Best Picture Winner
Mrs. Miniver
Best Picture
Director: William Wyler
Studio: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
A British family strives to live a normal life during World War II, facing dangers and sacrifices.
From the Worthy Podcast
Definition: Propaganda films spread and promote certain ideas that are usually religious, political, or cultural in nature. A propaganda film is made with the intent that the viewer will adopt the position promoted by the propagator and eventually take action towards making those ideas widely accepted.
When Britain and France went to war with Germany in 1939, Americans were divided over whether to join the war effort. It wouldn't be until the surprise attacks on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 that the United States would be thrust into World War II. Citizens were invited to purchase war bonds and take on factory jobs to support production needs for the military. As men were sent to battlefields, women were asked to branch out and take on jobs as riveters, welders and electricians.
Words, posters, and films waged a constant battle for the hearts and minds of the American citizens just as surely as military weapons engaged the enemy. Persuading the American public became a wartime industry, almost as important as the manufacturing of bullets and planes. The Government launched an aggressive propaganda campaign with clearly articulated goals and strategies to galvanize public support, and it recruited some of the nation's foremost intellectuals, artists, and filmmakers to wage the war on that front.
While most propaganda aimed to boost patriotism, some took on racist overtones. Director Frank Capra produced seven films called Why We Fight, which portrayed Germany, Italy and Japan as nations of inhuman murderers. As World War II progressed, Hollywood churned out patriotic films such as Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) with James Cagney, Pin-Up Girl (1944) with Betty Grable as a USO entertainer, and Anchors Aweigh (1945) with Gene Kelly as a dancing sailor. Even cartoon characters got into the act. Warner Brothers sent Popeye and Bugs Bunny to fight the Japanese, while Disney released a short showing Donald Duck incapacitating Hitler with a ripe tomato. The war, movies and cartoons did their part to keep Americans focused on the war effort, even as they were being entertained.
PBS and History.com
John Ford and his relationship with John Wayne when Wayne decided not to join the war; what will have a stronger impact on the country: fighting the war or being in films that promote fighting for the country?
All Categories (26)
Outstanding Motion Picture
Mrs. Miniver— Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Winner
Kings Row— Warner Bros.
Random Harvest— Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
The Invaders— Ortus
The Magnificent Ambersons— Mercury
The Pied Piper— 20th Century-Fox
The Pride of the Yankees— Samuel Goldwyn Productions
The Talk of the Town— Columbia
Wake Island— Paramount
Yankee Doodle Dandy— Warner Bros.
Actor
Gary Cooper— The Pride of the Yankees {"Lou Gehrig"}
Monty Woolley— The Pied Piper {"Howard"}
Ronald Colman— Random Harvest {"Charles Ranier"}
Walter Pidgeon— Mrs. Miniver {"Clem Miniver"}
Actor In A Supporting Role
Frank Morgan— Tortilla Flat {"The Pirate"}
Henry Travers— Mrs. Miniver {"Mr. Ballard"}
Walter Huston— Yankee Doodle Dandy {"Jerry Cohan"}
William Bendix— Wake Island {"Smacksie Randall"}
Actress
Bette Davis— Now, Voyager {"Charlotte Vale"}
Katharine Hepburn— Woman of the Year {"Tess Harding"}
Rosalind Russell— My Sister Eileen {"Ruth Sherwood"}
Teresa Wright— The Pride of the Yankees {"Eleanor Gehrig"}
Actress In A Supporting Role
Agnes Moorehead— The Magnificent Ambersons {"Fanny Minafer"}
Dame May Whitty— Mrs. Miniver {"Lady Beldon"}
Gladys Cooper— Now, Voyager {"Mrs. Vale"}
Susan Peters— Random Harvest {"Kitty"}
Directing
Kings Row— Sam Wood
Random Harvest— Mervyn LeRoy
Wake Island— John Farrow
Yankee Doodle Dandy— Michael Curtiz
Writing (Original Screenplay)
