When Peter Linz heard actor Will Ferrell announce Bret McKenzie's name during Sunday night's broadcast of the 84th Academy Awards, he leapt out of his chair.
"I think I let out a big 'yeah!,'" said the Katonah resident, who performed the piece composed by McKenzie, "Man or Muppet," which won the Oscar for best original song.
Sung by Linz and Jason Segal, who play brothers in The Muppets, , the song edged out "Real in Rio," the only other nominated work.
Linz said he was happy to get a photo sent to him from the pre-ceremony "red carpet" outside of the Kodak Theatre in Los Angles, CA, from friend and fellow actor, Eric Jacobson, who plays Miss Piggy in the film. But although he wasn't at the Academy Awards, Linz received the "red carpet treatment" thanks to his friend and neighbor, Nancy Diamond of Katonah, who hosted an an Oscar-viewing party Sunday night.
Linz, accompanied by his wife, Marlene, and their children, arrived to find a red carpet lining her front walk and a sign labeling her door as the "VIP stage door entrance." Decor included gold statuettes and coasters labeled with Linz's name fashioned after the stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
"I feel blessed to have such wonderful and supportive friends," said Linz, who received 17 texts and 30 emails throughout the evening on his phone, which drained the battery before the Best Song category was even announced.
Though they did not take home gold statuettes, four other local residents were also nominated for Oscars: , in the Best Actress category for her performance as a computer hacker in Girl With a Dragon Tattoo, along with Glenn Close, another Bedford resident, for her gender-bending turn in Albert Nobbs.
Katonah resident James Spione was nominated for best documentary short for his film, Incident in Baghdad and Joe Berlinger of Katonah was nominated for Best Documentary Feature for
As for Linz, he said the entire experience—from being cast in The Muppets, to filming the movie, attending the premiere, hearing of the song's nomination and then of the Oscar win—has been "an education."
"These things have a life of their own and it's been so interesting," he said.
