Ellen DeGeneres is well known for her clean brand of comedy, and she told reporters in the days before hosting the Oscars telecast she doesn’t want to hurt people with her humor.
Her Oscar monologue found her mocking both an elderly nominee and a show business legend in the first few minutes.
One of the first jokes out DeGeneres’ mouth was an old age joke aimed at 84 year old Best Supporting Actress nominee June Squibb. She mentioned the Nebraska actress, and then she repeated the mention in a louder voice as if Squibb couldn’t hear her.
Next, she pointed to Liza Minnelli seated in the crowd and referred to the Oscar winner as a “male” Liza Minnelli impersonator.
The rest of DeGeneres’ monologue was filled with the comedian’s rambling shtick, a slight toward the limited collegiate experience of the crowd and an acknowledgement of the P.C. sensibilities that could be in play later in the evening.
“Possibility number one: ’12 Years a Slave’ wins Best Picture. Possibility number 2: You’re all racists.”
DeGeneres avoided politics entirely in her monologue, but it certainly won’t go down as a comic highlight in Oscar telecast history.