56th Academy Awards

The 56th Academy Awards were presented April 9, 1984 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles. The ceremonies were presided over by Johnny Carson.

The Best Supporting Actress winner this year was unique. 4' 9" Linda Hunt won the award for her role as Billy Kwan - a male Chinese-Australian photographer - in Peter Weir's The Year of Living Dangerously, making her the first actor to win an Oscar for playing a character of the opposite sex.

Gordon Willis, a respected cinematographer most famous for his un-nominated work on The Godfather, The Godfather: Part II, and Woody Allen's Manhattan, received his first Best Cinematography nomination for Zelig.

Joe I. Tompkins becomes the first African-American to be nominated in Best Costume Design.

This ceremony ended with Sammy Davis Jr. and Liza Minnelli leading the crowd in "There's No Business Like Show Business" in tribute to Ethel Merman, who had died a month and a half before this Oscar ceremony. The performance occurred over the closing credits to the broadcast.

Awards

Winners are listed first and highlighted in boldface.^[1]

Best Picture	Best Director
Terms of Endearment The Big Chill The Dresser The Right Stuff Tender Mercies	James L. Brooks – Terms of Endearment Peter Yates – The Dresser Ingmar Bergman – Fanny and Alexander Mike Nichols – Silkwood Bruce Beresford – Tender Mercies
Best Actor	Best Actress
Robert Duvall – Tender Mercies Michael Caine – Educating Rita Tom Conti – Reuben, Reuben Tom Courtenay – The Dresser Albert Finney – The Dresser	Shirley MacLaine – Terms of Endearment Jane Alexander – Testament Meryl Streep – Silkwood Julie Walters – Educating Rita Debra Winger – Terms of Endearment
Best Supporting Actor	Best Supporting Actress
Jack Nicholson – Terms of Endearment Charles Durning – To Be or Not to Be John Lithgow – Terms of Endearment Sam Shepard – The Right Stuff Rip Torn – Cross Creek	Linda Hunt – The Year of Living Dangerously Cher – Silkwood Glenn Close – The Big Chill Amy Irving – Yentl Alfre Woodard – Cross Creek
Best Original Screenplay	Best Adapted Screenplay
Tender Mercies – Horton Foote The Big Chill – Lawrence Kasdan and Barbara Benedek Fanny and Alexander – Ingmar Bergman Silkwood – Nora Ephron and Alice Arlen WarGames – Lawrence Lasker and Walter F. Parkes	Terms of Endearment – James L. Brooks Betrayal – Harold Pinter The Dresser – Ronald Harwood Educating Rita – Willy Russell Reuben, Reuben – Julius J. Epstein
Best Foreign Language Film	Best Film Editing
Fanny and Alexander (Sweden) Carmen (Spain) Entre Nous (France) Job's Revolt (Hungary) The Ball (Algeria)	The Right Stuff – Glenn Farr, Lisa Fruchtman, Stephen A. Rotter, Douglas Stewart and Tom Rolf Blue Thunder – Frank Morriss and Edward Abroms Flashdance – Bud Smith and Walt Mulconery Silkwood – Sam O'Steen Terms of Endearment – Richard Marks
Best Documentary Feature	Best Documentary Short
