Foxx 'Ecstatic' About Oscar Nods

On Oscar night, Jamie Foxx will get two chances to make an acceptance speech.

He got a double dose of good news Tuesday: He's nominated as Best Actor for his performance as the legendary Ray Charles in "Ray," and is up for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of a terrified taxi driver in "Collateral."

He's considered the odds-on favorite to pick up the Best Actor honors.

Mary Hart of "Entertainment Tonight" shared a few golden moments with Foxx.

She tells The Early Show co-anchor Hannah Storm that Foxx is "ecstatic."

Foxx told Hart he was inspired by such past Academy Award winners as Denzel Washington and Halle Berry. Now, he has a chance to make some history of his own.

Hart notes that none of the nine people nominated in two categories before Foxx has won both. What does Foxx think his chances are of becoming the first to do it?

"I'll tell you what," he responds. "If that happens, that would be incredible. I don't know what the odds are, but if it happens, the after-party will not be televised!"

Foxx says learning of the two nominations ranks Tuesday right up there with when his daughter Corinne was born as among the greatest days in his life, though they were "different types of energy."

Hart noted Foxx has wrapped up one first, no matter what: He's the first African American actor to get two nominations.

"Hopefully, this is an inspiration to everybody out there that's checking it out, especially to young black kids, because we are so -- have been so flooded with negative things in our community. So for something like this positive to happen, it makes those kids and everybody say, 'Man, maybe I can do it like Jamie Foxx did.'"

"I absolutely could not dream (of getting two nominations in the same year)," Foxx says, "but I learned one thing: When you work with a great director and when you work with great actors, great things come out of it. ...It's really about the art. Nobody is talking about how much money they have in the bank, what the house looks like, nobody thinks about what's going on outside the words 'action' and 'cut,' and that's when it's great."

As for his fellow nominees for Best Actor, Foxx says they're all so talented, it's "beautiful to just be in that number."

"He has such an enthusiasm about everything," Hart says, "and of course, he is so humble, and wants to share all of the credit.

"I said, 'Jamie, who will be your date for the Academy Awards,' and he does have her lined up: It is Corrinne, who's ten. Will she want a designer gown? No doubt, Hart suggests, some designer will be offering her a beautiful gown to wear."

He's been plague the piano since he was a little one himself. It was nice for him to serenade you. I'd like to think about know what he thinks about the fellow nominees.

Hart went on about how humbe Foxx is: "He said about Clint Eastwood, "Clint has the enthusiasm of a child when it comes to movie making,' and that is so true, even though Clint as been at that time for decades now. He talked about Tom Cruise and Denzel (Washington). He also talked about Leonardo DiCaprio, and how often he has now been at awards shows and seen Leo handle the press so beautifully.

"So he said, 'Those are my inspirations.'"