Schirmer Encyclopedia of Film

Hepburn (1929–1993), Bob Hope (1903–2003),
Quincy Jones (b. 1933), Paul Newman (b. 1925),
Gregory Peck (1916–2003), and Elizabeth Taylor
(b. 1932).
Honorary Award: Given most years, the Honorary
Award is voted to individuals showing ‘‘extraordinary
distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions
to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or
for outstanding service to the Academy.’’ This award may
also honor an individual for whom no annual Academy
AwardÒ category fits; for example, honorary awards
went to choreographer Michael Kidd in 1996 and animator
Chuck Jones in 1995. An Honorary Award may
also be voted to an organization or a company. In 1988
the National Film Board of Canada received this
award in the organization category and Eastman Kodak
in the company category. Also, though not often, two
Honorary Awards may be given in the same year; for
example, in 1995 Kirk Douglas and Chuck Jones both
received Honorary Award OscarsÒ, as did Sophia Loren
and Myrna Loy in 1990. Though not labeled a lifetime
achievement award, it is often given for a life’s
work in filmmaking, as it was in 1998 to American
director Elia Kazan and in 1999 to Polish director
Andzrej Wajda.
The Honorary Award may take the shape of the
familiar Oscar Ò statuette, in which case it is presented
during the yearly telecast, or it may be conferred as life
membership in the Academy, a scroll, a medal, a certificate,
or any other form chosen by the Board. The Medal
of Commendation, established in 1977, is another version
of the Honorary Award voted for ‘‘outstanding
service and dedication in upholding the high standards
of the Academy.’’ The Scientific and Technical Awards
Committee forwards nominees for this award to the
Governors. After 1997 this award, a bronze medallion,
has carried the name of legendary sound engineer John
A. Bonner, a 1994 recipient who died in 1996. Except
for the Oscar Ò statuette, these Honorary Awards are
usually presented at the annual dinner ceremony for
Scientific and Technical Awards.
Gordon E. Sawyer Honorary Award: Named for the
head of the sound department at Samuel Goldwyn
Studios, who was a member of the Scientific and
Technical Awards Committee from 1936 to 1977, the
Gordon E. Sawyer Award (an OscarÒ statuette) aims to
honor ‘‘an individual in the motion picture industry
whose technological contributions have brought credit
to the industry.’’ The Scientific and Technical Awards
Committee usually recommends candidates for this
award to the Board.
Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award: Given when the
Board designates a deserving recipient, the Irving
Academy Awards Ò
G. Thalberg Memorial Award goes to ‘‘a creative producer
who has been responsible for a consistently high
quality of motion picture production.’’ It is named for
Irving Grant Thalberg (1899–1936), who produced films
from the early 1920s until his death in 1936. At twenty
years of age, he became production head at Universal
Film Manufacturing and, three years later, vice president
and supervisor of production for Louis B. Mayer. The
following year Mayer affiliated as Metro-Goldwyn-
Mayer, where Thalberg continued his production responsibilities
for eight years, until his untimely death from
pneumonia at age thirty-seven. In 1937 the Academy
inaugurated the Thalberg Memorial Award by honoring
producer Darryl F. Zanuck (1902–1979). Instead of an
Oscar Ò statuette, the awardee receives a solid bronze head
of Thalberg on a black marble base. Two earlier versions
were superseded in 1961 by the sculpture designed in
1957 by Gualberto Rocchi, weighing 10 3 /4 pounds and
standing 9 inches tall.
Scientific and Technical Awards: After receiving recommendations
from outstanding technicians and scientists
in the cinema field, the Governors evaluate potential
recipients. In contrast to the Special Achievement Award
that may be given for an exceptional contribution to one
film, the Scientific and Technical Awards are conferred
on individuals who have initiated proven, long-standing
innovations. These awards are given during a special
dinner, separate from, and in advance of, the annual
OscarÒ telecast, during which these awards are usually
acknowledged.
Special Achievement Award: Instituted in 1972, the
Special Achievement Award, an OscarÒ statuette, is voted
when an achievement makes an exceptional contribution
to the motion picture for which it was created, but for
which there is no annual award category. In contrast to
the Honorary Award, the Special Achievement Award
can be conferred only for achievements in films that
qualify for that year’s eligibility requirements. In most
instances (13 of 17 times before 2005), visual or sound
effects have been singled out as exemplary achievements
deserving acknowledgment. Its four other honorees were:
Benjamin Burtt Jr. for the alien, creature, and robot
voices in Star Wars (1977); Alan Splet for sound editing
of The Black Stallion (1979); animation director Richard
Williams for Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988); and John
Lasseter ‘‘for his inspired leadership of the Pixar Toy Story
team, resulting in the first feature-length computeranimated
film’’ (1995).
OTHER ACADEMY ACTIVITIES
The Academy continues its original aim of offering seminars
for training and dissemination of technical information.
The Nicholls Fellowships in Screenwriting provide
SCHIRMER ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FILM 5