There’s no tangible reason to believe Tomei wasn’t the rightful champion. But the Tomei fodder raises a valid question: What would happen if an erroneous winner is announced during the telecast? Maybe a presenter reads a name from the teleprompter instead of the envelope (which Palance supposedly did), or maybe someone decides to coronate their own winner. Heading into Oscar night, only two people know the winners list: Brian Cullinan and Martha Ruiz, who supervise the counting procedures. They’re the briefcase holders who walk the red carpet every year and often appear at some point during the show.

Source: Huffington Post February 24, 2017 15:17 UTC