The Oscars have evolved over the years. There are so many differences today compared to the first ceremony more than 80 years ago. In fact, it would be hard to relate the glitsy, over-the-top event of today’s Academy to the low-key, original awards dinner where the statuette was first presented.
The first annual Academy Awards in 1928 represented the only year where actors or actresses could win for multiple performances; Janet Gaynor’s best actress award was given for her performances in the three different films. By the next awards season, a nomination represented one film and one film only, although there have been several occasions where a performer received multiple nominations in a single year.
The first ceremony also produced the only silent motion picture to receive Oscar’s top prize. “Wings” flew home with the gold that year, and, from that point onward, sound took hold of the film industry.
While “Wings” did win what is technically considered the most coveted award, there was another category that first Academy Awards ceremony that was strikingly similar to best picture. The award — Best Picture,
“Unique and Artistic Production” — went to “Sunrise,” while the “Wings” trophy was designated as the Best Picture, “Production” category. So, in reality, there were two separate best pictures that first year, though, according to the Academy, “Wings” is in fact the actual top winner.
The second ceremony saw the first live radio broadcast of the awards. The awards have been broadcast either on television or radio every year since.
The first television broadcast was in 1953, helping to celebrate the show’s 25th anniversary.
For the first six Oscar seasons, the nominations encompassed one school year of awards, meaning that first ballot covered mid-1927 to mid-1928. It was not until 1934 that a calendar year was used to determine the nominees.
The outrage this year of the supposed snubbing of “The Dark Knight” for best picture has led some to question whether write-in nominations should be allowed. While I do not think there is much of a question that this is a rather ridiculous idea, “The Dark Knight” is not the first “snub” to warrant these of feelings.
For the 1934 awards, Academy officials were literally forced to open up write-in nominations because of their failure to observe Bette Davis’ performance in “Of Human Bondage,” and to a lesser extent Myrna Loy’s in “The Thin Man.” While the ballots made allowance for a write-in, Claudette Colbert ended up winning for
“It Happened One Night.” 1934 was also the last year there were only three nominees for each acting award. Clearly, this oversight would not have occurred had there been five nominees in each category.
Davis’ much-applauded performance was given compensation the following year with one of the first in a long series of the Academy’s “make up” Oscars.
The only write-in nominee to ever win was Hal Mohr for best cinematography the following year for his work in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” After this win, write-in nominations were banned.
By 1944, the ceremony had transitioned from hotel banquet rooms to auditoriums. This was the point when the awards began to look as they do today. Long speeches even became a habit of the best actor and actress winners after Greer Garson “droned on and on for hours” after her 1942 win.
While the first ceremony may have little in common with today’s glamorous affair, it is plain to see it did not take long for the Oscars to become the megawatt event they are today.
