This page covers the Awards for 1954. If you wish, read my disclaimer.

Click here for information on the Awards Ceremony for this year's nominees.

 Use this link to go to my listing of every film and every person ever nominated for an Award! 

 Use this link to see every film nominated for an Award this year and how it ranks in nominations and Awards! 

"Marlon Brando and I have a lot in common. He, too, is a perfectionist. He, too, has made many enemies."
-- Bette Davis

Best Picture
 THE CAINE MUTINY - Kramer, Columbia. Produced by Stanley Kramer
 THE COUNTRY GIRL - Perlberg-Seaton, Paramount. Produced by William Perlberg
 ON THE WATERFRONT (Won 8 Awards) - Horizon-American, Columbia. Produced by Sam Spiegel
 SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS - MGM. Produced by Jack Cummings
 THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN - 20th Century-Fox. Produced by Sol C. Siegel

Actor
 Humphrey Bogart in THE CAINE MUTINY
 Marlon Brando in ON THE WATERFRONT
 Bing Crosby in THE COUNTRY GIRL
 James Mason in A STAR IS BORN
 Dan O'Herlihy in ADVENTURES OF ROBINSON CRUSOE

Actress
 Dorothy Dandridge in CARMEN JONES
 Judy Garland in A STAR IS BORN
 Audrey Hepburn in SABRINA
 Grace Kelly in THE COUNTRY GIRL
 Jane Wyman in THE MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION

Supporting Actor
 Lee J. Cobb in ON THE WATERFRONT
 Karl Malden in ON THE WATERFRONT
 Edmond O'Brien in THE BAREFOOT CONTESSA
 Rod Steiger in ON THE WATERFRONT
 Tom Tully in THE CAINE MUTINY

Supporting Actress
 Nina Foch in EXECUTIVE SUITE
 Katy Jurado in BROKEN LANCE
 Eva Marie Saint in ON THE WATERFRONT
 Jan Sterling in THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY
 Claire Trevor in THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY

Director
 Alfred Hitchcock for REAR WINDOW
 Elia Kazan for ON THE WATERFRONT
 George Seaton for THE COUNTRY GIRL
 William A. Wellman for THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY
 Billy Wilder for SABRINA

Writing: Screenplay
 Stanley Roberts - THE CAINE MUTINY
 George Seaton - THE COUNTRY GIRL
 John Michael Hayes - REAR WINDOW
 Billy Wilder, Samuel Taylor & Ernest Lehman - SABRINA
 Albert Hackett, Frances Goodrich & Dorothy Kingsley - SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS

Writing: Motion Picture Story
 Ettore Margadonna - BREAD, LOVE AND DREAMS
 Philip Yordan - BROKEN LANCE
 François Boyer - FORBIDDEN GAMES
 Jed Harris & Tom Reed - NIGHT PEOPLE
 Lamar Trotti - THERE'S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS

Writing: Story and Screenplay
 Joseph L. Mankiewicz - THE BAREFOOT CONTESSA
 William Rose - GENEVIEVE
 Valentine Davies & Oscar Brodney - THE GLENN MILLER STORY
 Norman Panama & Melvin Frank - KNOCK ON WOOD
 Budd Schulberg - ON THE WATERFRONT

Art Direction/Set Decoration (Color)
 Cedric Gibbons & Preston Ames - Art Direction, Edwin B. Willis & Keogh Gleason - Set Decoration BRIGADOON
 Lyle Wheeler & Leland Fuller - Art Direction, Walter M. Scott & Paul S. Fox - Set Decoration DESIRÉE
 Hal Pereira & Roland Anderson - Art Direction, Sam Comer & Ray Moyer - Set Decoration RED GARTERS
 Malcolm Bert, Gene Allen & Irene Sharaff - Art Direction, George James Hopkins - Set Decoration A STAR IS BORN
 John Meehan - Art Direction, Emile Kuri - Set Decoration 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA

Art Direction/Set Decoration (Black and White)
 Hal Pereira & Roland Anderson - Art Direction, Sam Comer & Grace Gregory - Set Decoration THE COUNTRY GIRL
 Cedric Gibbons & Edward C. Carfagno - Art Direction, Edwin B. Willis & Emile Kuri - Set Decoration EXECUTIVE SUITE
 Max Ophüls - Art Direction LE PLAISIR
 Richard Day - Art Direction ON THE WATERFRONT
 Hal Pereira & Walter Tyler - Art Direction, Sam Comer & Ray Moyer - Set Decoration SABRINA

Cinematography (Color)
 Leon Shamroy - THE EGYPTIAN
 Robert Burks - REAR WINDOW
 George Folsey - SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS
 William V. Skall - THE SILVER CHALICE
 Milton Krasner - THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN

Cinematography (Black and White)
 John F. Warren - THE COUNTRY GIRL
 George Folsey - EXECUTIVE SUITE
 Boris Kaufman - ON THE WATERFRONT
 John F. Seitz - ROGUE COP
 Charles B. Lang - SABRINA

