Randy Newman, who ‘sings like a frog on heroin,’ gets his Hollywood Walk of Fame star
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Randy Newman, the singer-composer extraordinaire known for a few little ditties including ‘I Love L.A.’ and, oh, 19 Oscar-nominated original songs, got his name on star No. 2,411 on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Wednesday. (Bonus: Name spelled correctly!)
Along with Pixar exec John Lasseter, actor Eric Idle of Monty Python fame addressed the ‘ladies and gentlemen -- and politicians’ gathered for the event, which honored the Oscar-, Grammy- and Emmy-winner’s contributions to film, ahead of the June 18 release of ‘Toy Story 3,’ which Newman scored.
‘I have a confession to make today,’ Idle said. ‘I love Randy Newman. And not just physically. I love his music. Who could resist a man who looks like a dentist, writes like Voltaire, sings like a frog on heroin -- and breaks just like a little girl.’ (Click here for Idle’s entire speech.)
Newman’s Oscar nominations -- he won once -- include three for songs from the first two ‘Toy Story’ movies, so characters from those films were on hand for the ceremony. Think it’s freaky to watch Lindsay Lohan get mobbed by paparazzi? Check out how it goes down when Woody and Buzz Lightyear are involved.
And if it’s been a while since you gave ‘Short People’ a listen, take a trip back to 1978 -- a time when Newman’s hair wasn’t quite so white, and maybe you weren’t even born -- after the break.
-- Christie D’Zurilla
A Los Angeles Times database puts readers on the sidewalks of Hollywood, using more than a century of archives to track the lives of the stars, including 2010 Oscar winners Jeff Bridges and Sandra Bullock and recent honorees Russell Crowe, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and the late Dennis Hopper.
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