A streaker, Liza Minnelli belting out an opening number, Burt Reynolds cracking jokes in a ruffled dress shirt and a horror film almost taking top honors … it does not get more ’70s than the 46th Academy Awards. In an era when over-the-top, cheesy broadcasts were in full bloom, this Oscar broadcast is one of the most memorable, with the only appearance by Katharine Hepburn at an Oscar ceremony, the youngest competitive winner ever, an odd quartet of hosts, and some of the most memorable films of the decade competing for top honors. On April 2, 1974, an interesting combination of hosts reigned over the event: Burt Reynolds, Diana Ross, John Huston and David Niven. Who thought to put these four together? Minnelli in her prime, just a couple of years beyond her “Cabaret“ win, set things in motion with her rousing opening musical number. Read on for Gold Derby’s Oscars flashback 50 years ago to 1974.
Although she holds the record for winning the most Oscars in any acting category (she had won three times by this point), Hepburn had never attended any of the ceremonies, because to her “prizes are nothing. My prize is my work.” She made an exception in 1974 when she made a stunning appearance to present the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to her friend Lawrence Weingarten, who produced several movies for MGM and actually worked under Thalberg. As she strode across the stage the delighted audience gave her a standing ovation, to which she quipped in her distinctive Mid-Atlantic accent, “Thank you very, very much. I am deeply moved. I’m also very happy I didn’t hear anyone call out, ‘It’s about time.’” After another round of applause, she added, “I am living proof that a person can wait 41 years to be unselfish.”
Hepburn holds the record for acting wins, but another actress made Academy Award history that night by becoming the youngest competitive Oscar winner ever. And 50 years later, Tatum O’Neal still holds that title for winning Best Supporting Actress for “Paper Moon” at age 10. Spunky in her little tuxedo and her face beaming, she marched to the stage and simply stated, “ All I really want to thank is my director Peter Bogdanovich and my father.” She was competing against her costar Madeline Kahn, as well as another young actress, 15-year-old Linda Blair from “The Exorcist.” Candy Clark (“American Graffiti”) and Sylvia Sidney (“Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams”) completed the ballot.
With 71-year-old John Houseman‘s Best Supporting Actor win for “The Paper Chase,” this ceremony marks the largest age gap between acting winners, with 61 years separating Houseman and O’Neal. This was Houseman’s first major film role, having worked primarily as a film and theatre producer in the past. He won against Vincent Gardenia (“Bang the Drum Slowly”), Jack Gilford (“Save the Tiger”), Jason Miller (“The Exorcist”) and Randy Quaid (“The Last Detail”).
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But it was the race for the top prize that drew much attention, with two very different films coming into the night with high hopes and 10 nominations each. “The Exorcist” became the first horror movie to be nominated for Best Picture, and garnered three acting bids as well. The effect this film had on audiences at the time and its influence on the genre cannot be denied, but the Academy was not yet ready to honor a horror film with its most esteemed honor. It ended up winning just two, Best Adapted Screenplay for William Peter Blatty, who had written the novel, and Best Sound. Voters went a more traditional route, and granted “The Sting” the top honor as well as the most awards of the night with seven.
“The Sting” reunited actors Paul Newman and Robert Redford with director George Roy Hill four years after “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.” With its Best Picture win, Julia Phillips became the first woman to win in this category (shared with Tony Bill and Michael Phillips). Hill won Best Director, and Redford garnered his sole acting nomination. Famed designer Edith Head earned her 33rd nomination and eighth (and final) win for Best Costume Design. With his win for Best Adapted Score, Marvin Hamlisch also earned a distinction.
With additional wins for “The Way We Were” for Best Song (the title track, shared with Alan and Marilyn Bergman) and Best Original Dramatic Score, Hamlisch’s historical triumphs in all three music categories makes him the only composer to win three music Oscars in a single ceremony. He is one of only a handful of people to win three or more Oscars in one evening, and the only one whose three didn’t include a Best Picture victory. He is also one of only 19 competitive EGOT recipients, and only one of two who also received a Pulitzer Prize.
Among the final Best Picture nominees was Ingmar Bergman‘s “Cries and Whispers,” which was the fourth foreign film to receive recognition in this category. Out of five total nominations, including Best Director for Bergman, it won for its cinematography. Best Picture nominee “American Graffiti” marked George Lucas‘ first appearance at the ceremony, with bids for Best Director and Original Screenplay; it left empty-handed from five nominations.
The final nominee for Best Picture was “A Touch of Class,” a British romantic comedy that garnered Glenda Jackson her second Best Actress statue in three years. She won over memorable performances by Ellen Burstyn in “The Exorcist” and Barbra Streisand in “The Way We Were,” as well as Marsha Mason in “Cinderella Liberty” and Joanne Woodward in “Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams.”
Best Actor winner Jack Lemmon (“Save the Tiger”) became the first man to win both male acting categories, having won in supporting for “Mister Roberts” in 1956. This was his fourth bid in 14 years for Best Actor, and he began his speech with, “Well, I tell you, I had a speech prepared … in 1959. I’ve forgotten it.” Besides Redford, he won against Marlon Brando (“Last Tango in Paris”), Jack Nicholson (“The Last Detail”) and Al Pacino (“Serpico”).
One of the most memorable events at any Oscar ceremony occurred as Niven was introducing Elizabeth Taylor as the presenter for Best Picture. Political activist Robert Opel tore across the stage completely naked, flashing the peace sign. Streaking was a huge fad at the time, and Niven famously quipped, “Well, ladies and gentlemen, that was almost bound to happen. Isn’t it fascinating to think that probably the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings?” When the laughter finally subsided, the still-stunning Taylor floated onto the stage in a froth of yellow, received her standing ovation with her usual grace, and remarked, “That’s a pretty hard act to follow!” Watch the video above.
During the evening, Oscar-winning actress Susan Hayward (one of my personal favorites) appeared publicly for the last time before her death, and the legendary Groucho Marx received an honorary Oscar “in recognition of his brilliant creativity and for the unequalled achievements of the Marx Brothers in the art of motion picture comedy.”
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