Woman of the Year— Ring Lardner, Jr., Michael Kanin
Winner
One of Our Aircraft Is Missing— Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Road to Morocco— Frank Butler, Don Hartman
The War against Mrs. Hadley— George Oppenheimer
Wake Island— W. R. Burnett, Frank Butler
Writing (Original Story)
The Invaders— Emeric Pressburger
Winner
Holiday Inn— Irving Berlin
The Pride of the Yankees— Paul Gallico
The Talk of the Town— Sidney Harmon
Yankee Doodle Dandy— Robert Buckner
Writing (Screenplay)
Mrs. Miniver— Arthur Wimperis, George Froeschel, James Hilton, Claudine West
Winner
Random Harvest— Claudine West, George Froeschel, Arthur Wimperis
The Invaders— Rodney Ackland, Emeric Pressburger
The Pride of the Yankees— Jo Swerling, Herman J. Mankiewicz
The Talk of the Town— Irwin Shaw, Sidney Buchman
Cinematography (Black-And-White)
Mrs. Miniver— Joseph Ruttenberg
Winner
Kings Row— James Wong Howe
Moontide— Charles Clarke
Take a Letter, Darling— John Mescall
Ten Gentlemen from West Point— Leon Shamroy
The Magnificent Ambersons— Stanley Cortez
The Pied Piper— Edward Cronjager
The Pride of the Yankees— Rudolph Maté
The Talk of the Town— Ted Tetzlaff
This above All— Arthur Miller
Cinematography (Color)
The Black Swan— Leon Shamroy
Winner
Arabian Nights— Milton Krasner, William V. Skall, W. Howard Greene
Captains of the Clouds— Sol Polito
Jungle Book— W. Howard Greene
Reap the Wild Wind— Victor Milner, William V. Skall
To the Shores of Tripoli— Edward Cronjager, William V. Skall
Music (Music Score Of A Dramatic Or Comedy Picture)
Now, Voyager— Max Steiner
Winner
Arabian Nights— Frank Skinner
Bambi— Frank Churchill, Edward Plumb
Flying Tigers— Victor Young
I Married a Witch— Roy Webb
Joan of Paris— Roy Webb
Jungle Book— Miklos Rozsa
Klondike Fury— Edward Kay
Random Harvest— Herbert Stothart
Silver Queen— Victor Young
Take a Letter, Darling— Victor Young
The Black Swan— Alfred Newman
The Corsican Brothers— Dimitri Tiomkin
The Gold Rush— Max Terr
The Pride of the Yankees— Leigh Harline
The Shanghai Gesture— Richard Hageman
The Talk of the Town— Frederick Hollander, Morris Stoloff
To Be or Not to Be— Werner Heymann
Music (Scoring Of A Musical Picture)
Yankee Doodle Dandy— Ray Heindorf, Heinz Roemheld
Winner
Flying with Music— Edward Ward
For Me and My Gal— Roger Edens, Georgie Stoll
Holiday Inn— Robert Emmett Dolan
It Started with Eve— Hans Salter, Charles Previn
Johnny Doughboy— Walter Scharf
My Gal Sal— Alfred Newman
You Were Never Lovelier— Leigh Harline
Art Direction (Black-And-White)
This above All— Art Direction: Richard Day, Joseph Wright; Interior Decoration: Thomas Little
Winner
George Washington Slept Here— Art Direction: Max Parker, Mark-Lee Kirk; Interior Decoration: Casey Roberts
Random Harvest— Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Randall Duell; Interior Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Jack Moore
Silver Queen— Art Direction: Ralph Berger; Interior Decoration: Emile Kuri
Take a Letter, Darling— Art Direction: Hans Dreier, Roland Anderson; Interior Decoration: Sam Comer
The Magnificent Ambersons— Art Direction: Albert S. D'Agostino; Interior Decoration: Darrell Silvera, Al Fields
The Pride of the Yankees— Art Direction: Perry Ferguson; Interior Decoration: Howard Bristol
The Shanghai Gesture— Art Direction: Boris Leven; Interior Decoration: Boris Leven
The Spoilers— Art Direction: Jack Otterson, John B. Goodman; Interior Decoration: Russell A. Gausman, Edward R. Robinson
The Talk of the Town— Art Direction: Lionel Banks, Rudolph Sternad; Interior Decoration: Fay Babcock
Art Direction (Color)
My Gal Sal— Art Direction: Richard Day, Joseph Wright; Interior Decoration: Thomas Little
Winner
Arabian Nights— Art Direction: Jack Otterson, Alexander Golitzen; Interior Decoration: Russell A. Gausman, Ira S. Webb
Captains of the Clouds— Art Direction: Ted Smith; Interior Decoration: Casey Roberts
Jungle Book— Art Direction: Vincent Korda; Interior Decoration: Julia Heron
Reap the Wild Wind— Art Direction: Hans Dreier, Roland Anderson; Interior Decoration: George Sawley
