Here's the full story about Elaine Stritch where she admits that her speech was over two minutes in length which is still WAY over the amount that the Tonys allow....

Stritch in tears backstage at the Tonys

By Robert Hofler

NEW YORK (Variety) - Elaine Stritch, whose acceptance speech at the 56th annual Tony Awards was cut off on the live CBS telecast Sunday, said backstage, "I'm very, very upset about the whole situation. I think they should have given me my time. I only had over two minutes, I timed myself.

"To be cut down like that has spoiled it for me. For a woman my age, to win her first Tony, it has spoiled it for me.

"I will get over this. I've had tougher problems. And I'm here. But this is going to take a few days. This was an evening I wanted to live with for a long time. And I'm glad it's over, the way it turned out."

Asked if anyone had apologized, the whiskey-voiced actress replied, "In your dreams. Mary Tyler Moore apologized. People who work has hard as I do apologized, my producers and John Lahr, my (book) collaborator, and John Streiber, the producer who made me do this, apologized."

"Working works for me. Winning doesn't. Winning is difficult for me. Because I am a winner, but I find it so hard to win. And the more reason I wanted to turn that around tonight and accept my prize with graciousness. And I blew it. I was anxious to tell the audience how I felt, and they rang the curtain down before the play was over. What I'm doing is blowing it now. I can't play it any other way. I'm telling you the truth how I feel.

"I'll tell you what isn't working, is the waterproof mascara."

There had been talk of the four nominees in the category of special theatrical event performing together on the Tonycast, but apparently Stritch nixed that notion.

"I didn't want to perform in the Tonys," she said. "The Tonys have never even asked me to be a presenter. I don't know what they had against me: Catholic, pain in the ass, alcoholic. They don't seem to like me very much. This is one night I could sit in the audience and win or be nominated. I didn't have to sing for my supper tonight."