Liza Minnelli felt 'shaken' and 'sabotaged' after being forced on stage in wheelchair at Oscars

She'd have looked cute in a director's chair. But a wheelchair is sturdier and safer, so I can see why the producers opted for that.

Oh well that’s live television. That’s show biz.

Fake. Liza died like ten years ago.

I think Michael is trying to save face and in denial.

I love Liza. She did quite alright and Lady Gaga was truly well mannered and patient towards her.

Maybe the producers could have had some handsome actors to have picked up the directors chair with her sitting in it and brought her to the mic and then stood guard over her. You know, like in Ancient Roman times.

I dunno. But, I found the whole thing lovely because it's Liza and I love her.

Gaga's phony "I got you" bit seemed insincere & "look at me being nice" to me.

Poor Lizsha's brain ish cottagshe cheesche.

I have a serious question for Feinstein. He said Liza felt “shaken”

How could one tell?

Felt shaken. Is shaking. Not much of a difference.

I think he's full of shit.

SHAKEN AND SHABOTAZHED!

Is Feinstein Liza's boyfriend? Seems he's always with her.

🍸 not stirred?

If you have a bad back, a directors chair is the last thing you want to sit in.

Maybe they could have just strapped her into a big harness with wires and then had her float over the stage while she announced the winner.

Keep my name out of your motherfucking mouth, Michael Feinstein!

It was my idea! That’s what you get for saying your mom would have laughed at me in a Star is Born!

Who’s laughing now?

Laughing or drooling?

She felt shaken but not stirred.

Oh please. She is old and sickly. Any chair she sat in would have looked just as sad.

They should've put her in a harness, floating all over the stage. Nothing humiliating about that.

Even with as bad back, she could have stood behind a podium for 2 minutes.

[quote] They should've put her in a harness, floating all over the stage.

Like a Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade balloon.

What did the slap have to with it? Were they afraid Will was just gonna give her a sound thrashing too?

^They didn't want to do ANYTHING that might set him off.

Gee, r21 and r23, I wonder where we first heard that idea before??

[quote]After Will Smith's shocking slap, she was told to use a wheelchair at last minute

I don't get the connection.

Were the producers afraid Smith would go after Liza and decided having her in a wheelchair would be a quicker way of getting away from him?

At any rate, she should be happy they didn't wheel her out in a hospital bed.

Liza was embarrassed she couldn't give Will a standing ovation like everyone else.

Rockin' a director's chair

R27 It is just victim culture. The fake Will slap has now victimized every man on the planet! Oh NO!

She could have rolled down the steps like in “Potemkin” but with a raised knife 🔪 dressed like Norman Bates aimed right at the Smiths

Director'sch schair!

Where was Georgia?

R3 = Marj T. Greene

She should be put in something like this and paraded around the theater.

I thought she had both hips replaced long ago? Does she need a new spine now?

I guess there will be no "Stepping Out 2: These Feet Were Made For Tappin'!" .

I’m just very glad that no one tipped her out of the chair, pointed and laughed, took her jewelry and things like that. I think that probably would have been undignified. But, yeah, Lady Gaga was kind and did fine.

Cabaret is a pretty cool old film, and it has aged well. It’s still pretty sexy and engaging and poignant.

She should have refused to go on if she didn’t like the wheel chair. It was very awkward all in all.

Blue. I hear she's blue.

[quote]She could have rolled down the steps like in “Potemkin” but with a raised knife 🔪 dressed like Norman Bates aimed right at the Smiths

Bless you for this, R31. I needed a laugh.

[quote] Were the producers afraid Smith would go after Liza and decided having her in a wheelchair would be a quicker way of getting away from him?

That would have been entertaining to see!

For R41.

They could have put a skirt little skirt around the wheelchair or decorated it to look like the old gal was sitting atop a cake celebrating longevity.

They probably thought there might be riot or something and wanted to get the old thing away quickly. This is the new ghetto Hollywood!

just needed a bit more undereye concealer.

Michael Feinstein is turning into the new Mark Harris, wheeling around Martha Raye for fun and profit.

i don't think Feinstein is helping by bringing this back up. we saw what we saw.

La Feinstein is so used to covering for Our Liza after she cancels on most of their performances, that he instinctively made excuses for her Oscar appearance. But seriously...he routinely appears on a double bill with Our Liza, and she cancels about 90% of their performances. (This happened on most of their "tour" a few years ago.)

