When the curtain goes up on the 79th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 25, Ellen DeGeneres will be attending her first Oscar show -- but instead of swanning about as a presenter or sweating it out as a nominee, she'll inaugurate the proceedings as the evening's host, says The Hollywood Reporter.

Laura Ziskin, who is producing this year's ceremonies, said Thursday that she offered the gig to DeGeneres, who quickly accepted.

"When Laura Ziskin called, I was thrilled," DeGeneres said. "There's two things I've always wanted to do in my life: One is to host the Oscars. The second is to get a call from Laura Ziskin. You can imagine that day's diary entry."