Noah Blake, the son of the late actor Robert Blake, hit out at the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences for not including his father in the ‘In Memorium’ tribute at the Oscars on Sunday, according to TMZ. 

Blake told the outlet that he was angry at seeing his father’s death being used as a punchline during the show by host Jimmy Kimmel. 

“Everybody please get out your phones, even at home, it’s time to vote,” Kimmel started just before the In Memorium. 

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“If you think Robert Blake should be part of the In Memoriam montage, text ‘GIMME-A-Blake’ to the number on your screen, or to any number,” he said.

Noah Blake says that people can have different opinions about his father, but opinions should not matter when it comes to a much-anticipated segment at the Oscars. 

Blake’s career was overshadowed by his 2001 acquittal for the murder of his wife, Bonnie Lee Bakley.

The distraught son also pointed out in the exclusive interview with TMZ that like his father, actors Tom Sizemore, Anne Heche, and Paul Sorvino were also not included in the segment. He believes the segment was not handled the right way on Sunday.

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He said that understands that such jokes are acceptable at the Oscars, and also doesn’t believe that there is a  ‘too soon’ factor in joking about dead people. But that, he noted, doesn’t discount the fact that he found the joke in bad taste, and believes that Kimmel was treading a fine line when he cracked it. 

Robert Blake was an American actor who rose to fame in the 1970s for his role as detective Tony Baretta in the TV series Baretta. He also appeared in movies such as In Cold Blood and Electra Glide in Blue.