Truth is, Liza can still verbalize her wishes, and if she didn't want to be wheeled out, she would've hollered: "Sccchhhit, I'm not preschenting Bestch Pictschure in a wheelssscccchair!"

They probably thought "We don't need another fucking disaster with her falling out the chair on stage, strap her into a wheelchair and roll her out."

[quote]Liza Minnelli felt 'shaken' and 'sabotaged'

I was MOLESTED, you mother fuckers.

This is just more evidence of what a ROTTEN SHITTY TACKY TALENTLESS hack the producer Will Packer is.

Just look at him. What douchebag.

She was on her way to bed and Andy called and told her to come out to Studio 54 with them, she said she has a bad back and Halston suggested that she ride in on a white horse like Bianca did, so off she went.

There was no connection between the slap and Liza coming out in a wheelchair. None whatsoever.

More than once, I've defended Feinstein's behavior, but now I'm questioning whether I should have ever given him the benefit of the doubt. No one would have thought anything about the appearance except that it was a sweet moment, but now he's turned it into some melodrama where she was "pleading" with the evil Academy people who ultimately told her "either go out in a wheelchair or don't go at all." He's using this to try to get some attention for himself, that's all.

Old people are easily pressured into doing things they don't want to do, because they are reliant upon others doing so many things for them.

That said, old people are also rarely satisfied unless they are still spry, living alone and doing everything for themselves.

So young.

They told me it would be a Lazshee Boy so of course I was confushed.

R4, it is way, WAY, too late for Michael to save his face.

I don’t know why she’s complaining.

My career was never the same after sliding down a huge Smith-Corona.

[quote]My career was never the same after sliding down a huge Smith-Corona.

Tell me about it.

Please elaborate, r58.

it is jarring to see Minnelli appearing infirm but is it disrespectful? Should Minnelli not be seen at all? A tabloid posted photographs of Minnelli visiting a high profile restaurants in Los Angeles during Oscar week. She was using the wheelchair but looked happy to be with her friends. She was well groomed and had a smile on the face.

The face of what?

Is Feinstein Baby Jane to Liza's Blanche? Does he call the liquor store using her voice? Is he going to murder Lorna the way Jane murdered the maid?

Send the olde white broad out in a wheelchair for comic relief.

Shaken and shtirred

what is comical about the wheelchair? Wheelchairs are a common tool people use to aid their mobility.

Not when it’s being used as a sight gag by an unwilling participant

[quote]Fake. Liza died like ten years ago.

Fake Liza died ten years ago. Real Liza lives!

Liza was so out of it, she thought she was at Studio 54 and Gaga was Debbie Harry.

The truth is Liza is ALWAYS in a wheelchair. This has nothing to do with any "back problem" of the moment. And what kind of demented mental case is she that a wheelchair instead of a director's chair messes her up?

Liza was most likely upset that everyone went nuts over seeing her 1) in a wheelchair 2) shaking and slurring. Feinstein is merely covering for her. I don't believe a word he said and think he should have just shut up, but he thinks he was being nice. Being Liza's best friend is a thankless job.

R63 - Feinstein is more like Victor Buono to Liza’s Baby Jane.

Mama would have jusht taken some pillzhh and walked right out!!

[quote]And what kind of demented mental case is she that a wheelchair instead of a director's chair messes her up?

She's being image conscious. The director's chair would have been more visually appealing than a wheelchair and wouldn't have brought the same responses about her health. She would have been in pain, but it wouldn't have been much of a blow as coming out in a wheelchair.

Liza grew up in showbiz at a time when celebrities put on their best face regardless of what shit was going on in the personal lives. Shit, she had Judy as a textbook example of what NOT to do. I get her rationale.

She could have demanded it, R73. And I don't think Liza was in pain Oscar night - she was feeling NO PAIN.

Does anyone honestly think she had any idea where she was or what she was doing there? She obviously has cognitive decline and confusion… whether it’s due to a medical problem, her history of substance abuse, or side-effects of other drugs she’s on isn’t clear.

Liza is dead. Miss her, miss her.

Here's another clue for you guys-a.

The walrus was Liza.

I think is awful for these old and barely mobile legends be forced to do these Oscar shows. I remember when Bette Davis was forced to present an award while she had one foot in the grave and how she messed up her cue and became a laughing stock for viewers. And when poor Kirk Douglas was wheeled out on stage you could practically hear the audience gasping at how sickly he looked. Kim Novak probably still hasn't left her home after all the talk on Twitter and tabloids about her botched facelift.

