1953
The 25th Academy Awards | 1953
RKO Pantages Theatre
Thursday, March 19, 1953
Honoring movies released in 1952
Highlights
Memorable Moments
Winners & Nominees
Actor in a Supporting Role
Winner
Anthony Quinn
Viva Zapata!
Nominees
Richard Burton
My Cousin Rachel
Arthur Hunnicutt
The Big Sky
Victor McLaglen
The Quiet Man
Jack Palance
Sudden Fear
Actress in a Supporting Role
Winner
Gloria Grahame
The Bad and the Beautiful
Nominees
Jean Hagen
Singin' in the Rain
Colette Marchand
Moulin Rouge
Terry Moore
Come Back, Little Sheba
Thelma Ritter
With a Song in My Heart
Directing
Winner
The Quiet Man
John Ford
Nominees
Five Fingers
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
The Greatest Show on Earth
Cecil B. DeMille
High Noon
Fred Zinnemann
Moulin Rouge
John Huston
Film Editing
Winner
High Noon
Elmo Williams, Harry Gerstad
Nominees
Come Back, Little Sheba
Warren Low
Flat Top
William Austin
The Greatest Show on Earth
Anne Bauchens
Moulin Rouge
Ralph Kemplen
Actor
Winner
Gary Cooper
High Noon
Nominees
Marlon Brando
Viva Zapata!
Kirk Douglas
The Bad and the Beautiful
Moulin Rouge
Moulin Rouge
Alec Guinness
The Lavender Hill Mob
Actress
Winner
Shirley Booth
Come Back, Little Sheba
Nominees
Julie Harris
The Member of the Wedding
Susan Hayward
With a Song in My Heart
Joan Crawford
Sudden Fear
Bette Davis
The Star
Sound Recording
Winner
Breaking the Sound Barrier
London Film Sound Department
Nominees
Hans Christian Andersen
Samuel Goldwyn Studio Sound Department, Gordon Sawyer, Sound Director
The Promoter
Pinewood Studios Sound Department
The Quiet Man
Republic Studio Sound Department, Daniel J. Bloomberg, Sound Director
With a Song in My Heart
20th Century-Fox Studio Sound Department, Thomas T. Moulton, Sound Director
Short Subject (Cartoon)
Winner
Johann Mouse
Fred Quimby, Producer
Nominees
Little Johnny Jet
Fred Quimby, Producer
Madeline
Stephen Bosustow, Executive Producer
Pink and Blue Blues
Stephen Bosustow, Executive Producer
Romance of Transportation
Tom Daly, Producer
Music (Song)
Winner
High Noon
High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin') in "High Noon" Music by Dimitri Tiomkin; Lyrics by Ned Washington
Nominees
Son of Paleface
Am I In Love in "Son of Paleface" Music and Lyrics by Jack Brooks
Because You're Mine
Because You're Mine in "Because You're Mine" Music by Nicholas Brodszky; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Hans Christian Andersen
Thumbelina in "Hans Christian Andersen" Music and Lyrics by Frank Loesser
Just for You
Zing A Little Zong in "Just for You" Music by Harry Warren; Lyrics by Leo Robin
Writing (Screenplay)
Winner
The Bad and the Beautiful
Charles Schnee
Nominees
Five Fingers
Michael Wilson
High Noon
Carl Foreman
The Man in the White Suit
Roger MacDougall, John Dighton, Alexander Mackendrick
The Quiet Man
Frank S. Nugent
Short Subject (One-reel)
Winner
Light in the Window: The Art of Vermeer
Boris Vermont, Producer
Nominees
Desert Killer
Gordon Hollingshead, Producer
Neighbours
Norman McLaren, Producer
Royal Scotland
Crown Film Unit
Athletes of the Saddle
Jack Eaton, Producer
Short Subject (Two-reel)
Winner
Water Birds
Walt Disney, Producer
Nominees
Bridge of Time
London Film Production
Devil Take Us
Herbert Morgan, Producer
Thar She Blows!
Gordon Hollingshead, Producer
Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award
Winner
Cecil B. DeMille
Cinematography (Black-and-White)
Winner
The Bad and the Beautiful
Robert Surtees
Nominees
The Big Sky
Russell Harlan
My Cousin Rachel
Joseph LaShelle
Navajo
Virgil E. Miller
Sudden Fear
Charles B. Lang, Jr.
