only and is in no way affiliated with
any of the celebrities, any of their representation
or any of the production companies mentioned on
this site. All images and text are for resource
use only and are copyright to their owners. They
are used for non-profit use in accordance with
section 107 of the US Copyright Law. No infringement
intended.