Kobe Bryant produced and wrote the short, which he also used to announce his retirement in '16Getty Images
KOBE BRYANT "received his first Academy Award" last night for animated short alongside artist GLEN KEANE, who gave life to Bryant's '15 “DEAR BASKETBALL” letter, according to Nardine Saad of the L.A. TIMES. Bryant "produced and wrote the short," which announced his retirement, and his nomination alone "sparked controversy in the age of #MeToo and Time's Up." Bryant's recognition will "no doubt raise eyebrows given that he was charged with rape" in '03 (L.A. TIMES, 3/5). In Cleveland, Joey Morona notes Bryant "referenced Fox News host LAURA INGRAHAM's recent criticism" of LEBRON JAMES for his opinion of PRESIDENT TRUMP during his acceptance speech. Bryant said, "I mean, as basketball players, we're really supposed to shut up and dribble. I'm glad we do a little more than that" (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 3/5). ESPN's Mike Golic Jr. said of Bryant winning an Oscar, "I was interested to see, as we talk more about sports having to mimic entertainment and be more appealing to the masses, more guys appeal like this." He added, "We talk about how limited sports can be sometimes, but athletes can go on after and accomplish in other fields in a way that an accomplished physicist or Nobel laureate couldn't." ESPN's Trey Wingo: "If you're being honest about it, that Oscar opens up a whole bunch of different avenues" ("Golic & Wingo," ESPN Radio, 3/5). USA TODAY's Gleeson & Alexander note backstage, Bryant "got a healthy applause, a bit unusual for an Oscar winner in the media room." Bryant said, "I feel better than winning a championship. It's crazy." As for his "strong start" to his post-NBA career, Bryant "acknowledged it wasn't an easy transition." Bryant: "It's a hard thing for athletes to start over. You have to begin again" (USA TODAY, 3/5). Bryant said of projects he is interested in, "They all center around sports. How do we take sports and tell beautiful tales, beautiful stories that connect to human nature?" Asked what he is working on for ESPN, Bryant said, "(Detail) is the first show. The original concept came from, how can I help the next generation of elite basketball players? What information can I pass along, from what I learned from some of the most brilliant basketball minds?" (THEUNDEFEATED.com, 3/3).
AND THE AWARD GOES TO...: ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY's Nick Romano notes Netflix' "ICARUS," which details Russia's state-sanctioned doping program and is directed by BRYAN FOGEL, "earned the award for Best Documentary Feature." DR. GRIGORY RODCHENKOV, the subject of the documentary, was one of the whistleblowers who "came forward about Russian athletes using performance-enhancing drugs to compete in the Olympics." In his acceptance speech, Fogel said, “We dedicate this award to Dr. Grigory Rodchenkov, our fearless whistleblower who now lives in great danger. We hope 'Icarus' is a wake-up call -- yes, about Russia, but more than that, about the importance of telling the truth, now more than ever.” Fogel "further called" for IOC President THOMAS BACH to resign. He said, "He is a crook. And what he has shown to planet earth and any athlete who believes in the Olympic ideal is to not trust it and to not trust those words." Fogel: "If you can corroborate and prove and substantiate a fraud of this caliber on this level that spans for decades, and then essentially give that country that committed that fraud a slap on the wrist, allow 160 athletes to compete in those games… and then … lift the ban on that country? What a fraud" (EW.com, 3/4).
