Golden Globes: Most Memorable Moments Ever

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Golden Globes: Most Memorable Moments Ever

From Christine Lahti's bathroom break to Brad Pitt's indigestion, look back at the funniest and most outrageous moments from Hollywood's biggest party from over the years.

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The Year of the Rat Pack

When the Golden Globes first started in 1944, the trophies were presented exclusively by journalists. Then, in 1958, during the first-ever telecast of the awards, Rat Packers Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and Sammy Davis Jr. stormed the stage -- whiskeys in hand -- and hijacked the show. Much to the delight of their fellow attendees, the trio were invited back for a repeat performance in 1959.

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Thank U, Next?

Oliver Stone’s 1979 best screenplay acceptance speech for Midnight Express turned into a rant about the United States’ drug policy. Though host Chevy Chase requested for Stone to “just say ‘thank you’ and leave the stage” and the audience began to boo him, he continued to make his point. Security guards ultimately escorted him off the stage.

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Bette's Other Globes

After her double win at the 1980 Golden Globes -- for Best Actress in The Rose and Best New Female Star -- Bette Midler drew the audience's attention to two other trophies: her breasts! "I'm reminded of when Joan Crawford actually won her Golden Globe and she said...'I'll show you a pair of Golden Globes,'" Midler joked, pretending to grope herself. Covering her face in embarrassment after, she said, "Excuse me, I'm sorry. I'm different now. I'm a good girl!"

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Potty Humor

Accepting the Best Supporting Actor award for 12 Monkeys in 1996, Brad Pitt started off his speech not by thanking his director, co-stars, or then-girlfriend Gwyneth Paltrow but by acknowledging "the makers of Kaopectate," a medication that treats indigestion and diarrhea. "I have a nervous stomach, and it works," the A-lister explained later. "I'll be expecting those calls from Kaopectate any minute now."

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Bathroom Break!

Chicago Hope star Christine Lahti almost missed her big moment in the spotlight when Michael J. Fox announced her as the 1998 winner of Best Actress in a TV Drama -- while she was in the bathroom! Running onstage to accept the award, she confessed she had been flushing the toilet when her name was called. The next year, when she presented at the show, Lahti stuck a piece of toilet paper to her shoe as a joke.

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A Golden Gift

During his tearful acceptance speech for Don King: Only in America in 1998, Best Actor winner Ving Rhames surprised the crowd by giving away his trophy to fellow nominee Jack Lemmon. "I feel that being an artist is about giving," Rhames said as he handed the award to the 12 Angry Men star, "and I'd like to give this to you, Mr. Jack Lemmon." Lemmon accepted, saying, "That is one of the nicest, sweetest moments I've ever known in my life."

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Ending the Night on a High Note

When Jack Nicholson accepted the Golden Globe in 2003 for best actor in a drama for About Schmidt, he admitted that he “took a Valium” earlier that evening. The medication helps with treating anxiety, muscle spasms and seizures.

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Tough Break

When Richard Gere won the Golden Globe in 2003 for his role in Chicago, he initially couldn’t get through his speech without Sharon Stone repeatedly interrupting him.

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Fantastic Mr. Foxx

Jamie Foxx's 2005 acceptance speech for Ray is widely considered one of the most heartfelt speeches in Golden Globes history. "I wish I could take what I'm feeling right now and put it in the water systems...we would all love each other a whole lot more," he began. Later, he fought back tears as he paid tribute to his late grandmother Estelle Talley. "I used to think it was corny when people would say that people were looking down on you," he said. "I didn't believe it. But I got a feeling."

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Luck of the Draw

House actor Hugh Laurie deserves an award just for his creativity during his 2006 acceptance speech for Best Actor in a TV Series. Realizing he had too many people to thank -- 172! -- and too little time in which to do it, the star wrote down all 172 names on little pieces of paper and drew three at random to acknowledge on stage. The lucky few? His script supervisor, hairstylist, and agent.

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Borat Scores Big

Staying true to his trademark no-holds-barred-style of comedy, Borat star Sacha Baron Cohen had the audience doubled over with laughter as he described "the dark side of America" -- a.k.a. the private parts of his co-star Ken Davitian, with whom he filmed an infamous nude wrestling scene. The actor also memorably alluded to the many lawsuits that had been leveled against him after the film by thanking "every American who has not sued me so far."

