27th Academy Awards

27th Academy Awards
Date	30 March 1955
Site	RKO Pantages Theatre Hollywood, California NBC Century Theatre New York City, New York
Host	Bob Hope (Hollywood) Thelma Ritter (New York City)
Highlights
Best Picture	On the Waterfront
Most awards	On the Waterfront (8)
Most nominations	On the Waterfront (12)
TV in the United States
Network	NBC

The 27th Academy Awards honored the best films produced in 1954. The Best Picture winner, On the Waterfront, was produced by Sam Spiegel and directed by Elia Kazan. It had twelve nominations and eight wins, matching two other films, Gone with the Wind (1939) and From Here to Eternity (1953), even though those two each had thirteen nominations.

The low-budget, black and white On the Waterfront was filmed entirely on location in Hoboken and told the gritty story of New York dock workers, brutality, corruption, and embroilment with a gangster union boss. It provided an expose of union racketeering while showcasing the murder of an innocent longshoreman. Kazan and screenwriter Budd Schulberg justified their own naming of names (blacklisting-testimony against alleged Communists) as friendly witnesses before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) in the early 1950s with the film's story of heroic longshoreman informant Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) who stood alone and turned witness against the corrupt and intimidating union bosses and became a marked 'pigeon'.

A "rematch" occurred in the category of Best Actor, where Marlon Brando and Humphrey Bogart were competing again for the first time since Bogart beat him three years earlier. In a surprise win (Bing Crosby was the favored nominee), Brando received his first Oscar for his performance in On the Waterfront, which is now seen as one of the most justified upsets in Oscar history.

Grace Kelly won Best Actress for The Country Girl in another upset. Judy Garland, who was heavily tipped to win Best Actress for the movie A Star Is Born could not attend the ceremony as she had only recently given birth to her third child. Cameras were set up in her room so she could express her thanks in the likely case of her winning. Groucho Marx later sent her a telegram expressing that her loss was "the biggest robbery since Brink's."

Dorothy Dandridge became the first African American actress to receive a nomination for Best Actress.

Awards

Winners are listed first and highlighted in boldface.

