As Hollywood’s
Biggest Night approaches, one question on everyone’s mind is: “What does Oscar
mean in Gaelic?”
Oscar is a name
of Irish descent meaning “deer-lover,” and boasts a four-star rating on
babynames.com. While I am not friends with any Oscars, there are 22 Oscars on
Facebook with whom I share at least one mutual friend. Shout-outs to Mr. Oscar
Condor (Does TGI Friday’s pay well?) and Mr. Oscar Ody (Your cover photo of
clouds makes you seem like a dreamer).
Perhaps the most
well-known Oscar is Oscar the Grouch, a character on the iconic children’s
television program Sesame Street. Canadian musician Oscar Brand claims
that he is the namesake of this “misanthropic” being. While this may or may not
be true, Wikipedia provides us with this key piece of information: “Regarding
his species, he is a monster.”
Let us not forget
author and playwright Oscar Wilde, a man almost as famous for his wit and
innovation in literature as for his gayness. As Wilde once said, “A dreamer is
one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees
the dawn before the rest of the world.” That political sentiment is enough to
makes the girls go Wilde. Am I right, ladies?
We cannot escape
mention of Wilde Oscar, a retired English porn star best known for starring
alongside his wife Nici Sterling. He is known to have called her “the star in
the family”. Aww, Wilde, don’t be so “hard-on” yourself. Oscar won the 2001 AVN
award for Best Supporting Actor in a Video for West Side, but the award was
revoked following charges that the film glorified gang violence.
Lastly, we turn
to Oscar Mayer, everyone’s favorite Tone Loc lyric from the timeless anthem
Funky Gold Medina. The lyric, as I’m sure you’ll remember, is “I don’t fool
around with no Oscar Mayer wiener.” Oscar Wilde would have disagreed.
So which of these
fine candidates is the namesake of THE Oscar, that is, of the Academy Award
itself? That knowledge would take away from the movie magic; sorry! As boxer
Oscar De La Hoya once tweeted, “Good night everyone and believe me there is
light at the end of that tunnel.”
