{"id":12008,"date":"2022-03-22T15:00:13","date_gmt":"2022-03-22T14:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.historyextra.com\/?p=21367"},"modified":"2022-03-22T16:03:15","modified_gmt":"2022-03-22T15:03:15","slug":"13-remarkable-moments-in-the-history-of-the-oscars","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbchistory\/rss_feed\/13-remarkable-moments-in-the-history-of-the-oscars\/","title":{"rendered":"13 remarkable moments in the history of the Oscars"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Ellie Cawthorne\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 22 March 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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How much do you know about the history of the Academy Awards? Ahead of the 2022 Oscars, which take place on Sunday 27 March in the United States, discover some fascinating stories about past ceremonies\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

When was the first Academy Awards?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The Academy Awards were first held in 1929, and each year the film industry awards gold-plated statuettes \u2013 commonly called Oscars \u2013 in a glittering and star-studded ceremony.<\/p>\n

Who was Oscar \u2013 and why were the gold statuettes named after him?<\/h2>\n

Officially the Academy Award of Merit, everyone knows the golden knight holding a sword and standing on a reel of film as Oscar. Cedric Gibbons, art director at movie studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, gets the credit for designing the statuette but not for naming it. There are three theories. Hollywood journalist Sidney Skolsky always maintained he thought it up as a less-grandiose antidote to the pretentiousness of the award ceremony. Meanwhile, actor Bette Davis claimed she once remarked the statuette\u2019s backside resembled that of her husband, Harmon Oscar Nelson. The most likely winner, however, is Margaret Herrick, a librarian at the Academy, who said the knight (not just his bum) looked like her uncle Oscar.<\/p>\n

Who was the first African-American to win an Academy Award?<\/h2>\n

Hattie MacDaniel won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as \u2018Mammy\u2019 in the 1939 Civil War epic Gone With the Wind<\/em>.<\/p>\n

How many Oscars did Titanic<\/em> (1998) win?<\/h2>\n

With 14 nominations and 11 wins, the blockbuster epic\u00a0Titanic<\/em><\/a>\u00a0(1997) dominated the Academy Awards in 1998.<\/p>\n

Which role has won Oscars while having two different actors playing the character?<\/h2>\n

Vito Corleone \u2013 played by Marlon Brando and Robert De Niro in The Godfather <\/em>(1972) and The Godfather: Part II <\/em>(1973) \u2013 <\/em>was the first character to have two different actors win Academy Awards for playing him. The Joker is another example of this occurrence; actors Heath Ledger and Joaquin Phoenix both won Oscars for their portrayal of the unhinged Batman nemesis.<\/p>\n

The history of the Oscars: 13 key moments<\/h2>\n
1<\/span>

1929 Academy Awards: The first ceremony takes place<\/h3>\n<\/div>

Founded by Louis B Mayer, head of MGM studios, in 1927, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was intended as a non-profit organisation with the goal of advancing the film industry. The first Academy Award Ceremony took place two years later at The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, on 16 May 1929. Tickets for the private dinner cost $5 and the presentation ceremony hosted by Douglas Fairbanks [actor and first president of the Academy] lasted just 15 minutes.<\/p>\n

The film industry was undergoing a dramatic change at the time, with the revolutionary introduction of new sound technology. Although hugely popular \u2018talkies\u2019 such as\u00a0The Jazz Singer\u00a0<\/em>(1927) had been released before the first Academy Awards, they were not considered, because it was seen as unfair to compare them to silent movies.<\/p>\n