Farrah Fawcett, Bea Arthur Snubbed in Oscar Tribute

The memorial montage at this Academy Awards left more than a few people scratching their heads.

The lengthy highlight reel, led by James Taylor's performance of "In My Life," paid tribute to Hollywood veterans who died within the past year. Patrick Swayze, Dom DeLouise, Natasha Richardson, Michael Jackson and lesser-known directors, producers and film journalists all received nods from the Academy.

But when it ended, more people seemed to notice who was missing from the montage rather than who was included.

The most notable omissions from the telecast were Farrah Fawcett and Bea Arthur, both of whom died this spring. Fawcett lost her lengthy battle with cancer last June at 62 while Arthur, 86, died in April 2009.

Celebrities and fans alike took to Twitter to criticize the omissions..

"No Farrah in the memorial," film critic Roger Ebert tweeted. "They have a lot of 'splaining to do."

"FYI...Farrah had a very diverse career...that included Broadway, TV & Film. She even received a Golden Globe nom," Star Jones added in a tweet.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences spokeswoman Lisa Unger said Fawcett and Arthur simply didn't fit into the allotted timeslot for the memorial tribute.

"Every year it's an unfortunately reality that we can't include everybody," she told the AP.

Though both actresses were best known for their TV work - Fawcett in "Charlies Angels" and Arthur in "The Golden Girls" - both  starred in notable films.

Fawcett was nominated for a best actress Golden Globe for her role in the 1986 film "Extremities" and also starred in "The Cannonball Run" (1981) and the Oscar-nominated film "The Apostle" in 1997.

Arthur was featured in the 1970 Oscar-nominated film "Lovers and Other Strangers" and in 1974's big-screen adaptation of "Mame." She also appeared in other films throughout her career.

Last week, Academy Award executive director Bruce Davis told the AP that the segment was running too long.

"It gets close to agonizing by the end," he said. "You are dropping people who the public knows. It's just not comfortable."

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