54th Academy Awards

54th Academy Awards
Official poster
Date	March 29, 1982
Site	Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Hosted by	Johnny Carson
Produced by	Howard W. Koch [lower-alpha 1]
Directed by	Marty Pasetta
Highlights
Best Picture	Chariots of Fire
Most awards	Raiders of the Lost Ark (5)
Most nominations	Reds (12)
TV in the United States
Network	ABC
Duration	3 hours, 32 minutes [2]
Ratings	46.2 million 33.6% (Nielsen ratings)
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The 54th Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released in 1981 and took place on March 29, 1982, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. 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 Howard W. Koch and directed by Marty Pasetta. ^[3] Comedian and talk show host Johnny Carson hosted the show for the fourth consecutive time.

Chariots of Fire won four awards, including Best Picture. ^[4] Other winners included Raiders of the Lost Ark with five awards, On Golden Pond and Reds with three, Arthur with two, and An American Werewolf in London , Close Harmony , Crac , Genocide , Mephisto , and Violet with one. The telecast garnered 46.2 million viewers in the United States.

Winners and nominees

David Puttnam, Best Picture winner

Warren Beatty, Best Director winner

Henry Fonda, Best Actor winner

Katharine Hepburn, Best Actress winner

John Gielgud, Best Supporting Actor winner

Maureen Stapleton, Best Supporting Actress winner

Christopher Cross, Best Original Song co-winner

Rick Baker, Best Makeup winner

Milena Canonero, Best Costume Design winner

Vittorio Storaro, Best Cinematography winner

Richard Edlund, Best Visual Effects co-winner

The nominees for the 54th Academy Awards were announced on February 11, 1982, by Academy president Fay Kanin and actor Lloyd Bridges. ^[5] Reds earned the most nominations with twelve; On Golden Pond came in second with ten. ^[6] The winners were announced at the awards ceremony on March 29.

Best Director winner Warren Beatty became the first person to earn acting, directing, producing, and screenwriting nominations for the same film for the second time. He previously earned nominations in the same categories for 1978's Heaven Can Wait . ^{[7] [8]} On Golden Pond was the fifth film to win both lead acting awards. ^[9] Best Actress winner Katharine Hepburn became the first and only performer to win four competitive acting Oscars. ^[10] Furthermore, the 48-year span between her first win for 1933's Morning Glory and her last win for On Golden Pond set the record for the longest span between first and last career Oscar wins. ^[11]

Awards

Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface and indicated with a double dagger (‡). ^[12]

