X

Oscar memes: Jimmy Kimmel awards a Jet Ski for shortest speech

There was a prize for the shortest speech, and the nominees were into it. Plus: Is the show being held in a geode?

Gael Cooper
CNET editor Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, a journalist and pop-culture junkie, is co-author of "Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes and Trends of the '70s and '80s," as well as "The Totally Sweet '90s." She's been a journalist since 1989, working at Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Twin Cities Sidewalk, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and NBC News Digital. She's Gen X in birthdate, word and deed. If Marathon candy bars ever come back, she'll be first in line.
Expertise Breaking news, entertainment, lifestyle, travel, food, shopping and deals, product reviews, money and finance, video games, pets, history, books, technology history, generational studies. Credentials
  • Co-author of two Gen X pop-culture encyclopedia for Penguin Books. Won "Headline Writer of the Year"​ award for 2017, 2014 and 2013 from the American Copy Editors Society. Won first place in headline writing from the 2013 Society for Features Journalism.
See full bio
Gael Cooper

Social media memes started pouring out as soon as Sunday's 2018 Academy Awards began. And jokesters didn't have to go far for their first target: the striking and elegant look of Hollywood's Dolby Theatre, where the event was held.

Although some had other thoughts on the set design.

And once the show started, host Jimmy Kimmel promised a jet ski personal watercraft (displayed by actress Helen Mirren) to the maker of the shortest acceptance speech, a gimmick that quickly was picked up by nominees and viewers alike.

And in the end, costume-design winner Mark Bridges claimed the prize, for his 36-second speech.

And there weren't too many jokes about last year's "La La Land" wrong winner fiasco, but there were a couple. (Mark Hamill couldn't resist.)

Guillermo del Toro, whose film "Shape of Water" won best picture, couldn't resist making sure the envelope was correct this time.

First published March 4, 6:16 p.m. PT. 
Update, 10:17 p.m. PT: Adds the winner of the jet ski.