Most celebs will leave the Oscars emptyhanded this year. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the IRS agreed that last year's recipients of the show's notoriously extravagant gift baskets will receive tax forms for claiming the estimated $100,000 worth of free stuff. A rep for the IRS said, "Whether you're popping popcorn, sitting in the audience or starring on the big screen, you need to pay your taxes... There's no red carpet loophole for the stars." The Painted Veil actor Edward Norton has been outspoken about the gift baskets, saying, "A lot of us have talked to the Academy Awards producers about this and I think they're actually going to scuttle the gift baskets and that kind of stuff... I mean, the gift baskets, worth amounts of money that a low income family could live on for a year, [are handed to] people who have so much already. It gets depressing... You could sit there, going, 'This is an embarrassment.'"Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Gift basket fiasco
Most celebs will leave the Oscars emptyhanded this year. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the IRS agreed that last year's recipients of the show's notoriously extravagant gift baskets will receive tax forms for claiming the estimated $100,000 worth of free stuff. A rep for the IRS said, "Whether you're popping popcorn, sitting in the audience or starring on the big screen, you need to pay your taxes... There's no red carpet loophole for the stars." The Painted Veil actor Edward Norton has been outspoken about the gift baskets, saying, "A lot of us have talked to the Academy Awards producers about this and I think they're actually going to scuttle the gift baskets and that kind of stuff... I mean, the gift baskets, worth amounts of money that a low income family could live on for a year, [are handed to] people who have so much already. It gets depressing... You could sit there, going, 'This is an embarrassment.'"