Now that Eddie Murphy has been selected as Oscar host, he's no doubt receiving lots of advice on how to handle the gig. On Tuesday, he got some humorous pointers from his "Bowfinger" costar Steve Martin (himself a repeat host of the awards show, in 2001, 2003 and 2010).

Among suggestions Martin offered on his blog?  "If you feel tired midway through, give Neil Patrick Harris a Red Bull and throw some sheet music at him." And, "Start slimming down now. You looked kind of paunchy in NORBIT."

Murphy is handling the show solo, but lest he have any thoughts about bringing on a co-host, Martin cautioned him against it.

"Whatever you do, don't have a co-host," he counseled, referring to 2010 co-host Alec Baldwin, who is slated to break Martin's 15-time "Saturday Night Live" hosting mark when he emcees the season opener this week.  "They're a big pain, and they just end up breaking your SNL hosting record."