51st Academy Awards
| 51st Academy Awards | |
|---|---|
Official poster
|
|
| Date | April 9, 1979 |
| Site | Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles |
| Host | Johnny Carson |
| Producer | Jack Haley, Jr. |
| Director | Marty Pasetta |
| Highlights | |
| Best Picture | The Deer Hunter |
| Most awards | The Deer Hunter (5) |
| Most nominations | The Deer Hunter and Heaven Can Wait (9) |
| TV in the United States | |
| Network | ABC |
| Duration | 3 hours, 25 minutes[1] |
| Ratings | 46.3 million[2] 34.6 (Nielsen ratings)[3] |
The 51st Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released in 1978 and took place on April 9, 1979, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles beginning at 7:00 p.m. PST / 10:00 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, AMPAS presented Academy Awards (commonly referred to as Oscars) in 22 categories. The ceremony, televised in the United States by ABC, was produced by Jack Haley, Jr. and directed by Marty Pasetta.[4] Comedian and talk show host Johnny Carson hosted the show for the first time.[5] Three days earlier in a ceremony held at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California on April 6, the Academy Awards for Technical Achievement were presented by hosts Gregory Peck and Christopher Reeve.[6]
The Deer Hunter won five awards including Best Picture.[7] Other winners included Coming Home with three awards, Midnight Express with two awards, and The Buddy Holly Story, California Suite, Days of Heaven, Death on the Nile, The Flight of the Gossamer Condor, Get Out Your Handkerchiefs, Heaven Can Wait, Scared Straight!, Special Delivery, Superman, Teenage Father and Thank God It's Friday with one.
Contents
Ceremony
The ceremony, held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Downtown Los Angeles, California, was hosted by late night talk host Johnny Carson for the first time.[8] Jack Elliott and Allyn Ferguson served as musical directors for the telecast.[9] Singers Sammy Davis Jr. and Steve Lawrence performed a medley called "Oscar's Only Human" which was composed of movie songs that were not nominated for Best Original Song.[10] Initially the Academy's music branch protested that the segment be dropped from the ceremony, but it was kept intact after Haley threatened to leave his position as producer and pull Carson from emcee duties.[11]
It was also remembered for being the final public appearance of Oscar-winning actor John Wayne, where he was given a standing ovation before presenting the award for Best Picture.[12] On June 11, two months after the ceremony, he died from complications from stomach cancer at age 72.[13]
Winners and nominees
The nominees for the 51st Academy Awards were announced on February 20, 1979.[14] The Deer Hunter and Heaven Can Wait tied for the most nominations with nine each.[15] The winners were announced during the awards ceremony on April 9. Best Director nominees Warren Beatty and Buck Henry became the second pair of directors nominated in that category for the same film; Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise had won for co-directing 1961's West Side Story.[16] Furthermore, Beatty was the first person since Orson Welles to earn acting, directing, producing, and screenwriting nominations in the same year.[17] With Jon Voight and Jane Fonda's respective wins in the Best Actor and Best Actress categories, Coming Home was the fourth film to win both lead acting awards.[18] Best Supporting Actress winner Maggie Smith became the only person to win an Oscar for playing an Oscar loser.[19]
Awards
Winners are listed first and highlighted in boldface.[20]
Academy Honorary Awards
Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award
Special Achievement Award
- Les Bowie, Colin Chilvers, Denys Coop, Roy Field, Derek Meddings, and Zoran Perisic
Multiple nominations and awards
|
The following 14 films had multiple nominations: |
The following three films received multiple awards.