Table featuring winners and nominees of the 54th Academy Awards

Best Picture Chariots of Fire – David Puttnam, producer‡ Atlantic City – Denis Héroux and John Kemeny, producers On Golden Pond – Bruce Gilbert, producer Raiders of the Lost Ark – Frank Marshall, producer Reds – Warren Beatty, producer	Best Director Warren Beatty – Reds ‡ Louis Malle – Atlantic City Hugh Hudson – Chariots of Fire Mark Rydell – On Golden Pond Steven Spielberg – Raiders of the Lost Ark
Best Actor Henry Fonda – On Golden Pond as Norman Thayer Jr.‡ Warren Beatty – Reds as John Silas "Jack" Reed Burt Lancaster – Atlantic City as Lou Pascal Dudley Moore – Arthur as Arthur Bach Paul Newman – Absence of Malice as Michael Gallagher	Best Actress Katharine Hepburn – On Golden Pond as Ethel Thayer‡ Diane Keaton – Reds as Louise Bryant Marsha Mason – Only When I Laugh as Georgia Hines Susan Sarandon – Atlantic City as Sally Matthews Meryl Streep – The French Lieutenant's Woman as Sarah Woodruff/Anna
Best Supporting Actor John Gielgud – Arthur as Hobson‡ James Coco – Only When I Laugh as Jimmy Perrino Ian Holm – Chariots of Fire as Sam Mussabini Jack Nicholson – Reds as Eugene O'Neill Howard E. Rollins Jr. – Ragtime as Coalhouse Walker Jr.	Best Supporting Actress Maureen Stapleton – Reds as Emma Goldman ‡ Melinda Dillon – Absence of Malice as Teresa Perrone Jane Fonda – On Golden Pond as Chelsea Thayer Wayne Joan Hackett – Only When I Laugh as Toby Landau Elizabeth McGovern – Ragtime as Evelyn Nesbit
Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen Chariots of Fire – Colin Welland ‡ Absence of Malice – Kurt Luedtke Arthur – Steve Gordon Atlantic City – John Guare Reds – Warren Beatty and Trevor Griffiths	Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium On Golden Pond – Ernest Thompson based on his play‡ The French Lieutenant's Woman – Harold Pinter based on the novel by John Fowles Pennies from Heaven – Dennis Potter based on his TV series Prince of the City – Jay Presson Allen and Sidney Lumet based on the book by Robert Daley Ragtime – Michael Weller based on the novel by E. L. Doctorow
Best Foreign Language Film Mephisto (Hungary) in Hungarin – directed by István Szabó ‡ The Boat Is Full (Switzerland) in German – directed by Markus Imhoof Man of Iron (Poland) in Polish – directed by Andrzej Wajda Muddy River (Japan) in Japanese – directed by Kōhei Oguri Three Brothers (Italy) in Italian – directed by Francesco Rosi	Best Documentary Feature Genocide – Arnold Schwartzman and Rabbi Marvin Hier ‡ Against Wind and Tide: A Cuban Odyssey – Suzanne Bauman, Paul Neshamkin and Jim Burroughs Brooklyn Bridge – Ken Burns Eight Minutes to Midnight: A Portrait of Dr. Helen Caldicott – Mary Benjamin, Susanne Simpson and Boyd Estus El Salvador: Another Vietnam – Glenn Silber and Tete Vasconcellos
Best Documentary Short Subject Close Harmony – Nigel Noble ‡ Americas in Transition – Obie Benz Journey for Survival – Dick Young See What I Say – Linda Chapman, Pam LeBlanc and Freddi Stevens Urge to Build – Roland Hallé and John Hoover	Best Live Action Short Film Violet – Paul Kemp and Shelley Levinson‡ Couples and Robbers – Christine Oestreicher First Winter – John N. Smith
Best Animated Short Film Crac – Frédéric Back ‡ The Creation – Will Vinton The Tender Tale of Cinderella Penguin – Janet Perlman	Best Original Score Chariots of Fire – Vangelis ‡ Dragonslayer – Alex North On Golden Pond – Dave Grusin Ragtime – Randy Newman Raiders of the Lost Ark – John Williams
Best Original Song "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" from Arthur – Music by Burt Bacharach; Lyrics by Carole Bayer Sager, Christopher Cross and Peter Allen ‡ "Endless Love" from Endless Love – Music and Lyrics by Lionel Richie "The First Time It Happens" from The Great Muppet Caper – Music and Lyrics by Joe Raposo "For Your Eyes Only" from For Your Eyes Only – Music by Bill Conti; Lyrics by Mick Leeson "One More Hour" from Ragtime – Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman	Best Sound Raiders of the Lost Ark – Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Gregg Landaker and Roy Charman ‡ On Golden Pond – Richard Portman and David M. Ronne Outland – John Wilkinson, Robert W. Glass Jr., Robert Thirlwell and Robin Gregory Pennies from Heaven – Michael J. Kohut, Jay M. Harding, Richard Tyler and Al Overton Jr. Reds – Dick Vorisek, Tom Fleischman and Simon Kaye
Best Makeup An American Werewolf in London – Rick Baker ‡ Heartbeeps – Stan Winston	Best Costume Design Chariots of Fire – Milena Canonero ‡ The French Lieutenant's Woman – Tom Rand Pennies from Heaven – Bob Mackie Ragtime – Anna Hill Johnstone Reds – Shirley Russell
Best Art Direction Raiders of the Lost Ark – Art Direction: Norman Reynolds and Leslie Dilley; Set Decoration: Michael Ford ‡ The French Lieutenant's Woman – Art Direction: Assheton Gorton; Set Decoration: Ann Mollo Heaven's Gate – Art Direction: Tambi Larsen; Set Decoration: James L. Berkey Ragtime – Art Direction: John Graysmark, Patrizia von Brandenstein and Anthony Reading; Set Decoration: George DeTitta Sr., George DeTitta Jr. and Peter Howitt Reds – Art Direction: Richard Sylbert; Set Decoration: Michael Seirton	Best Cinematography Reds – Vittorio Storaro ‡ Excalibur – Alex Thomson On Golden Pond – Billy Williams Ragtime – Miroslav Ondříček Raiders of the Lost Ark – Douglas Slocombe
Best Film Editing Raiders of the Lost Ark – Michael Kahn ‡ Chariots of Fire – Terry Rawlings The French Lieutenant's Woman – John Bloom On Golden Pond – Robert L. Wolfe (posthumous nomination) Reds – Dede Allen and Craig McKay	Best Visual Effects Raiders of the Lost Ark – Richard Edlund, Kit West, Bruce Nicholson and Joe Johnston ‡ Dragonslayer – Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Ken Ralston and Brian Johnson

