1982 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The 55th Academy Awards saw Johnny Carson losing out on hosting responsibilities to Richard Pryor, Dudley Moore, Liza Minnelli, and Walter Matthau. There was a clear winner this year with Gandhi leading the way in both nominations and wins, and Tootsie and ET following close behind. I already know that I could easily have at least five other movies taking the plaudits away from those officially nominated – some of my favourite movies were released this year and even if there’s no way they would be nominated in some of the bigger categories, you can’t argue against them being nominated in some of the others – you’ll see when we get there.

Presenting awards this year were Michael Keaton, Elizabeth McGovern, Steve Guttenberg, and Cher, while Sandahl Bergman (hint hint about favourite movies this year) and The Temptations, Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes, and others were performing.

Join us over the next few weeks to see what ludicrous choices I make in each category, and feel free to berate me in the comments with what I should have gone for.

1981 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The 54th Academy Awards are remembered for the shock Best Picture win, with Reds and On Golden Pond leading the way in the nominations and Chariots Of Fire and Raiders Of The Lost Ark leading the wins. Host Johnny Carson once again steered the ship, and Barbara Stanwyck, Danny Kaye, Cubby Broccoli, and Joseph B Walker won Honourary Awards. A Special Achievement Award went to the sound guys on Raiders. 

Presenters this year included Vincent Price, Roger Moore, Ursula Andress, and Loretta Young, while performances came from the likes of Liberace, Sheena Easton, Richard Kiel, and Harold Sakata.

Join us over the next few weeks as I choose some wildly different films from those officially nominated, and feel free to share your thoughts and picks!

1980 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The 53rd Academy Awards saw Johnny Carson leading the proceedings once again and featured Ordinary People picking up the most wins, with The Elephant Man, Raging Bull, and The Coal Miner’s Daughter and others earning high numbers of nominations. This year saw many interesting movies in multiple genres being awarded or nominated, and of course many others not appearing at all. As we proceed into the 80s we’ll be getting into the territory of the films I know and love most and as such the number of films which would never get nominated in a million years in the real world, will be nominated by me. Exciting!

Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton were some of the performers this year, while Lilian Gish, Peter Ustinov, Luciano Pavarotti, and Sigourney Weaver were some of those handing out the awards. Henry Fonda got an Honorary Award, as did the Special Effects team who worked on The Empire Strikes Back.

Join us over the next few weeks to see which films I nominated and awarded, and feel free to add your thoughts and picks!

1979 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The 52nd Academy Awards were again hosted by Johnny Carson and saw three movies taking most of the glory – Kramer Vs Kramer, All That Jazz, and Apocalypse Now. All three movies will make multiple appearances in my nominations, with one of them being a more obvious category winner for me. However, some other notable films of 1979 will also appear as frequent nominees and winners in my picks, so stay tuned for some large variances.

Honorary Awards were presented this year to Alec Guinness, Hal Elias, Ray Stark, Robert Benjamin, John O Aalberg, Charles G Clarke, and John G Frayne. Presenters included William Shatner, Jamie Lee Curtis, Steven Spielberg, and Farrah Fawcett, while performances were from Kermit, Miss Piggy, and Paul Williams, Dionne Warwick, and others.

Come back over the next few weeks to see my picks in each category, and be sure to share your own thoughts and choices!

1978 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The 51st Academy Awards found the world in a post-blockbuster, post Star Wars world. Although there was successful fantasy/sci-fi in the form of Superman and Heaven Can Wait, most of the winners and nominees focused on real people or events – The Deer Hunter, Coming Home, Midnight Express etc. Rest assured that these and more will be featured in my personal picks.

Johnny Carson led the proceedings, with Robin Williams and Woody Woodpecker (!), Mia Farrow, and Francis Ford Coppola among those presenting awards. Performances from Donna Summer, Barry Manilow, and others livened up the show while King Vidor, Laurence Olivier, Walter Lantz, and Leo Jaffe were given Honorary awards. A special award was given for the Visual Effects of Superman while the Musuem of Modern Art  Department Of Film was also honoured, for some reason.

Join me over the next few weeks as I share my picks in each category, and don’t forget to leave your thoughts and choices in the comments!

