History of the Golden Globe Awards: the 1970's

Thursday morning the nominations for the Golden Globe Awards were announced. Leading the way were "Babel" and "The Departed" with the most nominations. The Globes are thought to be the precursor to the Academy Awards but that is sometimes not the case. Last year, for instance, Academy Award winning Best Picture "Crash" was not even nominated for the Globe in the same category.

Founded in 1944 by the Hollywood Foreign Press, the Globes were originally thought of as a less prestigious award that almost infringed upon the Academy. As the years have passed the Golden Globes have become one of the most important industry awards shows.

The Globes have a few differences from the Academy Awards that make them stand out. The best picture category is divided into two categories - Drama and Comedy or Musical. The same goes for the awards for the leading actor and actress (the supporting categories are still combined into one) awards. Unlike the Academy, Best Screenplay is combined into one category where the Academy divides the awards between Original Screenplays and Screenplays Adapted from Another Medium.

In 1956 the Foreign Press added television awards to their program and equally divided the categories the same way as the film categories. Each year a lifetime achievement award is given to an industry favorite and is named after the great director/producer Cecil B. DeMille. This year the DeMille is being awarded to Warren Beatty.

The Globes have had their share of controversy as well. A category no longer used, Best Film Newcomer, was often awarded to an actor who didn't make his film debut but to an actor who made his first big splash in movies. The category was retired in the 1980's after "actress" Pia Zadora won the award in 1982 for an incestual love story called "Butterfly." It was later reported that her millionaire husband had sent gifts to the members of the Foreign Press prior to the voting. In 1968 network television stopped airing the ceremonies through 1974 because of repeated rumors of "fixes" in the voting.

Because the Foreign Press numbers just under 100, sometimes the nominations are a bit on the "odd" side. This year Clint Eastwood received two nominations for Best Director for his war epics "Flags Of Our Fathers" and "Letters From Iwo Jima" while neither film received a Best Picture nomination. Emilio Estevez' film "Bobby" received a Best Picture (Drama) nomination without getting another major nomination.

Sometimes the Globes are dead on in their accuracy for predicting the Academy Award winners. Last year's four acting winners (not counting Best Actor/Actress in a Musical or Comedy) all went on to win the Academy Award. Usually, however, the winners in the four acting categories are assured a nomination for an Academy Award but not always. Winners of the lead acting categories for comedy and musical are often overlooked for a nomination simply because these categories are often sparse with truly deserving nominees.

Here is a look back at the Golden Globe Awards in the 1970's and how well they predicted the Academy Awards.

1970 - While the Academy toasted "Patton" with its major awards including Best Picture, Director, Actor and Screenplay, "Love Story" was the big winner at the Globes winning five of the seven awards it was nominated for including Best Picture, Director, Screenplay and Actress for Ali MacGraw. "MASH" was the winner of the Best Picture Musical or Comedy. Of the acting awards only George C. Scott and John (Ryan's Daughter) would carry their momentum from the Globes to an Academy win. Famously, Scott announced he would refuse the Academy Award prior to voting but was so good he still won. Albert (Scrooge) Finney was the only Globe winner not to be nominated for an Academy Award. Frank Sinatra was given the DeMille award that year.

1971 - This was a year the Globes got it right. Eight of its winners would go on to win the Academy Award including Best Picture winner "The French Connection." Three of the four Academy winners won the Globe and only Twiggy (The Boyfriend) would win a Globe and not get a nomination. Director Alfred Hitchcock was presented the DeMille award.

1972 - Another year where the Globes did a fairly accurate job of predicting the Academy Awards. "The Godfather" won the major awards and three of the four acting winners also won the Globe. Interestingly, the Academy Award winner for Best Supporting Actress, Eileen (Butterflies Are Free) Heckart was not even nominated for a Globe. This was also the year that two veteran directors, Billy Wilder and Alfred Hitchcock, were nominated for the last time for Best Director for "Avanti" and "Frenzy," respectively. Veteran producer Samuel Goldwyn was presented the DeMille award.

