One week after
the biggest film event in the world, we will address
some curiosities that marked the eighty-four editions of the Oscars
– initially called Award of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The first
edition of the Awards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences occurred
on May 16, 1929 in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.
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| The Birth of a Tradition: The first Academy Awards banquet was held in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel’s Blossom Room. |
This event has
already had several homes, like Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, Coconut Grove of The
Ambassador Hotel, Shrine Auditorium, Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Pantages
Theatre, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion do Music Center and Kodak Theater – its current
home.
The first
edition wasn’t transmitted by any type of media. Only in 1930 a local radio of
Los Angeles – KNX broadcast this event. The ceremony was passed on TV for the
first time in 1953 and in 1954, forty-three million people, were already
watching it. In 1965 was displayed the last ceremony in black and white. The event
was transmitted in thirty-seven countries, with six hundred million viewers in
1969, turning into the highest rated show.
The Award of the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1936 starts to be called OSCAR.
And, at this time, newspapers were receiving the names of the winners until
8.30 pm of the award night, and had to keep secret until the next newspaper
edition.
There was a time
on History that stole protagonism from the Oscars (World War II). However, the
events were considered a success, though they had many factors against like the
low budget (for example the statues are made of plaster instead of metal). In
1941, the American president Roosevelt even thanked to the cinematographic
industry for being able to carry some entertainment and good times to the American
people in a war scenario.
In 1942, Greer
Garson after receiving the award for the best actress in the film “Mrs. Miniver”,
delivered the longest speech in the history of the Oscars, with over forty
minutes.
Sidney Poitier received in 1963 the award for best actor in the film “Lilies of the Field", becoming the first black person winning an Oscar.
The theme of homosexuality
and HIV/AIDS was considered taboo by the Academy, and only in 1994, Tom Hanks
won the award for best actor with the role of an homosexual with HIV in “Philadelphia”.
The international conflict scenario (with USA and Iraq) struck again the normal procedure of the event with the photographers’ restriction and the cancel of red carpet festivities. However, this rule, in the event night, was ignored.
Top 5 – Most awarded
films:
“Titanic” (with
11 awards out of 14 nominations) – 1998
“Ben-Hur” (with
11 awards out of 12 nominations) – 1960
“Lord of the
Rings” (with 11 awards out of 12 nominations) – 2004
“The Last
Emperor” (with 9 awards out of 9 nominations) – 1988
“Gone With the
Wind” (with 8 awards out of 8 nominations) – 1940
Bibliography
Text written by the authors of the blog:
Cristiana & Margarida