Costume Design (Color)
 Irene Sharaff - BRIGADOON
 Charles LeMaire & Rene Hubert - DESIRÉE
 Sanzo Wada - GATE OF HELL
 Jean Louis, Mary Ann Nyberg & Irene Sharaff - A STAR IS BORN
 Charles LeMaire, Travilla & Miles White - THERE'S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS

Costume Design (Black and White)
 Georges Annenkov & Rosine Delamare - THE EARRINGS OF MADAME DE... (a.k.a. GOLDEN EARRINGS)
 Helen Rose - EXECUTIVE SUITE
 Christian Dior - INDISCRETION OF AN AMERICAN WIFE
 Jean Louis - IT SHOULD HAPPEN TO YOU
 Edith Head - SABRINA

Documentary (Features)
 Guy Glover - Producer THE STRATFORD ADVENTURE
 Walt Disney - Producer THE VANISHING PRAIRIE

Documentary (Short Subjects)
 Otto Lang - Producer JET CARRIER
 Morrie Roizman - Producer REMBRANDT: A SELF PORTRAIT
 World Wide Pictures and Morse Films THURSDAY'S CHILDREN

Film Editing
 William Lyon & Henry Batista - THE CAINE MUTINY
 Ralph Dawson - THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY
 Gene Milford - ON THE WATERFRONT
 Ralph E. Winters - SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS
 Elmo Williams - 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA

Music: Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture
 Max Steiner - THE CAINE MUTINY
 Muir Mathieson - GENEVIEVE
 Dimitri Tiomkin - THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY
 Leonard Bernstein - ON THE WATERFRONT
 Franz Waxman - THE SILVER CHALICE

Music: Scoring of a Musical Picture
 Herschel Burke Gilbert CARMEN JONES
 Joseph Gershenson & Henry Mancini - THE GLENN MILLER STORY
 Adolph Deutsch & Saul Chaplin - SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS
 Ray Heindorf - A STAR IS BORN
 Alfred Newman & Lionel Newman - THERE'S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS

Music: Song
 Irving Berlin - Music & Lyrics WHITE CHRISTMAS "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep"
 Dimitri Tiomkin - Music, Ned Washington - Lyrics THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY "The High and the Mighty"
 Jack Lawrence & Richard Myers - Music & Lyrics SUSAN SLEPT HERE "Hold My Hand"
 Harold Arlen - Music, Ira Gershwin - Lyrics A STAR IS BORN "The Man That Got Away"
 Jule Styne - Music, Sammy Cahn - Lyrics THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN "Three Coins in the Fountain"

Short Subjects (Cartoons)
 Walter Lantz - Producer CRAZY MIXED UP PUP
 Walt Disney - Producer PIGS IS PIGS
 Edward Selzer - Producer SANDY CLAWS
 Fred Quimby - Producer TOUCHÉ, PUSSY CAT
 Stephen Bosustow - Producer WHEN MAGOO FLEW

Short Subjects (One-reel)
 Otto Lang - Producer THE FIRST PIANO QUARTETTE
 Johnny Green - Producer THE STRAUSS FANTASY
 Robert Youngson - Producer THIS MECHANICAL AGE

Short Subjects (Two-reel)
 Cedric Francis - Producer BEAUTY AND THE BULL
 Otto Lang - Producer JET CARRIER
 Walt Disney - Producer SIAM
 Denis Sanders & Terry Sanders - Producers A TIME OUT OF WAR

Sound Recording
 Wesley C. Miller - Sound Director BRIGADOON
 John P. Livadary - Sound Director THE CAINE MUTINY
 Leslie I. Carey - Sound Director THE GLENN MILLER STORY
 Loren L. Ryder - Sound Director REAR WINDOW
 John O. Aalberg - Sound Director SUSAN SLEPT HERE

Special Effects
No names listed. (Back to regular Award).
 HELL AND HIGH WATER
 THEM!
 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA [No nominees listed, but picture credits: (Special Effects) Robert A. Mattey, John Hench, Josh Meador (as "Meador Joshua")& Ralph Hammeras; and (Visual Effects) Ub Iwerks, Peter Ellenshaw, Albert J. Whitlock & Marcel Delgado]

Scientific Or Technical
Class I (Statuette):
 Paramount Pictures Inc., Loren L. Ryder & John R. Bishop - For developing a method of producing and exhibiting motion pictures known as VistaVision. (Included among the winners are "all the members of the technical and engineering staff").
Class II (Plaque):
 No award given for 1954.
Class III (Citation):
 David S. Horsley (Universal-International Studio Special Photographic Department) - For a portable remote control device for process projectors.
 Karl Freund & Frank Crandell (Photo Research Corporation) - For the design and development of a direct reading brightness meter.
 Wesley C. Miller, J.W. Stafford & K.M. Frierson (MGM Studio Sound Department) - For an electronic sound printing comparison device.
 John P. Livadary & Lloyd Russell (Columbia Studio Sound Department) - For an improved limiting amplifier as applied to sound level comparison devices.
 Roland Miller & Max Goeppinger (Magnascope Corporation) - For the design and development of a cathode ray magnetic sound track viewer.
 Carlos Rivas & G.M. Sprague (MGM Studio Sound Department) - For the design of a magnetic sound editing machine.
 Fred Wilson (Samuel Goldwyn Studio Sound Department) - For the design of a variable multiple-band equalizer.
 P.C. Young (MGM Studio Projection Department) - For the practical application of a variable focal length attachment to motion picture projector lenses.
 Fred Knoth & Orien Ernest (U-I Studio Technical Department) - For the development of a hand portable, electric, dry oil-fog machine.

