Fatboy Slim Wins 6 MTV Video Awards
NEW YORK (AP) - It wasn't listed on the program and it lasted less than a minute, but Michael Jackson's surprise performance with 'N Sync was the most talked-about moment of MTV's Video Music Awards.
Fatboy Slim's six awards for ``Weapon of Choice,'' and 'N Sync's four for ``Pop'' were overshadowed Thursday night by Jackson's brief appearance, which came at the end of 'N Sync's performance.
After a giant Etch-A-Sketch drew his frame, Jackson emerged, doing his trademark, gravity-defying moves. Afterward, he received a standing ovation.
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Ben Stiller, Sheryl Crow and Sean ``P. Diddy'' Combs were among the stars who considered Jackson the evening's highlight.
``I thought he did a good job pop-locking,'' rapper Snoop Dogg said after the show.
Besides Fatboy Slim and 'N Sync, the night's other big winner was the ``Lady Marmalade'' video, a remake of the LaBelle classic by Mya, Pink, Lil' Kim and Christina Aguilera. The racy, ``Moulin Rouge''-inspired clip won the night's biggest award, best video, as well as best video from a film.
``The big hair paid off!'' joked Aguilera, who sported braids divided into two neat pigtails, a departure from the gigantic wig she wore in the video.
Among the awards ``Weapon of Choice'' won were best direction, for film director Spike Jonze; best choreography; and best cinematography. The Fatboy Slim video was a departure from many MTV videos because it didn't feature a large cast, a chorus line of dancers or even the artist: It just showed actor Christopher Walken dancing around an empty hotel lobby.
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As always, the awards themselves were upstaged by the evening's over-the-top moments. Britney Spears was last year's scene stealer with her striptease performance of ``Oops! ... I Did it Again.'' This year, she wowed the crowed as she debuted her new song, ``I'm A Slave 4 U,'' with a snake wrapped around her neck.
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The night was not without its glitches: As U2 was about to perform ``Elevation,'' a technical problem forced MTV to cut to commercials.
After the group performed, U2 received the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard award for lifetime achievement, and Bono quipped: ``So MTV weren't paying their electricity bill.''
Though the show had its zany moments - Andy Dick dressing as an Aguilera look-alike, Stiller needling Combs about his tough-guy image - the night also had somber elements.
Artists paid tribute to Aaliyah, the R&B singer and actress who died Aug. 25 in a plane crash. Janet Jackson read a message from one of Aaliyah's fans, while Missy ``Misdemeanor'' Elliott, Ginuwine and Timbaland talked about the impact of the 22-year-old's short life. Aaliyah's brother, Rashad Haughton, thanked her fans for their support.
``I think what we've got to learn out of this, to appreciate each other while we're here on earth,'' said Elliott, who wore a white jacket with Aaliyah's image on the back and her name on the side. ``I love you, Aaliyah, and you're forever missed.''
Bono paid tribute to Joey Ramone, who died this year of lymphoma, as he introduced the remaining members of the legendary punk rock group the Ramones.
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Comedian-host Jamie Foxx got the evening off to a somewhat raunchy start. After parodying the evening's setting at the Metropolitan Opera House with opera renditions of hits such as ``Bootylicious,'' he launched into a monologue that MTV censors had to bleep.
Foxx had said he would not lampoon celebrities during the show, but joked about Mariah Carey's recent nervous breakdown and Backstreet Boy A.J. McLean's battl