Special Effects
Reap the Wild Wind— Photographic Effects by Gordon Jennings, Farciot Edouart, William L. Pereira; Sound Effects by Louis Mesenkop
Winner
Desperate Journey— Photographic Effects by Byron Haskin; Sound Effects by Nathan Levinson
Flying Tigers— Photographic Effects by Howard Lydecker; Sound Effects by Daniel J. Bloomberg
Invisible Agent— Photographic Effects by John Fulton; Sound Effects by Bernard B. Brown
Jungle Book— Photographic Effects by Lawrence Butler; Sound Effects by William H. Wilmarth
Mrs. Miniver— Photographic Effects by A. Arnold Gillespie, Warren Newcombe; Sound Effects by Douglas Shearer
One of Our Aircraft Is Missing— Photographic Effects by Ronald Neame; Sound Effects by C. C. Stevens
The Black Swan— Photographic Effects by Fred Sersen; Sound Effects by Roger Heman, George Leverett
The Navy Comes Through— Photographic Effects by Vernon L. Walker; Sound Effects by James G. Stewart
The Pride of the Yankees— Photographic Effects by Jack Cosgrove, Ray Binger; Sound Effects by Thomas T. Moulton
Film Editing
The Pride of the Yankees— Daniel Mandell
Winner
Mrs. Miniver— Harold F. Kress
The Talk of the Town— Otto Meyer
This above All— Walter Thompson
Yankee Doodle Dandy— George Amy
Sound Recording
Yankee Doodle Dandy— Warner Bros. Studio Sound Department, Nathan Levinson, Sound Director
Winner
Arabian Nights— Universal Studio Sound Department, Bernard B. Brown, Sound Director
Bambi— Walt Disney Studio Sound Department, Sam Slyfield, Sound Director
Flying Tigers— Republic Studio Sound Department, Daniel Bloomberg, Sound Director
Friendly Enemies— Sound Service, Inc., Jack Whitney, Sound Director
Mrs. Miniver— Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio Sound Department, Douglas Shearer, Sound Director
Once upon a Honeymoon— RKO Radio Studio Sound Department, Steve Dunn, Sound Director
Road to Morocco— Paramount Studio Sound Department, Loren Ryder, Sound Director
The Gold Rush— RCA Sound, James Fields, Sound Director
The Pride of the Yankees— Samuel Goldwyn Studio Sound Department, Thomas T. Moulton, Sound Director
This above All— 20th Century-Fox Studio Sound Department, E. H. Hansen, Sound Director
You Were Never Lovelier— Columbia Studio Sound Department, John Livadary, Sound Director
Special Award
To Charles Boyer for his progressive cultural achievement in establishing the French Research Foundation in Los Angeles as a source of reference for the Hollywood Motion Picture Industry.
Winner
IRVING G. THALBERG MEMORIAL AWARD
Sidney Franklin
To Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for its achievement in representing the American Way of Life in the production of the "Andy Hardy" series of films.
To Noel Coward for his outstanding production achievement in In Which We Serve.
Scientific Or Technical Award (Class II)
To CARROLL CLARK, F. THOMAS THOMPSON and the RKO RADIO STUDIO ART and MINIATURE DEPARTMENTS for the design and construction of a moving cloud and horizon machine. [Stage Operations]
Winner
To DANIEL B. CLARK and the 20TH CENTURY-FOX FILM CORP. for the development of a lens calibration system and the application of this system to exposure control in cinematography. [Lenses and Filters]
Scientific Or Technical Award (Class III)
To ROBERT HENDERSON and the PARAMOUNT STUDIO ENGINEERING and TRANSPARENCY DEPARTMENTS for the design and construction of adjustable light bridges and screen frames for transparency process photography. [Special Photographic]
Winner
To DANIEL J. BLOOMBERG and the REPUBLIC STUDIO SOUND DEPARTMENT for the design and application to motion picture production of a device for marking action negative for pre-selection purposes. [Laboratory]
Documentary
The Battle of Midway— United States Navy
Winner
"A special award to Battle of Midway for the historical value of its achievement in offering a camera record of one of the decisive battles of the world - a record unique both for the courage of those who made it under fire, and for its magnificent portrayal of the gallantry of our armed forces in battle."