Honorary and Other Awards
 Bausch & Lomb Optical Company - For their contributions to the advancement of the motion picture industry. Winner presented a Statuette.
 Kemp R. Niver - For the development of the Renovare Process which has made possible the restoration of the Library of Congress Paper Film Collection. Winner presented a Statuette.
 Greta Garbo - For her unforgettable screen performances. Winner presented a Statuette.
 Danny Kaye - For his unique talents, his service to the Academy, the motion picture industry, and the American people. Winner presented a Statuette.
 Jon Whiteley - For his outstanding juvenile performance in THE LITTLE KIDNAPPERS. Winner presented Miniature Statuette.
 Vincent Winter - For his outstanding juvenile performance in THE LITTLE KIDNAPPERS. Winner presented Miniature Statuette.
 JIGOKUMON (GATE OF HELL, Japan) Best Foreign Language Film first released in the United States during 1954. Winner presented a Statuette.

Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award
 No award given for 1954.

UNMENTIONABLES
· None of the major studios would finance On the Waterfront, but indepedent producer Sam Spiegel raised the $820,000 necessary to bring Kazan's film to the screen.
· A Star Is Born was Judy Garland's first film since being fired from MGM in 1950 during the shooting of Annie Get Your Gun.
· With a 3-hour running time, exhibitors considered A Star Is Born too long. Jack Warner cut a half-hour out of the movie a week after its premiere.
· Despite the trimming, word of mouth was not what the studio had hoped for and A Star Is Born was considered a box-office disappointment. At Oscar® time, Warners didn't place a single ad for its biggest release of the year.
· Surprisingly, The Caine Mutiny became the second highest grossing picture of 1954, just behind White Christmas.
· Edmond O'Brien was upset when he discovered his name would not be over the title of The Barefoot Contessa because Humphrey Bogart's contract prevented it. "Bogie put his arm around me, bought me a drink and advised me to take below-the-line billing," O'Brien told interviewers. "After a few drinks, I agreed."
· Sam Spiegel listed Eva Marie Saint, his leading lady in On the Waterfront, in the Supporting category to get her away from competing with Grace Kelly and Judy Garland as Best Actress.
· Coral Records mailed records to all Academy members so that they could hear "Hold My Hand" from Susan Slept Here as often as they liked.
· Someone at Warners had removed Ned Washington's lyrics from The High and the Mighty after its first preview. Composer Dimitri Tiomkin was distressed because his popular theme song would not be eligible. He petitioned the studio to reinstate the lyrics in a single print that was shown in L.A., and suddenly the song was eligible.
· Judy Garland did not sing "The Man That Got Away" at the Awards show. Two days before the broadcast, she prematurely gave birth to her son Joey Luft.
· On the night of the Awards, Walter Brennan was caught by the "This Is Your Life" TV crew and led away from the forecourt of the Pantages to a TV studio.
· James Mason had agreed to present an Award, but he was a no-show on Awards night. He and his wife had gone to San Francisco for the weekend. Mason admitted, several years later, that he "had no intention" of attending because "the Oscar show is always a little better if things go wrong, so I had no need to feel guilty about letting them down."
· After he accepted his Best Actor Award in Hollywood, Marlon Brando went backstage, where he was stopped by Officer Ben Kowski of the Warner Bros. police force, who demanded to see his ID. An onlooker cleared up the problem and Kowski said, "Gee, I didn't know him from Adam."
· Accepting his Award for Dramatic Score, Dimitri Tiomkin inadvertently got the night's biggest laugh: "I would like to thank my colleagues," he began, "Brahms, Bach, Beethoven, Richard Strauss --" The audience erupted into laughter and applause. "Unfortunately, I didn't intend to be funny," Tiomkin later wrote in his autobiography, Please Don't Hate Me. "I was misunderstood. What I wanted to say was something entirely serious, even solemn... What I wanted to express was a musician's homage to the heroes of the musical past."
· William Holden, who had not been permitted to make an acceptance speech when he won Best Actor the previous year, began his presentation of the Best Actress Award with, "As I was going to say last year..." Just then Bob Hope ran up to Holden, whispered in his ear and pointed to his watch. The gag over, Holden revealed that Grace Kelly was the year's Oscar®-winner for The Country Girl.
· After the presentation of the Best Picture Award, Bob Hope said, "Get an Oldsmobile and drive to the movies. Goodnight from Oldsmobile." What he'd meant was that this was the end of the Oldsmobile-sponsored portion of the TV show, but there were still the Special Awards. Ninety percent of the NBC affiliates misinterpreted Hope's line and signed off. Confusion also reigned at the Pantages; few had paid attention to an earlier announcement about the final Awards and most of the audience began filing out of the theatre. Academy officials had to head people off at the doors and steer them back to their seats.