Oscars bosses defend fawcett montage snub

Bosses at the Oscars have defended their decision to leave Farrah Fawcett out of the "in memorial" montage - insisting it's impossible to pay tribute to every star who has passed away in the last year.

The Charlie's Angels actress, who died in June (09), was absent from the Academy Awards' tribute section on Sunday night (07Mar10), which marked the deaths of stars including Brittany Murphy and Patrick Swayze.

The snub has caused online gossips to speculate she had been left out because of her predominant television career, with some critics slamming the ceremony heads for not adding her to the clip.

Jane Fonda was also shocked Fawcett was left out, and wrote on Twitter.com: "Where was Farrah Fawcett? She should have been included."

Screenwriter Roger Ebert added, "No Farrah in the memorial. They have a whole lot of 'splaining (sic) to do."

And U.S. TV personality Star Jones is fuming the actress was not included, because she appeared in movies including The Cannonball Run and The Apostle and was even nominated for a Golden Globe for 1987 film Extremities.

Jones writes on her Twitter page, "FYI (for your information)... Farrah had a very diverse career... that included Broadway, TV & Film. She even received a Golden Globe nom."

But Oscar bosses have defended their decision. Bruce Davis, the executive director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, says, "It is the single most troubling element of the Oscar show every year. Because more people die each year than can possibly be included in that segment. You are dropping people who the public knows. It's just not comfortable."