Best Motion Picture	Best Director
Sam Spiegel for Columbia Pictures – On the Waterfront Stanley Kramer for Columbia Pictures – The Caine Mutiny William Perlberg for Paramount Pictures – The Country Girl Jack Cummings for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer – Seven Brides for Seven Brothers Sol C. Siegel for 20th Century Fox – Three Coins in the Fountain	Elia Kazan – On the Waterfront Alfred Hitchcock – Rear Window George Seaton – The Country Girl William A. Wellman – The High and the Mighty Billy Wilder – Sabrina
Best Actor	Best Actress
Marlon Brando – On the Waterfront Humphrey Bogart – The Caine Mutiny Bing Crosby – The Country Girl James Mason – A Star Is Born Dan O'Herlihy – Robinson Crusoe	Grace Kelly – The Country Girl Dorothy Dandridge – Carmen Jones Judy Garland – A Star Is Born Audrey Hepburn – Sabrina Jane Wyman – Magnificent Obsession
Best Supporting Actor	Best Supporting Actress
Edmond O'Brien – The Barefoot Contessa Lee J. Cobb – On the Waterfront Karl Malden – On the Waterfront Rod Steiger – On the Waterfront Tom Tully – The Caine Mutiny	Eva Marie Saint – On the Waterfront Nina Foch – Executive Suite Katy Jurado – Broken Lance Jan Sterling – The High and the Mighty Claire Trevor – The High and the Mighty
Best Story and Screenplay	Best Screenplay
The Country Girl – George Seaton The Caine Mutiny – Stanley Roberts Rear Window – John Michael Hayes Sabrina – Billy Wilder, Samuel A. Taylor and Ernest Lehman Seven Brides for Seven Brothers – Albert Hackett, Frances Goodrich and Dorothy Kingsley	On the Waterfront – Budd Schulberg The Barefoot Contessa – Joseph L. Mankiewicz Genevieve – William Rose The Glenn Miller Story – Valentine Davies and Oscar Brodney Knock on Wood – Norman Panama and Melvin Frank
Best Story	Best Animated Short Film
Broken Lance – Philip Yordan Bread, Love and Dreams – Ettore Maria Margadonna Forbidden Games – Francois Boyer Night People – Jed Harris and Tom Reed There's No Business Like Show Business – Lamar Trotti	When Magoo Flew Crazy Mixed Up Pup Pigs Is Pigs Sandy Claws Touché, Pussy Cat!
Best Documentary Feature	Best Documentary Short
The Vanishing Prairie – Walt Disney The Stratford Adventure – Guy Glover	Thursday's Children Jet Carrier Rembrandt: A Self-Portrait
Best Live Action Short Film, One-Reel	Best Live Action Short Film, Two-Reel
This Mechanical Age – Robert Youngson The First Piano Quartette – Otto Lang The Strauss Fantasy – Johnny Green	A Time Out of War – Denis Sanders and Terry Sanders Beauty and the Bull – Cedric Francis Jet Carrier – Otto Lang Siam – Walt Disney Productions
Best Dramatic or Comedy Score	Best Musical Score
The High and the Mighty – Dimitri Tiomkin The Caine Mutiny – Max Steiner Genevieve – Larry Adler On the Waterfront – Leonard Bernstein The Silver Chalice – Franz Waxman	Seven Brides for Seven Brothers – Adolph Deutsch and Saul Chaplin Carmen Jones – Herschel Burke Gilbert The Glenn Miller Story – Joseph Gershenson and Henry Mancini A Star Is Born – Ray Heindorf There's No Business Like Show Business – Alfred Newman and Lionel Newman
Best Original Song	Best Sound Recording
"Three Coins in the Fountain" from Three Coins in the Fountain – Music by Jule Styne; Lyric by Sammy Cahn "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep" from White Christmas – Music and Lyric by Irving Berlin "The High and the Mighty" from The High and the Mighty – Music by Dimitri Tiomkin; Lyric by Ned Washington "Hold My Hand" from Susan Slept Here – Music and Lyric by Jack Lawrence and Richard Myers "The Man That Got Away" from A Star Is Born – Music by Harold Arlen; Lyric by Ira Gershwin	The Glenn Miller Story – Leslie I. Carey, Universal Studio Sound Department Brigadoon – Wesley C. Miller, MGM Studio Sound Department The Caine Mutiny – John P. Livadary, Columbia Studio Sound Department Rear Window – Loren L. Ryder, Paramount Studio Sound Department Susan Slept Here – John O. Aalberg, RKO Radio Studio Sound Department
Best Art Direction, Black and White	Best Art Direction, Color
On the Waterfront – Art Direction and Set Decoration: Richard Day The Country Girl – Art Direction: Hal Pereira and Roland Anderson; Set Decoration: Sam Comer and Grace Gregory Executive Suite – Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons and Edward Carfagno; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis and Emile Kuri Le plaisir – Art Direction and Set Decoration: Max Ophüls Sabrina – Art Direction: Hal Pereira and Walter Tyler; Set Decoration: Sam Comer and Ray Moyer	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea – Art Direction: John Meehan; Set Decoration: Emile Kuri Brigadoon – Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons and Preston Ames; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis and Keogh Gleason Desiree – Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler and Leland Fuller; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott and Paul S. Fox Red Garters – Art Direction: Hal Pereira and Roland Anderson; Set Decoration: Sam Comer and Ray Moyer A Star Is Born – Art Direction: Malcolm Bert, Gene Allen and Irene Sharaff; Set Decoration: George James Hopkins
Best Cinematography, Black and White	Best Cinematography, Color
On the Waterfront – Boris Kaufman The Country Girl – John F. Warren Executive Suite – George Folsey Rogue Cop – John Seitz Sabrina – Charles Lang, Jr.	Three Coins in the Fountain – Milton Krasner The Egyptian – Leon Shamroy Rear Window – Robert Burks Seven Brides for Seven Brothers – George Folsey The Silver Chalice – William V. Skall
Best Costume Design, Black and White	Best Costume Design, Color
Sabrina – Edith Head The Earrings of Madame de... – Georges Annenkov and Rosine Delamare Executive Suite – Helen Rose It Should Happen to You – Jean Louis Indiscretion of an American Wife – Christian Dior	The Gate of Hell – Sanzo Wada Brigadoon – Irene Sharaff Desiree – Charles LeMaire and René Hubert A Star Is Born – Jean Louis, Mary Ann Nyberg and Irene Sharaff There's No Business Like Show Business – Charles LeMaire, Travilla and Miles White
Best Film Editing	Best Special Effects
On the Waterfront – Gene Milford 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea – Elmo Williams The Caine Mutiny – William A. Lyon and Henry Batista The High and the Mighty – Ralph Dawson Seven Brides for Seven Brothers – Ralph E. Winters	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Hell and High Water Them!