1977 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The 50th Academy awards show was again marred by controversy with Vanessa Redgrave using her victory speech to thank those who ‘stood firm’ against fascism in all its forms, while Paddy Chayefsky later retorted that the ceremony was not a platform for political propaganda. Just so all you millennials are aware that political/celebrity standoffs aren’t a new thing and were going on while you were still swimming in your daddy’s nutsack. Elsewhere, a little movie called Star Wars won a few awards alongside Annie Hall, while Julia, Turning Point, and Close Encounters of The Third Kind earned a bunch of nominations. I think you can guess where my votes will be going.

Honorary Awards went to Margaret Booth, Charlton Heston, and Walter Mirisch while Sammy Davis Jr and Marvin Hamlisch performed a tribute for the many performers who died in 1977. Presenters included C3PO and R2D2, Olivia Newton-John, and Jon Voight.

Join me in the next few weeks to see which awards went to which movies, and feel free to leave your comments and picks too!

1976 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The Awards risked debauchery this year by allowing Richard Pryor on the mic, backed up by Jane Fonda, Ellen Burstyn, and Warren Beatty. We had our first ever posthumous acting win (Peter Finch), and the first woman (Lina Wertmuller) to be nominated in the Directing category. As usual, there were some standouts with respect to multiple nominations – both Network and Rocky received ten, and All The President’s Men grabbed eight. Which, if any, of these movies will feature heavily in my picks?

Presenting awards this year were Muhammad Ali and Sly Stallone, Louise Fletcher, Jack Nicholson and many more, while performances came from the likes of Bill Conti, Tom Jones, and Ann-Margret. The sole Honorary Award went to Pandro S Berman – one of early Hollywood’s biggest Producers.

Join us over the next few weeks as I deliver my verdict on each category, and feel free to share your picks too!

 

1975 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The 48th Academy Awards ushered in the era of the blockbuster, with Stephen Spielberg’s Jaws earning all of the money but a host of nominations and wins too. There were several films which had high numbers of nominations – One Flew over The Cuckoo’s Nest leading the way with nine, closely followed by Barry Lyndon with seven and Dog Day Afternoon with six. Rest assured that each of these will feature heavily in my personal picks, along with some other interesting selections.

We had five hosts this year – George Segal, Goldie Hawn, Gene Kelly, Robert Shaw, and Walter Matthau while presenters included Roy Scheider, Ben Johnson, Isabelle Adjani, and Gore Vidal. Performing for the crowd this year were John Williams, Diana Ross, and Keith Carradine amongst others, while Mary Pickford, Mervyn LeRoy, and Jules C Stein picked up Honorary Awards.

Join us over the next few weeks to see what I picked in each category, and be sure to leave you own – the world is (n’t) watching (!).

1974 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The 47th Academy Awards had a very masculine, mafia-based tone, what with hosts including Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope, and Sammy Davis Jr, and The Godfather II and Chinatown picking up several nominations and wins. You can expect both of those movies to lead the way in my personal picks, with hopefully a few surprises along the way.

Jean Renoir, Howard Hawks, and Arthur B Krim were the honorary winners this year, while other categories were presented by Lauren Bacall, OJ Simpson, Goldie Hawn, Warren Beatty, and many more. The four hosts performed music, along with Aretha Franklin and Frankie Laine.

Join us over the next few weeks to see where my wins go, and feel free to share your own picks!

1973 Academy Awards – An Introduction

The 46th Academy Awards were notable for honouring movies which were both alarmingly modern and groundbreaking, and those which unashamedly recalled the past. As if this needed any further proof outside of the films nominated, a man broke ground by becoming the first streaker at the ceremony, unashamedly recalling that ancient tradition of being naked in public. There were two main players this time, with one clear winner – The Sting claiming seven wins from 10 nominations and The Exorcist earning only two wins from 10. The ceremony also saw the largest age gap yet between winners, when young Tatum O’Neil became the youngest ever winner vesus John Houseman’s veteran win.

The awards were hosted this year by John Huston, Burt Reynolds, Diana Ross, and David Niven. Presenters this year included Linda Blair, Alfred Hitchcock, Katherine Hepburn, and Jack Lemmon, while Jodie Foster, Telly Savalas, Peggy Lee, and Liza Minelli were some of the performers on the night. Honorary Awards went to Henri Langlois, Lew Wasserman, Groucho Marx, and Lawrence Weingarten.

At a high level I can see switch in the balance between The Sting and The Exorcist in my personal picks, and I expect several gritty dramas and surprising horror movies to feature heavily. What will your picks be? Join us over the next few weeks to share!