AWARDS FOR CINEMATOGRAPHY: THE 'OSCAR'  -  Page 1

Page 1:  1927  -  1940  -  1950  -  1960

Page 2:  1970  -  1980  -  1990  -  2000

Page 3:  Other Awards:  ASC - BAFTA - European Film Awards -

                Manaki Brothers - Plus Camerimage

THE 'OSCAR' FOR CINEMATOGRAPHY

The official name of the 'Oscar' statuette - given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences - is the 'Academy Award of Merit'. It was designed by Cedric Gibbons, chief art director at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and sculpted by Los Angeles artist George Stanley. The 'Oscar' statuette depicts a knight, holding a crusader's sword, standing on a reel of film. The film reel features five spokes, signifying the five original branches of the Academy [actors, directors, producers, technicians and writers.] Each statuette is made from the alloy britannium and is then plated in copper, nickel silver, and finally, 24-karat gold. Each statuette stands 13½ inches tall and weighs 8½ pounds.

How 'Oscar' received his nickname is not exactly clear. The most popular story is that Margaret Herrick, an Academy employee and eventual executive director, remarked that the statuette resembled her Uncle Oscar, and the Academy staff began to refer to it by that name. In any case, by the sixth Awards Presentation in 1934, Hollywood columnist Sidney Skolsky used the name in his column in reference to Katharine Hepburn's first 'Best Actress' win. The Academy itself didn't use the nickname officially until 1939.

For the first six annual presentations, the awards were based on seasonal, not calendar years; that is, on the period from August 1 of one year to July 31 of the next year. Since 1934, however, the calendar year has been used.

In their first year, the Academy Awards were presented at a private dinner in the Blossom Room of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, with fewer than 250 persons attending. Public interest proved so great, however, that the following year the Academy permitted radio broadcasting of the event. Television added a new dimension in 1953, enabling millions throughout the United States and Canada to watch the ceremonies. Telecasting in color was begun in 1966, bringing home viewers the full sparkle and glamour of the event. Since 1969, the Awards program has been telecast throughout the world, by the mid-1990s reaching movie fans in over 100 countries.

1st - 1927-28 [presented on 16 May 1929]

Charles Rosher & Karl Struss - Sunrise [: A Song of Two Humans] [F.W. Murnau]

2nd - 1928-29 [presented in 1930]

Clyde De Vinna - White Shadows in the South Seas [W.S. Van Dyke]

3rd - 1929-30 [1931]

Joseph T. Rucker & Willard Van der Veer - With Byrd at the South Pole [doc]

4th - 1930-31 [1932]

Floyd Crosby - Tabu [: A Story of the South Seas] [F.W. Murnau]

5th - 1931-32 [1933]

Lee Garmes - Shanghai Express [Josef von Sternberg]

6th - 1932-33 [1934]

Charles Lang Jr. - A Farewell to Arms [Frank Borzage]

7th - 1934 [1935]

Victor Milner - Cleopatra [Cecil B. DeMille]

8th - 1935 [1936]

Hal Mohr - A Midsummer Night's Dream [William Dieterle & Max Reinhardt]

9th - 1936 [1937]

Gaetano 'Tony' Gaudio - Anthony Adverse [Mervyn LeRoy]

- W. Howard Greene [ph] & Harold Rosson [ph adv] received an extra award [plaque] for the color cinematography of The Garden of Allah [Richard Boleslawski] - Virgil Miller was the uncred doph

10th - 1937 [1938]

Karl Freund - The Good Earth [Sidney Franklin]

- W. Howard Greene received an extra award [plaque] for the color photography of A Star Is Born [William A. Wellman]

11th - 1938 [1939]

Joseph Ruttenberg - The Great Waltz [Julien Duvivier]

- Oliver Marsh & Allen M. Davey received an extra award [plaques] for the color cinematography of Sweethearts [W.S. Van Dyke]

12th - 1939 [1940] [separate awards for b&w and color]

Gregg Toland [b&w] - Wuthering Heights [William Wyler]

