Oprah's Oscar® Winners

One of the most emotional wins of the night was Heath Ledger's Best Supporting Actor award for his role as the Joker in The Dark Knight. Afterward, Gayle King spoke with Heath's family, who accepted the award on his behalf. "It's a time for celebration and for us to be happy," says Heath's mother, Sally. "I think we've had a bit of a roller-coaster year, but now it's time to celebrate what he did and be proud of what he did, and we truly are."

Heath's sister, Kate, says she knew the role of the Joker brought him a lot of joy. "He had the time of his life," Kate says. When Kate saw The Dark Knight for the first time, she says it was bittersweet. "I found myself laughing through the whole thing as well as holding back tears," Kate says. "The weirdest thing is, I never wanted it to end. No, because it was like the last bit of him."   

When Heath's family accepted the Best Supporting Actor award, Kate said they were accepting it on behalf of his daughter, Matilda. "We keep all his keepsakes for her. Everything is for Matilda's because that's her daddy's things and her daddy's memories."

Gayle tells Heath's father, Kim, that she was particularly moved when he referred to Heath as "our boy." "We always refer to him as 'our boy'—he always will be," Kim says. As for the rest of the acceptance speech, Kim says he think Heath would have been pleased. "He's probably saying to us right now, 'I'm glad you were down there doing this right now rather than me!'"