Honorary Academy Award

• Barbara Stanwyck – "For superlative creativity and unique contribution to the art of screen acting." ^[13]

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award

The award recognizes individuals whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the motion picture industry. ^[14]

• Danny Kaye ^[13]

Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award

The award honors "creative producers whose bodies of work reflect a consistently high quality of motion picture production". ^[15]

• Albert R. Broccoli ^[13]

Special Achievement Academy Award

• Ben Burtt and Richard L. Anderson for the sound effects editing of Raiders of the Lost Ark ^[16]

Multiple nominations and awards

Films with multiple nominations Nominations Film 12 Reds 10 On Golden Pond 9 Raiders of the Lost Ark 8 Ragtime 7 Chariots of Fire 5 Atlantic City The French Lieutenant's Woman 4 Arthur 3 Absence of Malice Only When I Laugh Pennies from Heaven 2 Dragonslayer

Films with multiple wins Wins Film 5 Raiders of the Lost Ark [lower-alpha 2] 4 Chariots of Fire 3 On Golden Pond Reds 2 Arthur

Presenters and performers

The following individuals, listed in order of appearance, presented awards or performed musical numbers. ^[17]

Presenters

Table featuring presenters for the 54th Academy Awards

Name(s)	Role
Hank Simms [18]	Announcer for the 54th Academy Awards
Fay Kanin (AMPAS President)	Gave opening remarks welcoming guests to the awards ceremony
Timothy Hutton	Presenter of the award for Best Supporting Actress
Karen Allen Howard E. Rollins Jr.	Presenters of the award for Best Art Direction
Kim Hunter Vincent Price	Presenters of the award for Best Makeup
Roger Moore	Presenter of the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to Albert R. Broccoli
William Hurt Kathleen Turner	Presenters of the award for Best Original Score
Morgan Fairchild Robert Hays	Presenters of the award for Best Costume Design
Dan Aykroyd	Presenter of the award for Best Visual Effects
Richard Benjamin Paula Prentiss	Presenters of the awards for Best Documentary Short Subject and Documentary Feature
Paul Williams Debra Winger	Presenters of the awards for Best Animated Short Film and Best Live Action Short Film
Chevy Chase Rachel Ward	Presenters of the award for Best Cinematography
John Travolta	Presenter of the Honorary Award to Barbara Stanwyck
Christopher Atkins Kristy McNichol	Presenters of the award for Best Sound
Ornella Muti Jack Valenti	Presenters of the award for Best Foreign Language Film
Ursula Andress Harry Hamlin	Presenters of the award for Best Film Editing
Bette Midler	Presenter of the award for Best Original Song
Gregory Peck	Presenter of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to Danny Kaye
Carol Burnett Joel Grey	Presenters of the award for Best Supporting Actor
Jack Lemmon Walter Matthau	Presenters of the award for Best Director
Jerzy Kosiński	Presenter of the awards for Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen and Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium
Jon Voight	Presenter of the award for Best Actress
Sissy Spacek	Presenter of the award for Best Actor
Loretta Young	Presenter of the award for Best Picture

Performers

Name	Role	Performed
Bill Conti	Musical arranger Conductor	Orchestral
Kermit the Frog Miss Piggy	Performers	"The First Time It Happens" from The Great Muppet Caper
Sheena Easton Richard Kiel Harold Sakata	Performers	"For Your Eyes Only" from For Your Eyes Only
Liberace	Performer	Medley of the nominated scores
Lionel Richie Diana Ross	Performers	"Endless Love" from Endless Love
John Schneider	Performer	"One More Hour" from Ragtime
Debbie Allen Gregory Hines	Performers	Performed a musical tribute to Harry Warren [19]
Christopher Cross	Performer	"Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" from Arthur
Academy Awards Chorus	Performers	"That’s Entertainment!"

