"Bieber Fever" strikes on Oscar night

Oscar night was about fashion, awards and -- Bieber fever?

According to Blaine Zuckerman, staff writer for People magazine, Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez stepped out together for the first time in an appearance at the famous Vanity Fair after-party.

Zuckerman said the two were "very, very affectionate on the red carpet."

"That's the first time they've come out," he said. "We've seen them in paparazzi shots, but this was a really bold statement."

Co-anchor Chris Wragge asked on "The Early Show," "So Selena does have Bieber fever, huh?"

"Clearly," Zuckerman said. "Who doesn't?"

Zuckerman said this was the couple's moment.

"Flash bulbs everywhere," he said. "Also, this goes back to this is young Hollywood. Maybe that's part of what last night was really about -- the young people."

PICTURES: Red carpet report card
PICTURES: Oscars red carpet
PICTURES: Six decades of Oscar fashion
SPECIAL: SECTION: The Academy Awards

Another memorable Oscar moment came when Melissa Leo, in her acceptance speech for Best Actress in "The Fighter," dropped the F-bomb.

"We can certainly say she was very excited," Zuckerman said. "And certainly, afterward, she did say, 'I have a really great grasp of the English language. That was perhaps not the best word to use at that moment.' But the best part about it, it was really gold for everybody else. Lots of great jokes were able to be made at her expense through the night."

Wragge said, "She did give lots of people lots of setup right there. Kind of in-character, too, from 'The Fighter' who played a pretty rough individual there. She still won on Oscar."

"Exactly," Zuckerman replied. "She wins in the end."

As for other top winner Natalie Portman, who is pregnant, the night was about hunger.

She got her gold statue and was off to eat.

Zuckerman explained, "Apparently, right when she got to the Governor's Ball she chowed. Another interesting thing was, she was talking about how the baby was really excited during some of the musical numbers and actually said, 'This is a little dancer we have in here.' Might be a reference to Benjamin Millepied, the father of that baby."

Wragge remarked, "She's got to be pretty happy that the awards season is finally done. This is a lot for anybody who's not pregnant, but let alone a woman who is as far along -- "

Zuckerman added, "And throw in heels and a lot of obligations!"

How about the hosts?

Anne Hathaway, Zuckerman said, didn't do everything perfectly but, he said, people respected her for her honesty and warmth.

"The other thing that we didn't really, or some people didn't see is, in-between. during the commercial breaks. she was really riffing with the audience a lot, making fun of them," Zuckerman said. " She said, 'I know you guys are hungry, check under your seat, there's a PowerBar.' At one point, she auctioned off some sushi for one lucky winner."

And James Franco, co-host of the show, had planned a huge after-party that never happened, Zuckerman said.

"James Franco was the hot ticket," he said. "Apparently, the James Franco party didn't actually happen -- or James did not make it!"

Wragge asked if the star was happy with his performance on the awards.

"I don't think so," Zuckerman replied. "It's Hollywood. Things come up."

The after-parties were full of food and music -- but none more so than the Vanity Fair party. Aside from the Bieber buzz, Florence and the Machine played played a duet of "Tiny Dancer" with Elton John

"A lot of dancing happening there," Zuckerman said. "All the 'Glee' kids were there. Chris Colfer (of 'Glee') got to sit next to Elton John."

Heidi Klum, "always looking amazing," Zuckerman said, also made an appearance at the Vanity Fair party.

The Governor's Ball, Zuckerman said, was a "couple-y" event.

He said, "Annette Bening and Warren Beatty spent a lot of time together. 'The Fighter' couples were there, Christian Bale and Mark Wahlberg and their ladies were there. Another couple was Jeff Bridges was there with his co-star James Brolin. They got kind of couple-y."