Regis Reigns over Oscar Red Carpet

Mon., Dec. 10, 2007 12:37 PM PST by Gina Serpe

Regis Philbin is giving Ryan Seacrest a different kind of red carpet challenge.

The Live host has been tapped for "who are you wearing?" duties during the official Academy Award preshow on ABC Feb. 24.

The gig marks an Oscar comeback for the cantankerous 76-year-old, who previously served as the main red carpet man back in the 1970s.

"Regis is the perfect guy to serve as host," said Oscar producer Dennis Doty. "He knows everyone and everyone loves Regis! I'm thrilled that he has agreed to be the ringmaster for this year's extravaganza."

The Philbin-powered preshow will air immediately before the 80th Annual Academy Awards—the half-hour the Academy exclusively reserves for ABC after all the other red carpet crews, including the E! team led by Seacrest, have to pack up their cameras.

Philbin's new job comes just days after he announced he would be scaling back on his old one.

Last Thursday, while regaling Live with Regis and Kelly viewers with an anecdote about an uncomfortable business lunch with new ABC brass, the morning man let slip that he was planning to reduce his morning show appearances. Beginning in fall 2008, Philbin will be on the couch for just three shows a week. As it is, he already enjoys Ripa-free Fridays. (She's paired with a guest host.)

"So I brought [the new executive] up to date on what I do," he recounted. "I said, 'You know, I have Fridays off.' She said, 'Really?'

"So, like an idiot—this is the biggest faux pas I've ever made in my life—I said, 'Yeah, yeah, I do—and next year I'm going to have Thursday and Friday off.' "

Since the show aired, Live producers haven't confirmed the new schedule, and Philbin hasn't talked about his three-day workweek.

Seacrest, who would likely recoil at the thought of a three-day workweek, will be again be paired with his E! News cohort Giuliana Rancic for E!'s Live from the Red Carpet on Oscar day. The two-hour show will air live from the Kodak Theater.

Complete Academy Awards coverage on E! will begin at noon ET/9 a.m. PT. A two-hour postshow will air live following the ceremony. (E! Online is a division of E! Networks.)