Billy Crystal to host his ninth Oscars

Billy Crystal has announced that he is replacing Eddie Murphy as the host for the 2012 Oscars ceremony. Crystal, who has already hosted the Academy Awards eight times, said on Twitter : "Am doing the Oscars so the young woman in the pharmacy will stop asking my name when I pick up my prescriptions. Looking forward to the show." At the age of 63, Crystal would be the oldest host of the show since Bob Hope in 1978. The announcement dashed the hopes of an internet campaign to see the Muppets host the awards. Murphy stepped down after director Brett Ratner resigned as the show's producer following a furore over a homophobic slur in an interview. Ratner had brought Murphy in as Oscars host as part of his efforts to breathe new life into the ceremony following this year's poorly received event. Ratner, the director of Rush Hour and X-Men 3, resigned after he received widespread criticism for making a homophobic comment during a promotional interview for Tower Heist last week. Asked about using rehearsals before a film shoot, he replied: "Rehearsing is for fags." Ratner subsequently apologised, but gay rights groups and some members of the academy took issue with his use of the word.