A slew of cinematic icons died in the past year,
and Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder delivered a moving tribute to them during the Oscars’ “In Memoriam” segment on Sunday night.
Vedder’s song choice honored another seminal artist who died in 2017. For his performance, Vedder played “Room at the Top,” a single from Tom Petty’s 1999 album Echo. Petty died in October at the age of 66.
“Every storyteller knows that there is no joy without sorrow,” said Jennifer Garner, who introduced the segment. “Tonight, as we celebrate the achievements of our collaborators, we also mourn the loss of those who brought joy and awareness through their passion for the movies. The work they left us, as Academy Award winner Audrey Hepburn said so beautifully, ‘Gives pleasure, creates beauty, awakens our conscience, arouses our compassion, and perhaps most importantly, gives millions a moment of respite in our violent world.”
“Though no longer in our midst, their contributions endure,” she continued. “And now, we remember their lives and their impact on motion pictures with a song from an inspirational artist we lost this past year.”
The tribute honored Jerry Lewis, Don Rickles, Harry Dean Stanton, and more.