[quote]I remember when Bette Davis was forced to present an award

Bette wasn't forced to do anything. Bette was a workhouse who loved the adoration she got. And she got a lot of mileage out of that oscar incident.

[quote]She could have demanded it,

Liza is not Streisand or Faye Dunaway. She's not going to throw a tantrum if she doesn't get her own way. That's never been her style. She's very agreeable and easy to get along with.

I don't think she was happy about doing it, but not to the extent that Feinstein is making it out to be.

[quote]Does anyone honestly think she had any idea where she was or what she was doing there?

R75 NAILED IT

R73, Liza hasn't thought of Judy's issues in 45 years because she has her own fucked up like to think about. On second thought, I don't think Liza things about anything "negative" if she can still think.

[quote] Bette wasn't forced to do anything. Bette was a workhouse who loved the adoration she got.

Bette had just suffered a stroke and clearly had no idea where she was or what was happening. I'm sure the Academy told her she was making a cameo appearance in some multi-million dollar picture.

Watch her on post-stroke talk shows, r81. She was still sharp as a tack.

Liza is not a diva, okay. But must be be a DOORMAT, R79.

Liza is a wreck. She’s been a wreck. Michael F’s job is to pretend she’s still functioning. She’s not. We know it. End of the story.

.........

[quote] I think is awful for these old and barely mobile legends be forced to do these Oscar shows. I remember when Bette Davis was forced to present an award while she had one foot in the grave and how she messed up her cue and became a laughing stock for viewers. And when poor Kirk Douglas was wheeled out on stage you could practically hear the audience gasping at how sickly he looked. Kim Novak probably still hasn't left her home after all the talk on Twitter and tabloids about her botched facelift.

Also, Elizabeth Taylor's "GLAAAADIATOR,!" and faye Dunaway's confusion about Best Picture.

On the other hand, if the person is on top of their game it can be stunning. When Lillian Gish came out to presented Best Picture in 1981 for "Ordinary People," and the audience just went nuts, and of course she did a superb job of it (she was cogent until the very end).

Michael is almost as bad as Dr. Jill with this Weekend at Bernie's elder abuse shit.

She had it coming, r85...

R85 That's how we do it.

People that have dementia often get more confused and upset when they’re taken out of their normal environment and their routine is disrupted. Everyone thinks it’s a great idea to get them out of the house and let them see old friends, but they often do better cognitively if they’re not taken out of their usual surroundings. Liza should have been left at home…she was visibly not understanding what was going on.

First Tony Bennett and now Liza Minnelli—is Lady Gaga the new Aged Celebrity wrangler?

They convinced her by saying an unnamed producer was considering a remake Whatever Happened to Baby Jane.

Wouldn't they have had to use a wheelchair to get on the stage to SIT in the director's chair? Or is the issue more that the TV viewing audience saw her in the wheelchair?

Couldn't they have moved her around using platforms?

Liza's appearance is hardly what people will remember about this year's Oscars.

Does Feinstein get along with Billy Stritch?

I have the feeling that Stritch genuinely has Lizas best interests at heart, while Feinstein is more calculating. He has an agenda.

Liza is ill but she seemed aware of her surroundings. If you compare her now to the way she was in the recent Halston documentary, which was filmed 3 or 4 years ago, it's clear she's had a decline, but the stuff about her not knowing where she was is exaggeration.

[quote]Is Feinstein Liza's boyfriend? Seems he's always with her.

He's her current gay husband.

Hi, Georgia!

there's a 2 man show for regional theatres......billy stritch and michael feinstein working out the details of Liza's Celebration of Life.

Shaken and shabotaged, but not shtrangled?

Bill Stritch fell out of Liza’s circle and he’s not a fan of Michael Feinstein. You do the math

John Kander just turned 95 and is still out on the town.

Bette Davis at the Oscars. It was some technical issue with the clips not synching up with the teleprompter, Bette herself wasn't impaired at all.

Bette Davis at the Golden Globes in '86. This is a goddamned STAR, bitches!

It's sad to see the downfall of Bette Davis.

Not all that sad, really. Bette had a good long run and didn't even let a stroke stop her from making public appearances. As opposed to Joan Crawford, who decided she would never be seen in public again because of one unflattering newspaper photo. Bette was a survivor.

