Liza Minelli's Oscar appearance left her 'shaken,' as friend claims she said, 'I will not be seen in a wheelchair in front of everybody'

Liza Minelli's Oscar appearance alongside Lady Gaga was not quite what it seemed, as her friend reveals it wasn't at all what she'd signed up for.

After the buzz of the internationally renowned awards ceremony died down, there were a few key moments that people couldn't stop talking about. The obvious being Will Smith's attack on Chris Brown but, on the positive side of things, Lady Gaga and Liza Minnelli's emotional Oscars hosting touched many hearts.

Shockingly her friend Michael Feinstein, speaking on The Jess Cagle Show on SiriusXM, said the whole thing left Liza, 'very disappointed.' Michael, who's a well-known singer and pianist, attended the ceremony with the legend of stage and screen.

Michael claims that Liza had been suffering from back pain and said she believed she's be on stage, sitting on a director's chair. “She only agreed to appear at the Oscars if she would be in a director’s chair, because she’s been having back trouble,” he explained.

The musician continued, “She said, ‘I don’t want people to see me limping out there.’ She said, ‘You know, I want to look good. I don’t want people to worry about me.’”

Liza, who presented the best picture award alongside Lady Gaga, was completely blind-sighted by the chaos of the night. After the slap, which is sure to go down as one of the most controversial Oscars moments ever, meant that there was a lot of consternation backstage, claims Michael.

He alleges that, only minutes before she was due to take to the stage, a stage manager told her she'd have to go on in a wheelchair instead of the agreed plan. 

"Liza pleaded," claimed Michael. "She said, 'No, I will not be seen in a wheelchair in front of everybody. I will not do this. I refuse to do this.' Then they said, 'Well, it’s either that or nothing.'"

Michael said the incident left her, 'shaken,' and, 'discombobulated.' "She was nervous," he said, "and it made her look like she was out of it. Can you imagine being suddenly forced to be seen by millions of people the way you don’t want to be seen? That’s what happened to her.”

Despite the moment being so well received by viewers, Liza's friend claims she was, "very disappointed that that happened, and it was not what was agreed to." 

He added, "She is really doing well and it’s a shame that it turned out that way."