Everyone has a bizarre Golden Globes story. Here’s mine: Right after the show a few years ago, I was leaving the Beverly Hilton ballroom when I bumped into Phil Berk, a former president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Great event, I complimented him. Yet he seemed unimpressed that Oprah had given an inspiring speech that would go viral, or that Jeff Bezos and Lady Gaga deemed his silly awards show important enough to sit through in its entirety.
Instead, I quickly learned, Berk had one thing—and only one thing—on his mind. “Did everyone thank the H.F.P.A.?” he asked. I must have looked confused. Why would he possibly be so consumed by minor on-stage politesse? Then he grabbed my arm and barked the question again, like a deranged person. “In the speeches! Did all the stars thank the H.F.P.A.?!”
