gday awards

AUSTRALIAN INVASION!
http://www.smh.com.au/news/Film/Nicole-Cate-lead-way-on-golden-road-to-the-Oscars/2005/01/15/1105582764824.html?oneclick=true
The Australian invasion began this weekend when Kidman, Gibson and country singer Keith Urban were honoured at an awards ceremony to kick off G'day LA - Australia Week 2005. The trio accepted awards for excellence in promoting Australia in the US at the black tie dinner.
The 10-day festival is designed to promote Australia as a tourist and business destination and will run until January 23.
Guests walked the red carpet, attended a silent auction and then sat down for dinner, where the cheapest table was $US2000 ($2636).
Other high-profile guests included Steve Irwin, Greg Norman and Delta Goodrem, who performed at the event. Celebrity chef Neil Perry was flown in to oversee the menu.

Our stars shine to fly the flag
Nick Papps
Los Angeles
17jan05

AUSSIE movie stars Mel Gibson and Nicole Kidman and country music legend Keith Urban have been honoured at a star-studded Hollywood night.

Less than 24 hours before the Golden Globes, the cream of Aussie acting partied including all our Golden Globe nominees.

Heading the pack was Nicole Kidman, who said she was thrilled to let her hair down with fellow Aussies at the dinner aimed at publicising Australia.

"It's just nice to get together with a lot of Australians and celebrate our country. It's not about me, it's about our country, it's about celebrating our country," she said.

Gibson, whose blockbuster movie The Passion of The Christ was snubbed by the Golden Globes, said he was delighted at the night, which was part of the annual Australia Week promotion in Los Angeles.

"Hey, I feel pretty chuffed that you come to an event like this and you get to see people that you have worked with in the past, who you know of, that perhaps you haven't worked with, and really I just think it's an excuse to have a bit of fun," Gibson said.

"I think it's just an excuse for everyone to get just a little bit hammered and see what other boat people made it here. I came to the one last year and it was a hoot."

Asked about the movie industry, which turned on him because of the so-called anti-Semitism of The Passion, Gibson said: "I think the industry is what you make of it. I can exist in it."

Geoffrey Rush said he found it tough preparing his speech for the night.

"I was preparing the tribute speech and it sort of scared me a bit because I suddenly thought, 'God we (he and Gibson) worked together in 1979 -- that's a quarter of a century ago -- in the theatre in Sydney," he said.

Tonight, Rush will find out if he has won best actor in a television movie at the Golden Globes, but last night he said it was pretty good just to be nominated.

Australia's other two Golden Globe hopes, Cate Blanchett and Julian McMahon, were also at the dinner.

Blanchett has been nominated for best supporting actress for The Aviator and McMahon is up for best actor in a television drama.

Other guests included Delta Goodrem, Holly Valance, Simon Baker, Kimberly Joseph, News Corp executive chairman Rupert Murdoch and Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer.

Keith Urban, who was named the Country Music Association's male artist of the year, said he was looking forward to spending more time at home.

"I'd like to get to the point where I could spend my time more evenly between Australia and the US, I haven't been able to do that," he said.

"I really only get home for Christmas. We are going back to tour Australia in February, our first headline tour in about 10 years."

Among the other big names at last night's dinner were several of Gibson's co-stars including James Garner from Maverick, Joely Richardson from The Patriot, Gary Busey from Lethal Weapon, Dennis Farina from Paparazzi and Sam Elliot from We Were Soldiers.

The black tie dinner was sponsored by the Australian Government as part of its Australia Week program to promote Australia to the United States.