Honorary Oscars & Women II
Walter Pidgeon, Greer Garson in Mrs. Miniver (top); Don Ameche, Claudette Colbert in Midnight (middle); Corinne Griffith, Victor Varconi in The Divine Lady (bottom)
Honorary Oscars Bypass Women: Part I
Among the distinguished female film professionals in Hollywood and elsewhere — some of whom dating back to the early days of cinema — who have gone to the Great Beyond without receiving the Academy’s career achievement Oscar are actresses Greer Garson, Claudette Colbert, Gloria Swanson, Audrey Hepburn, Rosalind Russell, Marlene Dietrich, Alida Valli, Simone Signoret, Joan Crawford, Anna Magnani, Susan Hayward, Dolores del Río, Norma Talmadge, Anne Baxter, Joan Bennett, Lilli Palmer, Constance Bennett, and Kay Francis.
Also, Ann Sheridan, Constance Talmadge, Irene Dunne, Colleen Moore, Betty Grable, Gene Tierney, Jean Arthur, Anne Bancroft, Judy Garland, Norma Shearer, Miriam Hopkins, Ginger Rogers, Anna Neagle, Pauline Frederick, Joan Blondell, Pola Negri, Mary Astor, Sylvia Sidney, Claire Trevor, Rita Hayworth, Paulette Goddard, Corinne Griffith, Alice Faye, Margaret Lockwood, Agnes Moorehead, Lucille Ball, Margaret Rutherford, and the first best actress Oscar winner, Janet Gaynor.
And more: pioneer director/screenwriter/actress Lois Weber, pioneer director/producer Alice Guy, actress/director Ida Lupino, director/editor Dorothy Arzner, editors Anne Bauchens and Barbara McLean; composer/screenwriter Betty Comden; and screenwriters Bess Meredyth, Jane Murfin, Jeanie Macpherson, Lenore J. Coffee, and Anita Loos.
(Once again, the list above doesn’t include women who throughout their careers received two or more Academy Awards in a particular category — e.g., actresses Katharine Hepburn, Bette Davis, Ingrid Bergman, Helen Hayes, and Vivien Leigh; screenwriter Frances Marion; costume designer Edith Head.)
In the meantime, the Academy has recognized the body of work of numerous male actors — from Alec Guinness to Robert Redford, from Laurence Olivier to Eddie Cantor, from Danny Kaye to Sidney Poitier, from Edward G. Robinson to Groucho Marx, from Mickey Rooney to Henry Fonda, from Broncho Billy Anderson to Cary Grant.
In addition to male directors (from King Vidor to Satyajit Ray, from Jean Renoir to Blake Edwards, from Sidney Lumet to Akira Kurosawa), producers (Joseph M. Schenck, B. B. Kahane), studio heads (Louis B. Mayer, Hal Roach), animators (Chuck Jones, Walter Lantz), inventors (Lee De Forest, George Alfred Mitchell), composers (Alex North and this year’s Ennio Morricone), a choreographer (Michael Kidd), a stunt coordinator (Yakima Canutt), a cinematographer (Jack Cardiff), a short-film creator (Pete Smith), a screenwriter (Ernest Lehman), a film exhibitor (Sid Grauman), a film archivist (Henri Langlois), and even a censor (the infamous Joseph Breen).
Most — though definitely not all — male winners of career Honorary Oscars merited their statuettes because, whether or not you or I admire their acting or directorial skills, they hold an indelible place in motion picture history. But if gender-related prejudices haven’t played a role in the selection of honorees, why hasn’t the Academy been able to find more women deserving of that same recognition?
* I didn’t include the numerous special Oscars given to individuals for specific achievements (e.g., to William Cameron Menzies for his work with color in Gone with the Wind), or to those who provided "contributions" to the Academy (those Honorary Oscars were "Thank You" — not career — awards). In any case, with one exception — Onna White, who won for her choreography for Oliver! in 1968 — all other such Honorary winners were men. Miniature Oscars given to child stars were also left out.
† Several of those 28 actors also performed other cinematic duties, such as directing or producing films. But their Honorary Oscars were undeniably a direct result of their activities in front of the camera.
** Addendum, Sept. ‘09: Lauren Bacall has been named one of the recipients of the Academy’s 2009 Honorary Awards. More women will likely be recognized from now on because the Honorary Award has been moved to a separate ceremony at which the Academy’s Board of Governors may choose to honor up to four individuals per year.
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Tags: Academy Awards, Classic Movies, Claudette Colbert, Constance Talmadge, Corinne Griffith, Film Awards, Greer Garson, Honorary Oscar, Lauren Bacall, Lois Weber, Norma Talmadge, Rita Hayworth, Susan Hayward
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