Ernest Haller & Ray Rennahan [color] - Gone with the Wind [Victor Fleming]

- Technicolor Company received a Special Award [statuette] for its contributions in successfully bringing three-color feature production to the screen

- Winton Hoch & Technicolor Motion Picture Corp. received a Class III Technical Award [certificate of honorable mention] for the development of an auxiliary optical system

13th - 1940 [presented in 1941]

George Barnes [b&w] - Rebecca [Alfred Hitchcock]

Georges Périnal [color] - The Thief of Bagdad [Ludwig Berger, Michael Powell & Tim Whelan]

14th - 1941 [1942]

Arthur Miller [b&w] - How Green Was My Valley [John Ford]

Ernest Palmer & Ray Rennahan [color] - Blood and Sand [Rouben Mamoulian]

15th - 1942 [1943]

Joseph Ruttenberg [b&w] - Mrs. Miniver [William Wyler]

Leon Shamroy [color] - The Black Swan [Henry King]

16th - 1943 [1944]

Arthur Miller [b&w] - The Song of Bernadette [Henry King]

Hal Mohr & W. Howard Greene [color] - Phantom of the Opera [Arthur Lubin]

- Charles G. Clarke [1899-1983] and the 20th Century-Fox Studio Camera Department received a Class III Technical Award [certificate of honorable mention] for the development and practical application of a device for composing artificial clouds into motion picture scenes during production photography

17th - 1944 [1945]

Joseph LaShelle [b&w] - Laura [Otto Preminger]

Leon Shamroy [color] - Wilson [Henry King]

18th - 1945 [1946]

Harry Stradling [b&w] - The Picture of Dorian Gray [Albert Lewin]

Leon Shamroy [color] - Leave Her to Heaven [John M. Stahl]

19th - 1946 [1947]

Arthur Miller [b&w] - Anna and the King of Siam [John Cromwell]

Charles Rosher, Leonard Smith & Arthur Arling [color] - The Yearling [Clarence Brown]

20th - 1947 [1948]

Guy Green [b&w] - Great Expectations [David Lean]

Jack Cardiff [color] - Black Narcissus [Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger]

21st - 1948 [1949]

William Daniels [b&w] - The Naked City [Jules Dassin]

Joseph Valentine, William V. Skall & Winton Hoch [color] - Joan of Arc [Victor Fleming]

22nd - 1949 [1950]

Paul C. Vogel [b&w] - Battleground [William A. Wellman]

Winton Hoch [color] - She Wore a Yellow Ribbon [John Ford]

- Eastman Kodak Co. received a Class I technical award for the development and introduction of an improved safety base motion picture film

- André Coutant & Jacques Mathot received a Class III technical award for the design of the Éclair Camérette [or Caméflex]

23rd - 1950 [presented in 1951]

Robert Krasker [b&w] - The Third Man [Carol Reed]

Robert Surtees [color] - King Solomon's Mines [Compton Bennett & Andrew Marton]

24th - 1951 [1952]

William C. Mellor [b&w] - A Place in the Sun [George Stevens]

Alfred Gilks & John Alton [color] - An American in Paris [Vincente Minnelli]

25th - 1952 [1953]

Robert Surtees [b&w] - The Bad and the Beautiful [Vincente Minnelli]

Winton C. Hoch & Archie Stout (2uc) [color] - The Quiet Man [John Ford]

- George Alfred Mitchell received an award for the design and development of the camera which bears his name and for his continued and dominant presence in the field of cinematography

- Eastman Kodak Co. received a Class I technical award for the introduction of Eastman color negative and Eastman color print film

26th - 1953 [1954]

Burnett Guffey [b&w] - From Here to Eternity [Fred Zinnemann]

Loyal Griggs [color] - Shane [George Stevens]

- Professor Henri Chrétien and Earl Sponable, Sol Halprin, Lorin Grignon, Herbert Bragg and Carl Faulkner of 20th Century Fox Studios received a Class I technical award for creating, developing and engineering the equipment, processes and techniques known as CinemaScope

