Whoopi Goldberg has opened up about why her mother, Emma Harris, chose not to attend the 1991 Academy Awards, where her daughter won for Actress in a Supporting Role.
It was Whoopi’s second Oscar nomination, as she was also up for Best Actress in a Leading Role in 1986, but lost to Geraldine Page, who won the award for the road drama film The Trip to Bountiful.
During Monday’s episode of The View, Whoopi, 68, and the panel discussed Kathy Bates’ recent interview with CBS Sunday Morning, where she became emotional when she realized she had thanked her mother in her 1991 Oscar speech after she initially thought she hadn’t. .
Whoopi sympathized with Kathy’s forgetfulness, explaining to her cohosts, “It’s easy to think you haven’t done it, because you’re trying to remember everything you have to do, and you know you have to get off the stage and people want that you… and the music, you listen to the music, you listen to the things, you want to remember the people…’
She then revealed: ‘My mother didn’t come when I won. She came when I was nominated for The Color Purple, but she didn’t want to be there in case I didn’t win again,” referring to the time she won for her role as Oda Mae Brown in Ghost.
Whoopi Goldberg has opened up about why her mother, Emma Harris, chose not to attend the 1991 Academy Awards with her. The couple is pictured here in 1986.
During Monday’s episode of The View, Whoopi said her mother didn’t want to come to the Oscars with her in case she didn’t win again
When Sara Haines asked if her mother was present when she lost to Geraldine, she asked, “And did she have an angry face?” to which Whoopi replied, “No, she didn’t have an angry face because the woman who won was from our neighborhood, [she] was from Chelsea and so we were really… the neighborhood was represented.”
“So her win and the movie she won for was The Trip to Bountiful, and she had been nominated six times, but she had never won. She won for that, and six, seven months later she passed away, so I’m really glad she got her comeuppance,” the Sister Act star added.
When Alyssa Farah Griffin asked Whoopi if she had ever rewatched her Oscars speech, the mother of one hesitated before answering, “No, people have shown me bits of what I said.”
She then added, “And you don’t always remember what you did, but thank God someone can say, ‘Actually, no, honey, you were fine, you did it.’ That’s great.’
Whoopi was accompanied by her older brother, Clive, and daughter Alex, to the 1991 Academy Awards, and mentioned her family in her speech.
She began, “Thank you. Ever since I was a little kid, I wanted this. You don’t know. My brother sits there and says, ‘Thank God we don’t have to listen to it anymore. You can do it now.’ My mother is at home, everyone is watching.
“I have to thank the people at Paramount. I have to thank Jerry Zucker for taking the time before deciding to use me because it meant he knew for sure it was for me.
“I have to thank Patrick Swayze, a stand-up guy, and he went up to them and said, ‘I want to do it with her.’ I want to thank Demi. I want to thank everyone who makes films.
Whoopi lost at the 1986 Oscars to Geraldine Page, who won Best Actress for her role in The Trip to Bountiful
Whoopi poses with her Oscar statuette for Best Supporting Actress at the 1991 Academy Awards
‘I’m from New York. As a little kid I lived in the projects, and you are the people I watched. You are the wanted people that made me want to become an actor. I’m so proud to be here. I am proud to be an actor and I continue to act. And thank you very much.”
In 2021, Whoopi reflected on her historic Oscar win during an interview with Variety and talked about her look that night, which consisted of a black sequined column dress by veteran costume designer Nolan Miller, who had collaborated with Whoopi’s mentor and friend Elizabeth Taylor.
Impressed with the end result, Whoopi told Variety, looking back on her ensemble, “I looked really good. My hair was cool. Dress was cute.’
Reflecting on her acceptance speech during the interview, she noted that it was “great to see” her brother and her daughter in the audience.
‘[I remember] just being happy to be there, get the speech out of the way and get off stage,” Whoopi explained, while also revealing that she took her fellow nominees out to dinner, including Annette Bening.
She added: ‘Any one of us could have taken it, and I don’t think anyone would have been mad at anyone else. Sometimes you look at actors and you know, “Oh, he’s angry,” but with us it was just, “Whoever wins, pays, that’s all I know. Free food.”