He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin' – Emile Ardolino Children of Darkness – Richard Kotuk and Ara Chekmayan First Contact – Bob Connolly and Robin Anderson The Profession of Arms – Michael Bryans and Tina Viljoen Seeing Red – James Klein and Julia Reichert	Flamenco at 5:15 – Cynthia Scott and Adam Symansky In the Nuclear Shadow: What Can the Children Tell Us? – Vivienne Verdon-Roe and Eric Thiermann Sewing Woman – Arthur Dong Spaces: The Architecture of Paul Rudolph – Robert Eisenhardt You Are Free Ihr Zent Frei – Dea Brokman and Ilene Landis
Best Live Action Short	Best Animated Short
Boys and Girls – Janice L. Platt Goodie-Two-Shoes – Ian Emes Overnight Sensation – Jon N. Bloom	Sundae in New York – Jimmy Picker Mickey's Christmas Carol – Burny Mattinson Sound of Sunshine - Sound of Rain – Eda Godel Hallinan
Best Original Score	Best Original Song Score or Adaptation Score
The Right Stuff - Bill Conti Cross Creek – Leonard Rosenman Return of the Jedi – John Williams Terms of Endearment – Michael Gore Under Fire – Jerry Goldsmith	Yentl – Song Score by Michel Legrand, Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman The Sting II – Adaptation Score by Lalo Schifrin Trading Places – Adaptation Score by Elmer Bernstein
Best Original Song	Best Costume Design
*"Flashdance... What a Feeling" from Flashdance* – Music and Lyric by Giorgio Moroder, Keith Forsey and Irene Cara** "Maniac" from Flashdance – Music and Lyric by Michael Sembello and Dennis Matkosky "Over You" from Tender Mercies – Music and Lyric by Austin Roberts and Bobby Hart "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" from Yentl – Music by Michel Legrand; Lyric by Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman "The Way He Makes Me Feel" from Yentl – Music by Michel Legrand; Lyric by Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman	Fanny and Alexander – Marik Vos-Lundh Cross Creek – Joe I. Tompkins Heart Like a Wheel – William Ware Theiss The Return of Martin Guerre – Anne-Marie Marchand Zelig – Santo Loquasto
Best Sound Mixing	Best Sound Editing
The Right Stuff – Mark Berger, Thomas Scott, Randy Thom and David MacMillan Never Cry Wolf – Alan Splet, Todd Boekelheide, Randy Thom and David Parker Return of the Jedi – Ben Burtt, Gary Summers, Randy Thom and Tony Dawe Terms of Endearment – Donald O. Mitchell, Rick Kline, Kevin O'Connell and James R. Alexander WarGames – Michael J. Kohut, Carlos Delarios, Aaron Rochin and Willie D. Burton	The Right Stuff – Jay Boekelheide Return of the Jedi – Ben Burtt
Best Art Direction	Best Cinematography
Fanny and Alexander – Art Direction: Anna Asp; Set Decoration: Susanne Lingheim Return of the Jedi – Art Direction: Norman Reynolds, Fred Hole and James Schoppe; Set Decoration: Michael Ford The Right Stuff – Art Direction: Geoffrey Kirkland, Richard J. Lawrence, W. Stewart Campbell and Peter Romero; Set Decoration: Pat Pending, George R. Nelson Terms of Endearment – Art Direction: Polly Platt and Harold Michelson; Set Decoration: Tom Pedigo and Anthony Mondell Yentl – Art Direction: Roy Walker and Leslie Tomkins; Set Decoration: Tessa Davies	Fanny and Alexander – Sven Nykvist Flashdance – Don Peterman The Right Stuff – Caleb Deschanel WarGames – William A. Fraker Zelig – Gordon Willis

