I wrote a novel this year called "Shop Girl", and several producers came to me and wanted to turn it into a movie. And I said, "If you think you`re going to take this book and change it around, and Hollywoodize it and change the ending . . . that`s going ...
[while hosting The 73rd Annual Academy Awards (2001) (TV)] And now, I`m pleased to introduce the star of the film Gladiator (2000), and a man I like to call a close, personal friend, but he told me not to . . .
Comedians don`t get Oscars, so I gave up on that a long time ago. And I can`t really speak about the Oscar-worthiness of my own performance.
