A grand event for global film artists
The Academy Awards are the highest honors in the history of world cinema. It has been 64 years since its birth and has produced 63 Academy Award winners. , its predecessor was the "Academy Award" of the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The era after the end of World War I was a rare decade for the American film industry: in a place near Los Angeles that was originally no one cared about, a group of pioneering folk artists and Cultural brokers built Hollywood, America's film base. After more than 10 years of hard work, European films have "quietly withdrawn" from more than 20,000 theaters in the United States, while films produced by Hollywood in the United States account for more than 70% of the screenings in various countries around the world. In the early 1920s, the United States invested nearly US$200 million in the production of 800 films every year. Including film promotion, copy production, etc., the total expenditure on film reached US$1.5 billion per year. All this makes Hollywood appear in front of people's eyes as the "fifth largest corporate group" in the country. Hollywood producers are becoming increasingly ambitious. They longed for greater fame and fortune!
At that time, filmmakers still lacked a supreme sense of authority in the hearts of the audience. The most respected and favored people in movies and in life are movie stars. The star system has almost become a bridge between Hollywood and the world. Audiences' admiration for movie stars is sustained by millions of signatures, and countless advertisements and publicity create an aura of legend around these icons. Many movie fans around the world worship Hollywood. This growing fanaticism even threatened the dignity of the Pope. At the end of 1926, the talkie film came out in the United States: Warner Bros. Pictures took the risk to produce an opera film "Don Juan" starring Barrymore under a pessimistic economic situation. The film was an unexpected huge success, with its total box office revenue reaching 3.5 million US dollars! This record was soon refreshed by "The Musical" which earned 5 million US dollars. Obviously, the sound film patent rights fell to the excited and conceited Hollywood. in hand.
Between 1927 and 1928, the number of moviegoers in the United States increased by leaps and bounds, reaching as high as 100 million people per week! Hollywood became the "movie capital" that people admired. The rapid progress of art and science inspires and spurs the "young ones" among producers and distributors. They have many thoughts and are full of ambition. Including Mary Pickford, a prestigious Hollywood star. Some far-sighted artists and entrepreneurs believe that in order for the increasingly competitive film industry to remain prosperous, there needs to be an academic institution that truly understands art and science, and can make inspiring judgments on every year's films equally and calmly as an authority. And the final fair verdict will be recorded in the annals of film history.
On January 4, 1927, at a beachfront dinner hosted by Meyer, the head of MGM Film Company, Meyer excitedly raised a question for the first time: Should the first film studio in cultural history be established as soon as possible? An academic institution for film? So someone suggested: This academic institution might be called the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences!
A week later, 36 authorities in the American film industry gathered at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. The proposal by Meyer and four other people received an enthusiastic response! When they raised their whiskey glasses at the same time, they became the official founders of the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences!
In mid-March, the academy’s The leadership team is mature: Chairman Douglas, Vice Chairman Fuchide, Treasurer Levi, and Secretary Frank. On May 4, the California State Government of the United States of America officially awarded the college the certificate of a not-for-profit company. One evening seven days later, a celebration party was held in the lobby of the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles. According to statistics, 231 guests joined the academy with enthusiasm and expectations.
There is no doubt that May 11, 1927 is a date that cannot be ignored in the history of American and world films: the first film academic institution of mankind was solemnly born! She will take on the responsibility of caring for, guiding and promoting film art. The great historical mission, as stated in the first statement issued by the college on June 20, 1926: The college will face all kinds of inappropriate attacks from the outside with a fair attitude, will work hard to adjust the internal differences and problems, and Properly promote and protect the reputation of film and the welfare of film workers; the Academy will encourage the improvement and development of professional film art and science and technology through the exchange of constructive ideas and a series of measures to reward outstanding achievers; it will play an important role in improving and It will have a greater impact on improving the role of the screen; all the positive actions of the Academy are for professional films of all genres, for films and other arts from all over the world, and for the ever-developing human culture...
From the end of 1927 to the autumn of 1928, labor relations in the American film industry were in a state of considerable tension. Management companies and major studios on the West Coast—including MGM, Warner Brothers, Fox, and United Artists When film companies, under relentless pressure from the New York consortium and Manhattan Bank, prepared to forcibly cut the wages of Hollywood studio workers by 10%, workers and many Hollywood creators were determined to resist by going on strike.
During this period, the person in charge of the college has repeatedly sought an office center for the group, because the original location can only barely hold small meetings and cannot accommodate gatherings of hundreds of members of the entire college. Someone made an impassioned statement: A building should be built immediately. But the idea was rejected by the committee due to lack of funds. After many negotiations, the college identified the mezzanine floor of the Rossford Hotel as its office space. There, the Academy began working tirelessly to collect professional journals from around the world, build an art archive and consider building a permanent film library.
The Academy is faced with a myriad of tasks, but the most important one is the annual awards event for film creators who have contributed.