|
Presenters and performers
The following individuals (in order of appearance) presented awards or performed musical numbers:[27]
Presenters
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| John Harlan | Announcer for the 51st Academy Awards |
| Howard W. Koch (AMPAS President) | Gave opening remarks welcoming guests to the awards ceremony |
| Robin Williams | Presenters of the Honorary Award to Walter Lantz |
| Woody Woodpecker | |
| Danny Thomas | Explained the voting rules to the public |
| Dyan Cannon | Presenters of the award for Best Supporting Actor |
| Telly Savalas | |
| Maggie Smith | Presenters of the Scientific and Technical Awards |
| Maureen Stapleton | |
| Robby Benson | Presenters of the Short Subject Awards |
| Carol Lynley | |
| Mia Farrow | Presenters of the Documentary Awards |
| David L. Wolper | |
| Shirley Jones | Presenters of the award for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration |
| Ricky Schroeder | |
| Ray Bolger | Presenters of the award for Best Costume Design |
| Jack Haley | |
| Dom DeLuise | Presenters of the award for Best Film Editing |
| Valerie Perrine | |
| Steve Martin | Presenter of the award for Best Visual Effects |
| Margot Kidder | Presenters of the Sound Awards |
| Christopher Reeve | |
| James Coburn | Presenters of the award for Best Cinematography |
| Kim Novak | |
| Ruby Keeler | Presenters of the award for Best Original Song |
| Kris Kristofferson | |
| Paul Williams | Introducer to Sammy Davis Jr. and Steve Lawrence performance |
| Dean Martin | Presenters of the Music Awards |
| Raquel Welch | |
| Gregory Peck | Presenter of the Honorary Award to the Museum of Modern Art Department of Film |
| Yul Brynner | Presenters of the award for Best Foreign Language Film |
| Natalie Wood | |
| George Burns | Presenters of the award for Best Supporting Actress |
| Brooke Shields | |
| Lauren Bacall | Presenters of the Writing Awards |
| Jon Voight | |
| Audrey Hepburn | Presenter of the Honorary Award to King Vidor |
| Francis Ford Coppola | Presenters of the award for Best Director |
| Ali MacGraw | |
| Cary Grant | Presenter of the Honorary Award to Laurence Olivier |
| Richard Dreyfuss | Presenters of the award for Best Actress |
| Shirley MacLaine | |
| Jack Valenti | Presenter of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award |
| Ginger Rogers | Presenters of the award for Best Actor |
| Diana Ross | |
| John Wayne | Presenter of the award for Best Picture |
Performers
| Name | Role | Performed |
|---|---|---|
| Jack Elliot | Musical arrangers | Orchestral |
| Allyn Ferguson | ||
| Olivia Newton-John | Performer | "Hopelessly Devoted to You" (from Grease) |
| Jane Olivor | Performers | "The Last Time I Felt Like This" (from Same Time, Next Year) |
| Johnny Mathis | ||
| Donna Summer | Performer | "Last Dance" (from Thank God It's Friday) |
| Debby Boone | Performer | "When You're Loved" (from The Magic of Lassie) |
| Barry Manilow | Performer | "Ready to Take a Chance Again" (from Foul Play) |
| Sammy Davis Jr. | Performers | "Not Even Nominated (Oscar's Only Human)" |
| Steve Lawrence | ||
| Academy Awards Orchestra | Performers | "That's Entertainment!" (instrumental) |
See also
- 21st Grammy Awards
- 31st Primetime Emmy Awards
- 32nd British Academy Film Awards
- 33rd Tony Awards
- 36th Golden Globe Awards
- List of submissions to the 51st Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
References
- ↑ Osborne 2013, p. 252
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- ↑ Osborne 2008, p. 413
- ↑ Wiley & Bona 1996, p. 560
- ↑ Pond 2005, p. 29
- ↑ Davis 1998, p. 320
- ↑ Davis 1996, p. 323
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Kinn & Piazza 2002, p. 215
- ↑ Wiley & Bona 1996, p. 1129
- ↑ Holden 1993, p. 619
- ↑ Holden 1993, p. 622
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- ↑ Kinn & Piazza 2002, p. 217
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Franks 2005, p. 246
- ↑ Wiley & Bona 1996, p. 562
Bibliography
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