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The F-Bomb Heard 'Round the Press Room

Former Grey's Anatomy actor Isaiah Washington stunned both his cast mates and reporters in the 2007 Golden Globes press room when he used a slur while discussing an alleged incident between himself and fellow Grey's star T.R. Knight, who came out as gay in 2006. "I did not call T.R. a f----t," he said. "Never happened." Responding to Washington's statement, Knight's pal Katherine Heigl said angrily: "I'm going to be really honest right now. [Isaiah] needs to just not speak in public. Period."

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The Host With the Most Insults

During his three-year reign as the host of the Golden Globes, British star Ricky Gervais managed to insult or offend nearly everyone in Hollywood. Nothing was off-limits -- he took aim at Mel Gibson's alcoholism, Charlie Sheen's meltdown, Robert Downey Jr.'s rehab stays, and even Salma Hayek's accent. Addressing the comic's acerbic remarks onstage in 2011, Downey Jr. said sarcastically: "Aside from the fact that it's been hugely mean-spirited with mildly sinister undertones, I'd say the vibe of the show is pretty good so far."

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TMI, Seth!

Taking the stage to present the award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture in 2012, Knocked Up star Seth Rogen couldn't contain his excitement. "Hello, I'm Seth Rogen, and I am currently trying to conceal a massive erection," he deadpanned, as his co-presenter, Kate Beckinsale, chuckled uncomfortably. "How nice," she joked.

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By George!

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, who hosted the Globes in 2013, 2014 and 2015, repeatedly roasted George Clooney during their tenure. In their final year as hosts, Fey quipped, "George Clooney married Amal Alamuddin this year. Amal is a human rights lawyer who worked on the Enron case, was an adviser to Kofi Annan regarding Syria and was selected to a three-person U.N. commission investigating rules of war violations in the Gaza Strip. So tonight, her husband is getting a lifetime achievement award." One year earlier, she mocked his tendency to date younger women, joking, "Gravity is nominated for best film. It's the story of how George Clooney would rather float away into space and die than spend one more minute with a woman his own age."

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Giving Her Feet a Break

Dame Emma Thompson kept it real when she arrived onstage at the 2014 Golden Globes to present the award for best screenplay. She carried her Louboutins in one hand and a martini glass in the other. “I just want you to know, this red, it’s my blood,” she said to the audience, looking at the red bottom of her designer heels.

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Eyes Up Here!

While presenting with Jennifer Lopez at the 2015 ceremony, Jeremy Renner remarked on her cleavage in her glam Zuhair Murad gown. After he asked her to open the envelope, she noted that she had the nails for it, to which he replied, "You've got the globes, too." Lopez laughed it off, but people watching from home were not as amused, with some saying the comment was inappropriate. He later responded to the backlash on Twitter, writing, "A reminder not to take this s--t so serious. Thanks Jennifer -- You're a gem.x #goldenglobes #hadtosayit #jlo"

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Leo’s Face, Though!

Leonardo DiCaprio’s reaction when Lady Gaga bumped into him during the 2016 ceremony immediately went viral. "That's trending, huh?" he later told Entertainment Tonight. "I just didn't know what was passing me. I was like, 'Oh!'"

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Bromance Alert!

Ryan Reynolds and Andrew Garfield decided to kiss as Ryan Gosling walked to the stage to accept an award during the 2017 ceremony. Reynolds would later joke that wife Blake Lively — who laughed during their intimate moment — was a better kisser than the Hacksaw Ridge actor.

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Giving T. Hanks

After grimacing throughout host Ricky Gervais’ no-holds-barred opening monologue, Tom Hanks charmed the 2020 Golden Globes audience with his emotional Cecil B. DeMille Award acceptance speech. “[I’m] a man [who] is blessed. … Blessed with a family sitting down front like that,” he said, tearing up. “A wife, [Rita Wilson], who is fantastic in every way, who has taught me what love is. Five kids who are braver and stronger and wiser than their old man is, and a loving group of people who have put up with me being away months and months at a time.”

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(Almost) 99 and Feelin’ Fine

Jason Sudeikis was in awe of Norman Lear as the legendary TV writer noted that he was “close to 99” while accepting the Carol Burnett Award in 2021. “He’s 99? Wow,” the Ted Lasso star mouthed on camera during the virtual ceremony.