The rumor is that they had her on wheels because of Will Smith. Not a joke. They were worried having her near him for another outburst.

And then shortly after the cancer and the stroke Bette's cunt daughter wrote that awful book.

The entire show was a mess. Liza fit right in.

If that bitch shook any more we'd call her the San Andreas Fault.

No way was she able to go out and sit in a director's chair. No. Fucking. Way.

Everything but the bloodhounds snappin' at her rear end.

I am still big! It’s the chairs that got wheels.

Perhaps they feared she'd FALL OUT of the canvas chair on stage. By leaving her in her (yes, her) wheelchair, she was strapped in.

[quote]Liza's appearance is hardly what people will remember about this year's Oscars.

You're not gay, right?

Yes, r114, I am. I just find the Liza bashing silly and cruel at this point. She's low hanging fruit. Save the bitchery for those that deserve it.

Michael Fineshtine wash jusht lookin’ after me……it says here. Help!

r102: I know Billy and Jim Caruso were very protective of Liza when she lived in NY. I'm guessing Feinstein took over when Liza moved back to LA : A move I've never understood. All her friends were in NY.

I don't trust Feinstein.

Feinstein is full of shit. A total opportunist and grade A narcissist. Liza's been frail and wheelchair assisted for some time now. This is hardly news.

She's even appeared in one in her recent guest spots at his own club. So I call complete horseshit. We love Liza, and god knows she's seen better days...but this whole narrative Feinstein is crafting seems calculated and contrived.

Could have been a Rascal in her Rascal.

She's fine, she sends her love.

We all saw what we saw. I'm sick of the assholes of this world telling us what we see with our own eyes isn't what we see. It's sad that the formerly sane Democratic side of this country has now joined the fucking insane right in such great numbers that those of us based in reality are left with nothing.

Take your Nervine, r121.

Can't argue an actual point, huh, R122?

Liza's fine.

Men are women.

Repugs aren't criminals.

Don't believe your lying eyes.

Signed, SJWokesters who will cost the Democrats control and end democracy in America.

Got another stupid youtube video for that?

Sounds like someone hasn't had their nap.

I think there is some truth to what Feinstein said. I said that night that I felt that Liza's confusion could be the result of all that had happened that night. And, I don't believe that was her wheelchair. It was obvious it was one the Oscars grabbed from somewhere, the barcode was still on it.

Elizabeth did the best entrances anywhere. Liza should've opted for something along these lines for her Oscars appearance:

[quote] she was visibly not understanding what was going on

When she read the card she was shocked when the audience burst into applause. She was a bit confused for sure.

Liza was great in Arrested Development. Was it that long ago? I must be stuck in time. When did the downfall happen?

She had nothing on Kate, r126. Plus, she did it with less glitz.

[quote]I just find the Liza bashing silly and cruel at this point.

Then she should STAY THE HELL OFF TV.

R118 will blame Feinstein when Liza dies....she's lucky to have him NOW

[quote]Then she should STAY THE HELL OFF TV.

Oh, brother.

I think it's because a million years ago she dated Desi Jr. Look what happened to Patty Duke at the Emmys when she dated him. It just took a little longer for Liza to fall apart.

Seriously, if she chose to be there, she's really no longer competent. If she was sort of forced into it that person should be legally kept away from her. Either way big mistake. I don't think seeing people fall apart when they're old benefits anyone. At best it's depressing.

[quote]I don't think seeing people fall apart when they're old benefits anyone. At best it's depressing.

At BEST it's depressing?

They could have claimed Liza was "on location" for some project and couldn't be at the ceremony and taped a pre recorded message announcing the nominees and Gaga could go have announced the winner. Liza could have sat on her couch at home for that.

Although I strongly disliked her Gucci movie, it's very nice to see someone treat another with respect and kindness. Smith ruined so much that night and this is one small example.

She seemed more aware than Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway.

Not. Lol

What really shook Liza was when they took her clay away at the last minute. Liza likes to mold things out of clay to calm her nerves.

Did you know that Liza made a whole album lying down?

yeesh you people are terrified of aging, you’re all prepared to shove the elderly into ovens in case you catch their liver spots. Nobody with an ounce of empathy minds seeing an old person on TV, you lunatic queens

You have to understand the way I am, mein chair.

I think (R139) is Faye Dunaway. I always wondered if she got on here.