The initiators of the awards are Richard Clifford, Kim Clawman, Melendi Blackton and Chibos. The resourceful Chibos was elected chairman of the working committee. They believe that awards can help the audience communicate with the film and strengthen people's interest in the film. As early as 1927, the committee held its first meeting and proposed the selection project. However, due to other urgent matters, the plan was put aside. It was not until May 1928 that the proposal was re-examined and approved, and 12 projects were determined. Awards items: 1. Best Producer; 2. Best Actor; 3. Best Actress; 4. Best Drama Director; 5. Best Comedy Director; 6. Best Cinematography; 7. Best Art Guidance; 8. Best Effect Production; 9. Best Original Work; 10. Best Adaptation; 11. Best Title Writing; 12. Best Props Production.
The Academy adopted an extremely cautious attitude in the first selection. It first selected five categories of directors, producers, actors, screenwriters and technical staff, and then selected the nominees together. Central Committee. The results of the selection were produced on February 15, 1929, but were not made public until several months later.
On May 16, 1929, the first Academy Awards ceremony was held at the Roosevelt Grand Hotel in Hollywood, the "movie capital" of the United States. The dazzling glass lamps made the hall look like a crystal palace. The crimson Persian carpet was filled with flower baskets of various colors, and the atmosphere was extremely solemn. Most of the guests at the party wore traditional evening clothes. Douglas, the president of the college, was even more well-dressed, wearing a black tie with gold threads. Other college leaders also wore elegant and dignified black ties. This unconventional and large-scale film awards event was hailed as a "black tie dinner" by the press and critics. The dinner was filled with an atmosphere of friendliness, trust and understanding, and felt like a "movie family". For many years, stars, producers, and technicians in the film industry could only talk or greet each other in small salons. However, the large dinner hosted by the Academy where hundreds of people gathered together really made people excited. This "black tie dinner" is not only a novel creation, but also has epoch-making significance.
Since then, the academy has not stopped its sacred and arduous mission - awarding activities. Later, the awards activities developed into a grand spectacle attracting hundreds of millions of viewers around the world.
Amid people’s smiles and applause, the 11 winners of the first “Academy Award” stood in the center of the hall with smiles on their faces. Only the winner of the Best Actor Award - Ymir Jennings did not receive this unforgettable honor.
It stands to reason that among the films at that time, sound films already had the upper hand, but when selecting among the best films from 1927 to 1928, silent films were still the best, so almost all of the award-winning films this time were It's a silent film. The film "Wings" was unanimously selected by the judges as the Best Picture Award. Jenny Gaynor showed outstanding artistic level in the three films "Seventh Heaven", "Street Angel" and "Sunrise" and won the glorious crown of Best Actress.
Amidst the cheerful music, the head of the academy awarded two gold statues to Frank Pao Caiqi and Lewis Maxton, because they directed "Seventh Heaven" and "The Inner Palace" respectively. beautiful". This is the first and last time the Academy has awarded the award to a director of a dramatic film.
The coveted Academy Special Award went to Warner Bros. Pictures for their masterful production and distribution of a much-appreciated film, "The Jazz Singer." Many reporters and observers believe that the Academy's praise of "The Jazz Singer" is discerning, and it has dual reforming significance: the films at that time were all silent films, but the producers of "The Jazz Singer" boldly inserted many lines of dialogue into the film. Baihe singing is refreshing! Secondly, the film is an extraordinary work performed by a real black singer, while in previous American movies black people could only play small roles as walk-ons.
Among the award-winning members, there is also a comedy master who made the audience crazy. He is Charles Chaplin, who served as the screenwriter, director, actor and producer of "The Circus"! 100% The judges raised their hands to approve a proposal to award Chaplin a special award.
On this night, it seemed that the most excited person was Joseph Farnham. He won a gold statue for completing the subtitles for the film "Tell the World." He kissed the golden statue over and over again amidst warm applause and cheers. He couldn't help but burst into tears and kept murmuring: "Thank you...Thank you for telling me to the whole world."
Farnham's words were prophetic. A week later, newspapers across Europe reported on the award ceremony. Obviously, the Academy's first awards event not only communicated with filmmakers and all walks of life, but also made an enterprising gesture to the world.
There is no doubt that since the birth of film in December 1895, the Academy has been the pioneer in conducting national selections based on the principles of science and art. It unswervingly disseminates its value orientation and broad spirit to the world year after year.
The golden statue of the "Academy Awards" was carefully designed by Derek Chibos, the art director of MGM Films. It is a handsome, burly, wealthy man with a height of 13.5 inches and a weight of 8.54 pounds. The charming gilded portrait of a young man, holding a sharp sword in both hands, stands on a piece of artistic film tape, full of heroic and energetic momentum. This character design is truly unique. The first three-dimensional gold statue was completed by a 24-year-old sculptor named George Stanley.
In 1931, during the 4th Award Ceremony held by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, by pure chance, Academy Librarian Margaret Harrick took over the Pass the golden statue that symbolizes honor and happiness. She looked at it carefully and exclaimed: "Oh, he looks so much like my uncle Oscar! So much like my uncle Oscar!"
"Oscar"! What a beautiful and beautiful word. A wonderful, resounding name! Since then, the "Academy Awards" have been gradually forgotten and replaced by the "Oscar Awards". Just as the emergence of any kind of honor will lead to various "actions" from many contenders, there are also many different opinions on the origin of the name "Oscar".
John Sandick, an author who writes stories about award-winning actors, seriously claims that he was the first to call out the name "Oscar." Because he once made a joke to the lovely golden statue in front of many friends: "Oscar, do you have a cigar?"