Steven Spielberg's 1985 Best Picture nominee, the sappy melodrama The Color Purple, will be screened as the next feature in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' "Great To Be Nominated" series. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alice Walker, The Color Purple tells the story of a young, homely black woman's inner and outer struggles while coming of age in the early 1900s. The film will screen on Monday, June 25, at 7:30 p.m. at the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.
Actress Margaret Avery (who created quite a stir at the time of the Oscar nominations), and producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall, will join Desreta Jackson (Young Celie) and supervising sound editor Richard L. Anderson for a panel discussion following the film. (See also Whoopi Goldberg and The Color Purple in NYC.)
The Color Purple received a remarkable 11 Academy Award nominations, including best picture. Even more remarkably, it failed to win a single statuette.
The nominees were:
Best Picture (Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Quincy Jones, producers), Actress in a Leading Role (Whoopi Goldberg as Celie), Actress in a Supporting Role (Margaret Avery), Actress in a Supporting Role (Oprah Winfrey as Sofia), Art Direction (J. Michael Riva, Robert W. Welch; Set Decoration: Linda DeScenna), Cinematography (Allen Daviau), Costume Design (Aggie Guerard Rodgers), Makeup (Ken Chase), Music Original Score (Quincy Jones, Jeremy Lubbock, Rod Temperton, Caiphus Semenya, Andrae Crouch, Chris Boardman, Jorge Calandrelli, Joel Rosenbaum, Fred Steiner, Jack Hayes, Jerry Hey, Randy Kerber), Music Original Song ("Miss Celie's Blues [Sister]", Music by Quincy Jones and Rod Temperton; Lyric by Quincy Jones, Rod Temperton and Lionel Richie), and Writing – Screenplay based on material from another medium (Menno Meyjes).
Richard Condie's Oscar-nominated live action short The Big Snit, about a married couple fighting over a game of scrabble while a nuclear war is about to begin, will be screened prior to the feature. The Big Snit was produced by the National Film Board of Canada, always an assurance of quality.
Passes for the remaining screenings in part four of "Great To Be Nominated" are $30 for the general public and $25 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. A $5 discount is available for those who wish to renew their passes from parts one, two or three of the series. Individual tickets are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. Passes and tickets may be purchased by mail, in person at the Academy during regular business hours or, depending on availability, on the night of the screening when the doors open at 6:30 p.m.
Tickets also may be purchased online at www.oscars.org/events. There are no minimum order requirements and no transaction or processing fees. Tickets may be purchased online until noon PST on the day of the event.
Curtain time for all features is 7:30 p.m., and pre-show elements will begin at 7 p.m. The Academy is located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills. For more information, call (310) 247-3600.
Photo: © AMPAS
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