Review by C.J. Bunce
Filmmaking is the one industry that celebrates what it does the loudest. The Oscars is a place for celebrating, usually celebrating people you’ve never met, and it’s viewed by hundreds of millions of anxious movie fans. No other celebration other than crowning the next king or queen of England really comes close, and it happens again every year. Apparently the Academy Awards ceremony is also about people being rude or worse. It’s a place where some feel like outcasts, where talent tries to connect with something of the past–maybe even a parent or grandparent who received the same honor. You’ll discover more than you think you know about being the star of the ceremony in Dave Karger’s new assemblage of interviews, TCM’s 50 Oscar Nights: Iconic Stars & Filmmakers on Their Career-Defining Wins, available for pre-order now here at Amazon and in bookstores tomorrow.
Did they write a speech in advance or wing it? The book shares all-new interviews with fifty winners, from Meryl Streep to Steven Spielberg, Sally Field to Elton John, and Mel Brooks to Clint Eastwood, each recounting the big night, what they were thinking, what they wore, what they said, what they did afterward, and where they show-off–or hide–their golden trophy today.
Where is the most common place those interviewed keep their trophy? On their piano. Some have their awards on display at the Academy museum. Others have theirs hidden away out of sight, like Louis Gossett, Jr. After years of embarrassment and therapy, Dustin Hoffman proudly displays his on his mantel. Emma Thompson keeps her two Oscars in her bathroom.
Some Oscar winners showed how great they really are. Fans of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King recall how Peter Jackson and the other winners from the film skipped the swank after-parties for a get-together of thousands of fans at a local theater instead. Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese sound like excited little kids discussing their wins.
The book reaches back into the past. Clint Eastwood talks about taking his mother to the ceremony for Unforgiven. Estelle Parsons, who won her award for Bonnie and Clyde, says she keeps her Oscar on the floor so she doesn’t have to reach up for it when visitors stop by. Rita Moreno recalls forgetting what she wanted to say in her acceptance speech for West Side Story, and the fact Joan Crawford literally was hanging on her afterward. Lee Grant, who won for Shampoo, recalls picking an old wedding dress to wear to the ceremony.
As prestige is concerned, it’s hard to beat the Coppolas. Francis Ford Coppola discusses all the wins for his movies, including his father Carmine’s win for creating the score for The Godfather II. His daughter Sofia Coppola discusses her win for Lost in Translation, and mentions the other family win, Nicolas Cage, who won for Leaving Las Vegas. Michael Douglas talks about his win for Wall Street, and how it allowed him to carve a name for himself in Hollywood apart from famous father Kirk Douglas.
Apparently there was some strategy for Olivia Colman to get her Oscar. Colman flat out admits Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz conspired to be nominated in the supporting category to improve Colman’s chances of winning in the best actress category for The Favourite–yes, oddly enough nominees get to select which category they are considered for. British nominees seem like they felt like strangers at the ceremony, like Emma Thompson winning for Howard’s End–as if everyone in Hollywood was part of the same neighborhood and knew each other.
Darker tales include Marlee Matlin, who won the best actress honor for Children of a Lesser God recounts that then-boyfriend William Hurt didn’t win that night and demeaned her in the car on the way home for not being worthy. Mira Sorvino recounts being blacklisted after her win for Mighty Aphrodite–Harvey Weinstein made sure she didn’t get called for any movies because she refused to have sex with him.
Other winners like Mel Brooks and Elton John casually drop the fact they earned the EGOT–the prestigious quadruple crown of Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony awards. Brooks, always the funniest man in the room, says he responded, “Up yours,” to the Academy representative who called to inform him of his first nomination, thinking it was a joke.
It’s a surprisingly good, insightful, and personal look at the individuals who made some of Hollywood’s favorite movies. TCM’s 50 Oscar Nights: Iconic Stars & Filmmakers on Their Career-Defining Wins is available for pre-order now here at Amazon and in bookstores tomorrow, Tuesday, January 23, 2024.
Don’t miss the other volumes from TCM’s film library reviewed here at borg: 52 Must-See Movies That Matter, 52 More Must-See Movies That Matter, Must-See Sci-Fi, Dynamic Dames, Forbidden Hollywood, Viva Hollywood, Fright Favorites, Summer Movies: 30 Sun-Drenched Classics, TCM’s Hollywood Victory, TCM’s Danger on the Silver Screen, TCM’s Rock on Film, TCM’s Essential Directors, TCM’s Christmas at the Movies, Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir, But Have You Read the Book?, Eddie Muller’s Noir Bar, Lena Horne: Goddess Reclaimed, and TCM’s 20th Century Fox: Darryl F. Zanuck and the Creation of the Modern Film Studio.