Hey, gaylings. Liver spots are coming for you and all of the other of life's indignities. You will not be spared. The only thing that makes one special is how they treat others.

(R142) Did Roman Polanski really throw piss in your face?

This old lady needs to accept the fact that she's an old lady.

R142 Did you get liver spots on your cock when you turned 90?

Last three replies made by desperate troll.

So says Jabba, Queen of the trolls.

You will now die, prematurely by grease, be it fire or other greasey means.

"All I can say about the sad troll is that she/he was mean spirited, pathetic and greasy. He/she left a mark on this world, but only in, well, a greasy way. He/she typed greasy."

R148 Grease fire is too kind for cunts. There are a million better ways to make a cunt suffer.

That cunt wants to lick my 90 year old liver spots, but he/she cannot. It can beg, write me bad checks. Never.

Perhaps they should have let her use this instead. Then if she had died on stage, it would have been a full circle moment with Judy and her toilet death….

Do You Love Me now mama?

This was Liza last year, w Feinstein playing badly (and in a bad key for her).

She’s in pretty rough shape.

[quote]This was Liza last year, w Feinstein playing badly (and in a bad key for her). She’s in pretty rough shape.

Joan Collins, who didn't require any sort of a chair, is 12 years older than Liza.

I doubt Joan was ever addicted to anything besides money and for a while, cock.

She should have done a paralympic version of Liza with a Z.

It could have been worse....

If this is true than it is another hint that the people behind the stage are actually the most horrible in show biz. Think of other weird moments on stage that feel like some has-been has been sabotaged even though that person didn't deserve it. Maybe Liza was only used so that people can say how sweet Gaga is, caring about "the old wheelchair lady" like the twitter screenshots show in OP's linked dailymail article. Funny how the twitter comments say something about dignity and respect and it actually turns out that Liza felt sabotaged. No surprises here though because these low iq people are the target audience for the oscars. Some people would apparently do everything to push Gaga even further into the spotlight, nasty.

[quote]They could have claimed Liza was "on location" for some project and couldn't be at the ceremony

Um, no.

R104 It was dumb of them to cut away before Robert Wise got to restart his speech. Bette was having a little fun.

I will say, though. Watch her on The Tonight Show in like 1982. She still seems like Bette Davis. Still has the same presence. After her stroke, she was like a different person. She would try to do the mannerisms and the sayings and all that, but it was like she turned into someone else. Not a BAD someone else, but just different.

I’m not necessarily a fan of Lady Gaga or Liza, but I saw this live and thought it was a sweet moment even if Liza seemed a little out of it.

Now that I’ve learned the back story, it all seems so shitty.

Boooooooo!!

[quote]I don't trust Feinstein

Don't trust Feinstein's excuses for Liza?

I agree! It was a horrible moment and completely ruined the whole evening. Sad that this is what will be remembered when the rest of this wonderful ceremony is forgotten.

Hey! I managed to get out there on my own two feet and stand behind that podium at 100 years old. Fuck you!

Yeah, and I managed to get out there lookin' like a million bucks, though only moments from death!

It's been a gradual process with the "Director's Chair" for awhile. I remember seeing her live about 11 or 12 years ago and after about 3 numbers she dragged it out and never got back up until intermission. She was always a show pony, and that is what was so jarring for me to watch. You would think even in a wheel chair that she could deliver her lines and put on a show, but she couldn't. She's turning into her Godmother, Kay Thompson and I'm not sure why. Regardless, she deserves all the praise and love in the world because there aren't many legends left. You can watch Cabaret, but you should also watch her life performances at Radio City. It's out of this world. Not even Judy could sing and dance live like that.

She’s going to die soon.

Maybe she should have died at age 47, like her mother and spared us all of this.

sabotaged? Think of how Chris Rock must have felt!

She’s been living on borrowed time for 30 years now.

[quote]Not even Judy could sing and dance live like that.

If you choose to overlook the fact that Judy in her prime was a much better singer.

R140, that's brilliant.

Why did they shake her, everyone knows you don’t even do that to babies?

Isn't there more? If not I'm thinking of starting a new thread.

They told her she was on QVC and the chair she was sitting on was for sale.

R128 I feel like the original series was 20 years ago!

Don’t you mean she was first shaken and then stirred?

Give Liza credit for getting the name of the Best Picture winner correct. At least she didn't say 'COCAINE' or 'CODEINE.'