SANTA BARBARA: Ladies love cool James

Last night saw the presentation of the Outstanding Performance of the Year honor to “127 Hours” star James Franco at Santa Barbara fest, and it’s one of the best tributes I’ve seen here.  But it didn’t start out that way.

Franco was late getting out of Los Angeles, where he was rehearsing for next month’s Oscar telecast.  The result was he was a half-hour late to the Arlington Theatre and the whole program was nearly an hour late getting started.  No biggie for me.  I was in the Chopin Lounge drinking, probably too much (as usual).  But I imagine there was some grumbling out in the audience.

Nevertheless, when Franco showed up, he nailed it.  It turns out he expected to show up and accept an honor then split, failing to realize that it was a career retrospective of sorts.  So he was a bit caught off guard by things.  But Leonard Maltin, who served as moderator for the event, provided a great balance, and the lack of preparation on Franco’s part really added to the intrigue of the conversation.

Every answer was thoughtful, as if he hadn’t been asked this or that in a while, if ever.  He was very forthcoming and honest and, all around, well, “smooth” would be the word.  He’s a cool customer, and a delight to interview as it is.  In this setting, he totally shined.

The ladies in the audience exploded when he finally arrived, naturally.  I was having a blast talking with an old lady in the back row who was telling stories about working at a hospital that Rock Hudson frequented long ago.  “My knees would turn to jello,” she said of the golden age hunk.  “So I understand how they feel.”

Seriously, that stuff’s gold when you’ve had a few vodka tonics.

Anyway, I Tweeted much of the evening’s best quotes and insights.  Most notable was his perspective on the one-man show of it all.  “It was like we were all sharing this character,” he said of the intimacy of the shoot.

Seth Rogen was on hand to present the award and he delivered a great speech that was certainly prepared but seemed to just flow naturally.  And in a heart-felt moment at the end, Franco thanked his friend, noting, “You were there from the beginning, and at the times when I didn’t want to do it any more.  Thank you.”

Jeffrey Wells has a nice video of a portion of the evening.  Gives a good feel for things.  Tonight, Christopher Nolan accepts the fest’s highest honor: Modern Master.

[Photo: Getty Images]