Ceremony information

Johnny Carson hosted the 54th Academy Awards.

In November 1981, the Academy hired film director, screenwriter, and producer Melvin Frank to produce the telecast for the first time. "The Academy is fortunate that Melvin Frank has agreed to make himself available for our show," said AMPAS President Fay Kanin in a press release announcing the selection. "He joins a distinguished list of producers who have consistently made the Academy Awards the entertainment highlight of the year." ^[20] Two months later, it was announced that comedian and The Tonight Show host Johnny Carson would preside over emceeing duties for the 1982 ceremony. ^[21] In February 1982, Howard W. Koch took over producing duties after Frank had been hospitalized for complications stemming from a virus. ^[1] Koch stated that all artistic contributions made by Frank would remain during the production of the festivities. ^[22]

Introduction of Best Makeup award

Beginning with this ceremony, AMPAS introduced a new competitive award that would honor achievement in makeup. ^[23] According to Academy executive administrator John Pavlik, the category would be presented if a special committee composed of makeup artists, hairstylists, cinematographers, and other related craftspeople determined that at least one film was deemed worthy of such awards. Members would be able to nominate up to five films, and the committee would review the seven films receiving the most votes to select up to three nominees. ^[24] Prior to the introduction of this category, 1964's 7 Faces of Dr. Lao and 1968's Planet of the Apes were given special honorary awards. ^[25]

Critical reviews

St. Petersburg Times film critic Thomas Sabulis wrote, "The Academy Awards show was a reasonably good television product. The acceptance speeches were thankfully brief and concise." ^[26] Columnist Janet Maslin of The New York Times remarked, "Thanks largely to the fancifulness of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' voters, Monday night's Oscar presentation was the most exciting in recent years. When the awards show itself is something less than swift or glamorous, which was certainly the case this year, it can still come to life if the voting takes a sufficiently strange turn." ^[19] The Atlanta Constitution critic Scott Cain commented, "The academy has steadily increased the amount of showpieces. These musical numbers worked splendidly this year and the program was relatively painless at 3.5 hours in length." ^[27]

Harold Schindler of The Salt Lake Tribune called the ceremony "a three-and-a-half-hour marathon which sparkled in spots, sputtered in others, and featured some of the most uneven casting in the program's history." ^[28] Austin American-Statesman film critic Patrick Taggart quipped, "Whether or not the awards will be taken more seriously in the future, the ceremony last Monday night certainly had the dreariness one associates with serious events." ^[29] The Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Desmond Ryan commented that due to many winners being absent from the festivities, "An already dull evening lapsed into long stretches of tedium." ^[30]

Ratings and reception

The American telecast on ABC drew in an average of 46.2 million people over the length of the entire ceremony. ^[31] Moreover, the show drew higher Nielsen ratings compared to the previous ceremony with 33.6% of households watching with a 53% share. ^[32]

In August 1982, the ceremony presentation received three nominations at the 34th Primetime Emmys. ^[33] The following month, it won an award for Ray Klausen's art direction of the program. ^[34]

See also

• List of submissions to the 54th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film

Notes

1. Melvin Frank was initially selected as producer of the ceremony, but he withdrew from his position due to health problems and was replaced by Koch. ^[1]
2. Including the Special Achievement Award

