Behind the Oscar: The Secret History of the Academy Awards

Ah, yes... every single March, when that one evening rolls around when a red carpet's rolled out and somebody makes a name for himself or a fool of himself, or somewhere in between, we can only say one word unanimously: "WHY?" And now you will know why... you will know the whole truth, all the hearts and flowers and arsenic. In this juicy tale of the Academy and its unique, oddball system of selecting who gets the Oscar, who should get an Oscar, and it-was-just-too-darn-bad-so-and-so-didn't-get-one, Anthony Holden takes us back to the late 1920's, when a small group of individuals banded together to form the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. From then on, we're taken on a tirade of how simple campaigns, malicious manipulations, and simple mistakes or happenings influence the decisions for Oscar's many surprising receipients. Stars and directors share memories and reminisces throughout the book, which is also illustrated with several darn good photos. The book remembers Oscar's infamous moments such as "Scott, Brando, and The Art Of Rejection" to Greer Garson's "hour-long" speech and dear, sweet Sally Field's "You really like me!" speech. The book also details times when the Academy has been put on the spot: i.e., 1952. In a year of big, bustling dramas, the Academy was able to sigh with relief and vote the year's best picture to the big, bawdy "The Greatest Show On Earth". Another example, this time exploiting the Academy's sentiment: 1981's Best Actor: ailing Henry Fonda won over the "sure-fire" Burt Lancaster. That same sentiment also dealt many, many very deserving Oscar receipients the less glorified "Lifetime Achievement" Awards. And sometimes the Academy has been downright prejudiced: 1954's Best Actress: Grace Kelly over scandal-ridden Judy Garland (the book reveals that Kelly won by a mere seven votes to Garland). Most film critics today will cite Garland's as the better performance, but in 1954... And there have been bitter disappointments. Rosalind Russell's publicity agent had a house riding on a failed 1947 Best Actress win, and Bette Davis was stunned beyond belief when Anne Bancroft won 1962's Best Actress for "The Miracle Worker" over her "What Ever Happened To Baby Jane?". The bottom line: the book is bursting with facts, dirt, and fun and all the way through it keeps up the things the Academy Awards are famous for: drama, suspense, and pure, unadulterated entertainment.

Every person ever nominated for an academy award is listed in the appendix, but the book has even better things to offer. Anthony Holden begins the book back in the 1920s and chronicles every year of the oscars up until 1991. He explains how the Academy began as a company union and evolved into the present day awards. There are many great stories. Most of them concerning the politics behind the awards.He explains how the lifetime achievment awards were created to fill in the gaps of the hollywood greats who were denied the award for one reason or another. Many of these awards were shamefully given out when a person was on his/her deathbed. Other interesting tid bits include the story of how France's Gérard Depardieu cost himself an oscar by giving a politically incorrect interview, George C. Scott's inconsistent reasons for turning down acting awards, and Woody Allen's indifference for the event as a whole.