- Fred Waller received a Class I technical award for designing and developing the multiple photographic and projection systems which culminated in Cinerama

27th - 1954 [1955]

Boris Kaufman [b&w] - On the Waterfront [Elia Kazan]

Milton Krasner [color] - Three Coins in the Fountain [Jean Negulesco]

- Paramount Pictures, Inc., Loren L. Ryder, John R. Bishop and all the members of the technical and engineering staff received a Class I technical award for developing a method of producing and exhibiting motion pictures known as VistaVision

- Karl Freund and Frank Crandell of Photo Research Corp. received a Class III technical award for the design and development of a direct reading brightness meter

28th - 1955 [1956]

James Wong Howe [b&w] - The Rose Tattoo [Daniel Mann]

Robert Burks [color] - To Catch a Thief [Alfred Hitchcock]

29th - 1956 [1957]

Joseph Ruttenberg [b&w] - Somebody Up There Likes Me [Robert Wise]

Lionel Lindon [color] - Around the World in 80 Days [Michael Anderson]

30th - 1957 [1958] [not separated into b&w and color]

Jack Hildyard - The Bridge on the River Kwai [David Lean]

- Todd-AO Corp. and Westrex Corp. received a Class I technical award for developing a method of producing and exhibiting wide-film motion pictures known as the Todd-AO System

31st - 1958 [1959]

Sam Leavitt [b&w] - The Defiant Ones [Stanley Kramer]

Joseph Ruttenberg [color] - Gigi [Vincente Minnelli]

- Panavision, Inc. received a Class II technical award for the design and development of the Auto Panatar anamorphic photographic lens for 35mm CinemaScope photography

32nd - 1959 [1960]

William C. Mellor [b&w] - The Diary of Anne Frank [George Stevens]

Robert Surtees [color] - Ben-Hur [William Wyler]

- Douglas G. Shearer of MGM, Inc. and Robert E. Gottschalk and John R. Moore of Panavision, Inc. received a Class II technical award for the development of a system of producing and exhibiting wide-film motion pictures known as Camera 65

33rd - 1960 [presented in 1961]

Freddie Francis [b&w] - Sons and Lovers [Jack Cardiff]

Russell Metty [color] - Spartacus [Stanley Kubrick]

34th - 1961 [1962]

Eugen Shuftan [Eugen Schüfftan] [b&w] - The Hustler [Robert Rossen]

Daniel L. Fapp [color] - West Side Story [Robert Wise & Jerome Robbins]

35th - 1962 [1963]

Jean Bourgoin & Walter Wottitz [b&w] - The Longest Day [Ken Annakin, Andrew Marton & Bernhard Wicki]

Fred A. Young [color] - Lawrence of Arabia [David Lean]

36th - 1963 [1964]

James Wong Howe [b&w] - Hud [Martin Ritt]

Leon Shamroy [color] - Cleopatra [Joseph L. Mankiewicz]

37th - 1964 [1965]

Walter Lassally [b&w] - Zorba the Greek/Alexis Zorbas [Michael Cacoyannis]

Harry Stradling [color] - My Fair Lady [George Cukor]

38th - 1965 [1966]

Ernest Laszlo [b&w] - Ship of Fools [Stanley Kramer]

Freddie Young [color] - Doctor Zhivago [David Lean]

39th - 1966 [1967]

Haskell Wexler [b&w] - Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? [Mike Nichols]

Ted Moore [color] - A Man for All Seasons [Fred Zinnemann]

- Mitchell Camera Corp. received a Class II technical award for the design and development of the Mitchell Mark II 35mm Portable Motion Picture Reflex Camera

- Arnold & Richter KG received a Class II technical award for the design and development of the Arriflex 35mm Portable Motion Picture Reflex Camera

40th - 1967 [1968] [no longer separate awards for b&w and color]

Burnett Guffey - Bonnie and Clyde [Arthur Penn]

41st - 1968 [1969]

Pasqualino De Santis - Romeo and Juliet [Franco Zeffirelli]

42nd - 1969 [1970]

Conrad L. Hall - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid [George Roy Hill]