And the Oscar (Gig) Goes to ...

By RICHARD CORLISS

It's called an award show, but it's really a TV show--the top-rated entertainment show of the year. And like the nightly news, The Apprentice and NFL Prime Time, the Academy Awards needs a host: someone to set the tone, keep things moving and undercut the sentiment and self-importance of the acceptance speeches. In short, be the person who both represents and mocks the movies on a night when the whole world is paying attention.

This March 5, Jon Stewart will step from behind The Daily Show desk onto the stage of the Kodak Theatre, becoming the first talk-show host to emcee the Oscars since David Letterman's career-braking stint in 1995. (He bombed with the "Oprah ... Uma" joke in his monologue and never quite recovered that night.) Stewart will also be credited or blamed for the size of the TV audience. Billy Crystal is the current ratings champ: his 2004 stint was the most-watched Oscar show since 2000, the last time he emceed.

For decades, Bob Hope was the face of Oscar night. He set the brash style, tweaking Hollywood's outsize egos, including his own. Hope was host or co-host of the event a record 17 times. (Crystal is second, with eight.)

Stand-up comedians can be counted on to cope with the unexpected. With real actors, you never know. In 1973 Charlton Heston was to deliver the opening remarks, but his car had a flat tire. Clint Eastwood was dragged on camera to read a slew of Moses jokes written for Heston. The next year, with David Niven as co-host, a streaker ran across the stage. Niven quipped, "Probably the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings."

Short is something the Oscar show hasn't run since 1959, when co-host Jerry Lewis found himself with 20 minutes to fill. He brought all the winners onstage, led them in song and vamped manically until NBC finally cut him off.

With a movie resume whose highlights are Mixed Nuts and Death to Smoochy, Jon Stewart won't be confused with Jimmy. But big-screen chops aren't essential to the job; Johnny Carson was a five-time winner as Oscar host. Besides, the new guy has miles of charm, glib ad-lib-ability and the planet's smartest comedy writers. If Stewart can't make this year's Oscar show the wittiest in memory ... well, the Academy could turn next year to another cool dude over at Comedy Central. Paging Stephen Colbert?