A Ship Is Born— United States Merchant Marine
Africa, Prelude to Victory— The March of Time
Combat Report— United States Army Signal Corps
Conquer by the Clock— Frederic Ullman, Jr., Producer
Henry Browne, Farmer— United States Department of Agriculture
High Stakes in the East— The Netherlands Information Bureau
High over the Borders— National Film Board of Canada
Inside Fighting China— National Film Board of Canada
It's Everybody's War— United States Office of War Information
Kokoda Front Line!— Australian News & Information Bureau
"A special award to Kokoda Front Line! for its effectiveness in portraying, simply yet forcefully, the scene of war in New Guinea and for its moving presentation of the bravery and fortitude of our Australian comrades in arms."
Listen to Britain— British Ministry of Information
Little Belgium— Belgian Ministry of Information
Little Isles of Freedom— Victor Stoloff and Edgar Loew, Producers
Moscow Strikes Back— Artkino
"A special award to Moscow Strikes Back for its vivid presentation of the heroism of the Russian Army and of the Russian people in the defense of Moscow, and for its achievement in so doing under conditions of extreme difficulty and danger."
Mr. Blabbermouth!— United States Office of War Information
Mr. Gardenia Jones— United States Office of War Information
Prelude to War— United States Army Special Services
"A special award to Prelude to War for its trenchant conception and authentic and stirring dramatization of the events which forced our nation into the war and of the ideals for which we fight."
The Grain That Built a Hemisphere— Walt Disney, Producer
The New Spirit— Walt Disney, Producer
The Price of Victory— William H. Pine, Producer
Twenty-One Miles— British Ministry of Information
We Refuse to Die— William C. Thomas, Producer
White Eagle— Concanen Films
Winning Your Wings— United States Army Air Force
Music (Song)
"White Christmas" from Holiday Inn— Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
Winner
"Always In My Heart" from Always in My Heart— Music by Ernesto Lecuona; Lyrics by Kim Gannon
"Dearly Beloved" from You Were Never Lovelier— Music by Jerome Kern; Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
"How About You?" from Babes on Broadway— Music by Burton Lane; Lyrics by Ralph Freed
"I've Got A Gal In Kalamazoo" from Orchestra Wives— Music by Harry Warren; Lyrics by Mack Gordon
"It Seems I Heard That Song Before" from Youth on Parade— Music by Jule Styne; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
"Love Is A Song" from Bambi— Music by Frank Churchill; Lyrics by Larry Morey
"Pennies For Peppino" from Flying with Music— Music by Edward Ward; Lyrics by Chet Forrest and Bob Wright
"Pig Foot Pete" from Hellzapoppin'— Music by Gene de Paul; Lyrics by Don Raye
This nomination is a mystery. Both the nominations list and the program from the Awards dinner list the song as being from Hellzapoppin', a 1942 release for Awards purposes. The song does not appear in that film, but did appear in Keep 'Em Flying, a 1941 release from the same production company and studio, and was therefore ineligible for a 1942 nomination.
"There's A Breeze On Lake Louise" from The Mayor of 44th Street— Music by Harry Revel; Lyrics by Mort Greene
Short Subject (Cartoon)
Der Fuehrer's Face— Walt Disney, Producer
Winner
All Out for 'V'— 20th Century-Fox
Blitz Wolf— Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Juke Box Jamboree— Walter Lantz, Producer
Pigs in a Polka— Leon Schlesinger, Producer
Tulips Shall Grow— George Pal, Producer
Short Subject (One-Reel)
Speaking of Animals and Their Families— Paramount
Winner
Desert Wonderland— 20th Century-Fox
Marines in the Making— Pete Smith, Producer
United States Marine Band— Warner Bros.
Short Subject (Two-Reel)
Beyond the Line of Duty— Warner Bros.
Winner
Don't Talk— Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Private Smith of the U.S.A.— RKO Radio