References

1. Pollock, Dale (February 17, 1982). "Fanfare on a Fast Track at Columbia". Los Angeles Times . p. 75.
2. Wiley & Bona 1996, p. 612
3. Osborne 2013 , p. 413
4. Harmetz, Aljean (March 30, 1982). "Chariots of Fire, Katherine Hepburn and Henry Fonda win Top Oscars". The New York Times . Archived from the original on March 2, 2023. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
5. "On Golden Pond Top Oscar Contender". Boca Raton News . February 11, 1982.
6. Tuck, Lon (February 12, 1982). "And the Nominees Are..." The Washington Post . Retrieved March 24, 2022.
7. Wiley & Bona 1996 , p. 1138
8. Emerson, Jim (February 11, 2007). "Questions for the Academy". Chicago Sun-Times . Archived from the original on March 13, 2017. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
9. Osborne 2013 , p. 423
10. Holden 1993 , p. 608
11. Davis, Clayton (May 12, 2021). "In Celebration of Katharine Hepburn's Birthday, Here Are 12 Actors Who Should Also Have Four Oscar Wins". Variety . Archived from the original on August 20, 2022. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
12. "The 54th Academy Awards (1982) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on November 11, 2014. Retrieved October 8, 2011.
13. "Academy Awards Acceptance Speech Database". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on March 2, 2023. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
14. "Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on November 16, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
15. "Irvin G. Thalberg Memorial Award". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on January 1, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
16. Franks 2005 , p. 249
17. Wiley & Bona 1996 , p. 608
18. Terrance 2013 , p. 14
19. Maslin, Janet (March 31, 1982). "TV: Offbeat Votes Made Oscar Night a Winner". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 2, 2023. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
20. "Melvin Frank to Produce 54th Oscar Show". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. November 16, 1981. Archived from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
21. Morgan, Don (January 12, 1982). "Johnny Carson to Serves As Master of Ceremonies for 54th Annual Academy Awards" (Press release). Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved January 10, 2022.
22. "Howard W. Koch to Take Over Production of Academy Awards Show". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. February 19, 1982. Archived from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
23. "New Makeup Category Set Up for Academy Awards". Los Angeles Times . December 24, 1981. p. 47.
24. Arar, Yardena (December 18, 1981). "Makeup Artists to Get Oscar Category". Oakland Tribune . p. C-4.
25. "Motion Picture Academy to Honnor Makeup Artists". Santa Cruz Sentinel . December 18, 1981. p. 29.
26. Sabulis, Thomas (March 31, 1982). "Oscar Strikes a Balance in Honoring 1981 Films". St. Petersburg Times . p. 2D.
27. Cain, Scott. "Oscar Strikes a Balance in Honoring 1981 Films". The Atlanta Constitution . p. 2-H.
28. Schindler, Harold (March 31, 1982). "Oscar Night Was a Drawn-Out Marathon". The Salt Lake Tribune . p. C5.
29. Taggart, Patrick (April 4, 1982). "New Credibility". Austin American-Statesman . p. 179.
30. Ryan, Desmond (March 31, 1982). "The Swift, The Old Shine with Oscar". The Philadelphia Inquirer . p. 5D.
31. "Top-10 Most Watched Academy Awards Broadcasts". Nielsen N.V. February 18, 2009. Archived from the original on January 27, 2016. Retrieved August 25, 2015.
32. Holston, Noel (April 10, 1982). "ABC Takes Ratings Top Stop with Some Help From Oscar". Orlando Sentinel . p. B10.
33. Margulies, Lee (August 6, 1982). "Emmy Award Nominations: The Peacock Shows its Colors". Los Angeles Times . pp. 101, 104.
34. "The Fifty-Fourth Annual Academy Awards". Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on September 25, 2022. Retrieved September 12, 2022.

Bibliography

• Franks, Don (2005), Entertainment Awards: A Music, Cinema, Theatre and Broadcasting Guide, 1928 Through 2003 (3rd ed.), Jefferson, North Carolina, United States: McFarland & Company, ISBN   978-1-5791-2396-3, OCLC   53937872
• Holden, Anthony (1993), Behind the Oscar: The Secret History of the Academy Awards , New York, New York, United States: Simon & Schuster, ISBN   978-0-6717-0129-1, OCLC   26852909
• Osborne, Robert (2013). 85 Years of the Oscar: The Complete History of the Academy Awards. New York, New York, United States: Abbeville Publishing Group. ISBN   978-0-7892-1142-2. OCLC   856879222.
• Terrance, Vincent (2013). Television Specials: 5,336 Entertainment Programs, 1936–2012 (5 ed.). Jefferson, North Carolina, United States: Ballantine Books, McFarland & Company. ISBN   978-1-4766-1240-9. OCLC   844373010.
• Wiley, Mason; Bona, Damien (1996), Inside Oscar: The Unofficial History of the Academy Awards (5 ed.), New York, New York, United States: Ballantine Books, ISBN   978-0-3454-0053-6, OCLC   779680732

External links

• Academy Awards official website
• The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences official website
• Oscars' channel on YouTube run by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Analysis

• 1981 Academy Awards Winners and History Filmsite

Other resources

• The 54th Annual Academy Awards at IMDb