Nomination announcements

The filmmakers and studio executives were very surprised by the five Academy Award nominations for Tender Mercies, which was released ten months before the nominations were announced and had received little campaigning; the film had been exhibited in only three theaters after its release. Universal Studios had already previously sold the video rights for Tender Mercies based on their lack of confidence in the film following poor test screenings; the studio was therefore unable to redistribute Tender Mercies after the Oscar nominations were announced, and cable companies ran the film on television one week before the Academy Award ceremony.^[2]

Ceremony

When screenwriter Horton Foote won a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for To Kill a Mockingbird, he was not present at the 1963 ceremony to collect it because he did not believe he was going to win and did not attend. As a result, Foote made sure he was present for the ceremony when he was nominated for Tender Mercies; he won that Oscar as well, this time for Best Original Screenplay.^[2]

Presenters

Jane Alexander and Michael Caine (Presenters: Short Subjects Awards)
Richard Attenborough (Presenter: Best Director)
Kevin Bacon and Daryl Hannah (Presenters: Best Sound Editing)
Neil Diamond (Presenter: Best Adapted Score)
Ray Bolger and Gene Kelly (Presenters: Best Original Score)
Christie Brinkley and Michael Keaton (Presenters: Best Sound Mixing)
Jennifer Beals and Matthew Broderick (Presenters: Best Original Song)
Dyan Cannon and Gene Hackman (Presenters: Best Supporting Actress)
Frank Capra (Presenter: Best Picture)
Cheech and Chong (Presenters: Best Visual Effects)
Joan Collins and Arnold Schwarzenegger (Presenters: Technical Achievement Awards)
Jackie Cooper and George McFarland (Presenters: Honorary Award to Hal Roach)
Frank Sinatra (Presenter: Jean Hersholt Award to M. J. Frankovich)
Anthony Franciosa and Joanna Pacula (Presenters: Best Cinematography)
John Gavin and Jack Valenti (Presenters: Best Foreign Language Film)
Mel Gibson and Sissy Spacek (Presenters: Writing Awards)
Rock Hudson and Liza Minnelli (Presenters: Best Actress)
Roger Moore and Jane Powell (Presenters: Best Art Direction)
Timothy Hutton and Mary Tyler Moore (Presenters: Best Supporting Actor)
Dolly Parton and Sylvester Stallone (Presenters: Best Actor)
Holly Palance and Jack Palance (Presenters: Documentary Awards)
Tommy Tune and Twiggy (Presenters: Best Costume Design)
Robert Wise (Presenter: Best Film Editing)

Performers

Herb Alpert, Michael Sembello, and Lani Hall ("Maniac" from Flashdance)
Irene Cara & The National Dance Institute performed...("Flashdance... What a Feeling" from Flashdance)
Mac Davis ("Over You" from Tender Mercies)
Sammy Davis Jr. and Liza Minnelli ("There's No Business Like Show Business")
Jennifer Holliday ("The Way He Makes Me Feel" from Yentl)
Donna Summer ("Papa, Can You Hear Me?" from Yentl)

Multiple nominations and awards

These films had multiple nominations:

11 nominations: Terms of Endearment
8 nominations: The Right Stuff
6 nominations: Fanny and Alexander
5 nominations: The Dresser, Silkwood, Tender Mercies, Yentl
4 nominations: Cross Creek, Flashdance, Return of the Jedi
3 nominations: The Big Chill, Educating Rita, WarGames
2 nominations: Reuben, Reuben, Zelig

The following films received multiple awards.

5 wins: Terms of Endearment
4 wins: Fanny and Alexander, The Right Stuff
2 wins: Tender Mercies

References

↑ "The 56th Academy Awards (1984) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 2011-10-09.
↑ 2.0 2.1 Bruce Beresford, Robert Duvall, Horton Foote, Allan Hubbard, Gary Hertz (director), Tess Harper (2002-04-16). Miracles & Mercies (Documentary). West Hollywood, California: Blue Underground. Retrieved 2008-01-28.

"The Official Academy Awards Database". awardsdatabase.oscars.org. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved September 9, 2009.

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Merit awards	Best Picture Best Director Best Actor Best Actress Best Supporting Actor Best Supporting Actress Best Adapted Screenplay Best Original Screenplay Best Animated Feature Best Documentary Feature Best Foreign Language Film Best Animated Short Film Best Documentary Short Subject Best Live Action Short Film Best Cinematography Best Costume Design Best Film Editing Best Makeup and Hairstyling Best Original Score Best Original Song Best Original Musical Best Production Design Best Sound Editing Best Sound Mixing Best Visual Effects

Special awards	Academy Honorary Award Special Achievement Academy Award Academy Scientific and Technical Award Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award Gordon E. Sawyer Award Student Academy Award

Retired awards	Best Assistant Director Best Dance Direction Best Director of a Comedy Picture Best Engineering Effects Best Short Subject, Two-reel Best Short Subject, Color Best Short Subject, Novelty Best Original Story Best Title Writing Best Unique and Artistic Quality of Production Academy Juvenile Award

Ceremonies (Book)	1927/28 1928/29 1929/30 1930/31 1931/32 1932/33 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 See also: Governors Awards

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56th Academy Awards

Awards

Honorary Academy Award

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award

Special Achievement Academy Award