Academy Honorary Awards

• Bausch and Lomb Optical
• Kemp R. Niver
• Greta Garbo
• Danny Kaye
• Jon Whiteley
• Vincent Winter

Best Foreign Language Film

• Jigokumon (Gate of Hell) (Japan)

Presenters and performers

Presenters

• Buddy Adler (Presenter: Best Picture)
• Lauren Bacall (Presenter: Scientific & Technical Awards)
• Humphrey Bogart (Presenter: Best Cinematography, Black-and-White)
• Charles Brackett (Presenter: Honorary Awards)
• Marlon Brando (Presenter: Best Director)
• Lee J. Cobb (Presenter: Best Special Effects)
• Bing Crosby (Presenter: Music Awards)
• Dorothy Dandridge (Presenter: Best Film Editing)
• Bette Davis (Presenter: Best Actor)
• Nina Foch & Jane Wyman (Presenters: Costume Design Awards)
• Audrey Hepburn, Karl Malden, & Claire Trevor (Presenters: Writing Awards)
• William Holden (Presenter: Best Actress)
• Jean Marie Ingels (Presenter: Best Foreign Language Film)
• Katy Jurado (Presenter: Best Cinematography)
• Grace Kelly (Presenter: Documentary Awards)
• Merle Oberon (Presenter: Honorary Awards — Juvenile Performances)
• Edmond O'Brien, Eva Marie Saint, & Rod Steiger (Presenters: Short Subject Awards)
• Dan O'Herlihy and Jan Sterling (Presenters: Art Direction-Set Decoration Awards)
• Donna Reed (Presenter: Best Supporting Actor)
• Frank Sinatra (Presenter: Best Supporting Actress)
• Tom Tully (Presenter: Best Sound)

Performers

• Rosemary Clooney ("The Man That Got Away" from A Star Is Born)
• Johnny Desmond & Muzzy Marcellino ("The High and the Mighty" from The High and the Mighty)
• Peggy King ("Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep" from White Christmas)
• Dean Martin ("Three Coins in the Fountain" from Three Coins in the Fountain)
• Tony Martin ("Hold My Hand" from Susan Slept Here)

Multiple nominations and awards

These films had multiple nominations:

• 12 nominations: On the Waterfront
• 7 nominations: The Caine Mutiny, The Country Girl
• 6 nominations: The High and the Mighty, Sabrina, A Star is Born
• 5 nominations: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
• 4 nominations: Executive Suite, Rear Window
• 3 nominations: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Brigadoon, The Glenn Miller Story, There's No Business Like Show Business, Three Coins in the Fountain
• 2 nominations: The Barefoot Contessa, Broken Lance, Carmen Jones, Desiree, Genevieve, Jet Carrier, The Silver Chalice, Susan Slept Here

The following films received multiple awards.

• 8 wins: On the Waterfront
• 2 wins: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Country Girl, Three Coins in the Fountain

See also

• 12th Golden Globe Awards
• 1954 in film
• 6th Primetime Emmy Awards
• 7th Primetime Emmy Awards
• 8th British Academy Film Awards
• 9th Tony Awards

External links

• 1954 Academy Awards Winners and History
• 1954 Academy Awards at the Internet Movie Database
• The 27th Academy Awards at IMDb