1973 - One of the biggest award blunders for the Globes came this year when "The Sting," which won seven Academy Awards including Best Picture and Director, did not receive a single Globe nomination. "The Exorcist" (the evening's big winner) and "American Graffiti" were the Best Picture winners while only two of the Globe acting awards (Glenda Jackson for "A Touch of Class" and John Houseman for "The Paper Chase") would carry on to Academy Award victory. Actress Bette Davis would get the DeMille award.

1974 - While the Academy would honor "The Godfather Part II," the Globes made "Chinatown" their big winner for Best Picture, Director (Roman Polanski), Screenplay and Best Actor - Jack Nicholson. Only Art Carney's winning performance in "Harry and Tonto" translated into Academy gold while Raquel Welch's win for Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical for "The Three Musketeer," and Karen Black's Best Supporting Actress win for "The Great Gatsby" were not even nominated. Three nominees in each supporting category (Bruce Dern for "The Great Gatsby," John Huston "Chinatown," and Sam Waterston "The Great Gatsby" for Supporting Actor; Bea Arthur "Mame," Black and Jennifer Jones "The Towering Inferno") would not be nominated for Academy Awards. One of the worst Best Picture nominations for Best Drama occurred this year as well. In the heyday of the disaster movie, "Earthquake" would get a nod while its more popular counterpart, "The Towering Inferno," would be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. The lack of quality performances for Best Actress in a Musical/Comedy was evident as one of the nominees was Helen Hayes for her role in Walt Disney's "Herbie Rides Again." Producer Hal B. Wallis was the recipient for the DeMille award.

1975 - This year the Globes would fairly accurately predict the major Academy Award winners as "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" won Best Picture, Actor, Actress, Director and Screenplay at both ceremonies. Richard Benjamin won the Best Supporting Actor for his role in "The Sunshine Boys" but was not even nominated for an Academy Award, presumably due to the fact that the studio finagled George Burns into the Supporting Actor category while he was nominated for Best Actor for the Globes. There was no DeMille Award given this year.

1976 - This was an interesting year for the Globes. "Network" was the big winner with 4 awards (Actor - Peter Finch; Actress - Faye Dunaway; Director; Screenplay) but failed to win Best Picture, which would go to "Rocky," its only award of the evening. "Rocky" would go on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. Three of the nominees for Best Supporting Actor (Marty Feldman "Silent Movie,"; Ron Howard "The Shootist," Oskar Werner "Voyage of the Damned") were not nominated for Academy Awards. The Academy Award winner for Best Supporting Actress was Beatrice Straight for "Network" but she failed to get nominated for a Globe. Veteran producer Walter Mirisch received the DeMille award.

1977 - This was a year of rarities at the Globes. The two Best Pictures, "The Turning Point" and "The Goodbye Girl" were both directed by the same man, Herbert Ross. The two eventual Academy Award winners for Best Actor and Best Actress (Richard Dreyfuss "The Goodbye Girl"; Diane Keaton "Annie Hall") came from the Musical/Comedy categories. Academy Award big winners "Annie Hall" and "Star Wars" would win one award each at the Globes. All five Best Supporting Actor nominees would carry over to the Academy Awards though the Globe winner (Peter Firth "Equus") would lose the Academy Award to Jason Robards for "Julia." Comedian Red Skelton would get the DeMille award and proceeded to break the award during his speech (it was later replaced).

1978 - "Midnight Express" was the evening's big winner while eventual Academy Award winner "The Deer Hunter" would win only one Globe for Best Director. Lead actor winners Jon Voight and Jane Fonda would repeat their success at the Academy Awards for their performances in "Coming Home." Eventual Academy Award winning Best Supporting Actress Maggie Smith (California Suite) would win the Globe in the leading Actress category. Comedienne Lucille Ball would receive the DeMille Award.

1979 - Another rare occurrence as all four acting winners at the Academy Awards (Dustin Hoffman "Kramer vs. Kramer"; Sally Field "Norma Rae"; Melvyn Douglas "Being There"; Meryl Streep "Kramer vs. Kramer") would win the Globes. "Kramer vs. Kramer" was the evening's big winner at both ceremonies though Francis Ford Coppola would take home the Globe for Best Director for "Apocalypse Now." Henry Fonda was the recipient of the DeMille Award.