Before you dive into this year’s Academy Awards, celebrating the best in movies, check out these strange facts about the Oscars you probably didn’t know.
The Academy Awards ceremony has been held since 1929, with the ceremony broadcast via radio for the first time in 1930. In 1953, the event was first televised and has been ever since. As the oldest of the major annual entertainment awards in America, the Academy Awards are a huge production. It’s not just about the honor of being nominated — earning an Academy Award can be career-changing.
You might think you know everything there is to know about the Oscars, but as you gear up for the 2024 Academy Awards, here are lesser-known interesting facts about its origins, past, and how things run behind the scenes that you’ll find fascinating.
Need more Oscar recommendations? Check out how to watch the 2024 Oscars for free, 2024 Oscar predictions, 10 biggest Oscar snubs ever, 10 best Oscar-winning movies ever, 10 most Oscar-nominated movies ever, and 5 great Oscar-winning movies on Amazon Prime Video.PricewaterhouseCoopers handles envelopes because of a broken embargo
It seems antiquated that a big awards ceremony would rely on paper envelopes to reveal winners. You might think this is because of the excitement when the presenter cracks open the seal to read the name. This might be part of it, but that’s not entirely the reason. According to Time, the reason PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) began distributing the results through paper envelopes was because of a broken embargo. Back in 1941, a news outlet reportedly published the names of all the Oscar winners prior to the ceremony happening. Naturally, this ruined the surprise for both the audience, as well as the nominees. Everyone found out in the most anticlimactic way who won (or lost).
It’s worth noting as well that Price Waterhouse, as it was known at the time, was hired by the Academy a few years prior to handle the vote counting as well. This was to address any accusations of foul play by internal Academy vote counters that were mainly fueled by controversy around Bette Davis not being nominated for her performance in Of Human Bondage in 1935.Winners can’t sell their Oscar statues
Even after winning an Academy Award, the Oscar statue technically isn’t the winner’s property to do with as they please. Before taking it home, they have to sign a contract agreeing they will not sell or otherwise get rid of it. The only option is to offer to sell it back to the Academy for $1, according to CNBC. This rule also extends to the winners’ families and estate once the person dies. The stipulation, in place since 1951, is meant to “preserve the integrity of the Oscar symbol.”
Anyone hoping to find a signed Academy Award on eBay to purchase as memorabilia should know that it’s highly unlikely you’ll ever come across an authentic one. Most winners would never want to part with it anyway, given that the statue is a sign of career prestige. Earning an Academy Award raises your stock and opens the door to bigger projects and potentially higher pay. Plus, it looks great on a mantle.One actor did manage to sell his Oscar
There is one actor who sold his Oscar statue. That’s because Harold Russell won for Best Supporting Actor for The Best Years of Our Lives back in 1947, prior to the stipulation being in place.