Cinematography (Color)
Winner
The Quiet Man
Winton C. Hoch, Archie Stout
Nominees
Hans Christian Andersen
Harry Stradling
Ivanhoe
F. A. Young
Million Dollar Mermaid
George J. Folsey
The Snows of Kilimanjaro
Leon Shamroy
Special Effects
Winner
Plymouth Adventure
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Art Direction (Black-and-White)
Winner
The Bad and the Beautiful
Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Edward Carfagno; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Keogh Gleason
Nominees
Carrie
Art Direction: Hal Pereira, Roland Anderson; Set Decoration: Emile Kuri
My Cousin Rachel
Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, John DeCuir; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott
Rashomon
Art Direction: Matsuyama; Set Decoration: H. Motsumoto
Viva Zapata!
Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, Leland Fuller; Set Decoration: Thomas Little, Claude Carpenter
Art Direction (Color)
Winner
Moulin Rouge
Art Direction: Paul Sheriff; Set Decoration: Marcel Vertes
Nominees
The Snows of Kilimanjaro
Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, John DeCuir; Set Decoration: Thomas Little, Paul S. Fox
Hans Christian Andersen
Art Direction: Richard Day, Clave; Set Decoration: Howard Bristol
The Merry Widow
Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Paul Groesse; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Arthur Krams
The Quiet Man
Art Direction: Frank Hotaling; Set Decoration: John McCarthy, Jr., Charles Thompson
Documentary (Short Subject)
Winner
Neighbours
Norman McLaren, Producer
Nominees
Devil Take Us
Herbert Morgan, Producer
The Garden Spider (Epeira Diadema)
Alberto Ancilotto, Producer
Man Alive!
Stephen Bosustow, Executive Producer
Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture)
Winner
With a Song in My Heart
Alfred Newman
Nominees
Hans Christian Andersen
Walter Scharf
The Jazz Singer
Ray Heindorf, Max Steiner
The Medium
Gian-Carlo Menotti
Singin' in the Rain
Lennie Hayton
Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture)
Winner
High Noon
Dimitri Tiomkin
Nominees
Ivanhoe
Miklos Rozsa
Miracle of Fatima
Max Steiner
The Thief
Herschel Burke Gilbert
Viva Zapata!
Alex North
Documentary (Feature)
Winner
The Sea around Us
Irwin Allen, Producer
Nominees
The Hoaxters
Dore Schary, Producer
Navajo
Hall Bartlett, Producer
Best Motion Picture
Winner
The Greatest Show on Earth
Cecil B. DeMille, Producer
Nominees
High Noon
Stanley Kramer, Producer
Ivanhoe
Pandro S. Berman, Producer
Moulin Rouge
Romulus Films
The Quiet Man
John Ford and Merian C. Cooper, Producers
Writing (Motion Picture Story)
Winner
The Greatest Show on Earth
Fredric M. Frank, Theodore St. John, Frank Cavett
Nominees
The Narrow Margin
Martin Goldsmith, Jack Leonard
The Pride of St. Louis
Guy Trosper
The Sniper
Edna Anhalt, Edward Anhalt
My Son John
Leo McCarey
Costume Design (Black-and-White)
Winner
The Bad and the Beautiful
Helen Rose
Nominees
Affair in Trinidad
Jean Louis
Carrie
Edith Head
My Cousin Rachel
Charles LeMaire, Dorothy Jeakins
Sudden Fear
Sheila O'Brien
Costume Design (Color)
Winner
Moulin Rouge
Marcel Vertes
Nominees
The Greatest Show on Earth
Edith Head, Dorothy Jeakins, Miles White
Hans Christian Andersen
Clave, Mary Wills, Madame Karinska
The Merry Widow
Helen Rose, Gile Steele
With a Song in My Heart
Charles LeMaire
Writing (Story and Screenplay)
Winner
The Lavender Hill Mob
T. E. B. Clarke
Nominees
The Atomic City
Sydney Boehm
Breaking the Sound Barrier
Terence Rattigan
Pat and Mike
Ruth Gordon, Garson Kanin
Viva Zapata!
John Steinbeck
Honorary Foreign Language Film Award
Winner
Forbidden Games
Special Award
A
Affair in Trinidad
1 NominationCostume Design (Black-and-White) - Jean Louis
Athletes of the Saddle
1 NominationShort Subject (One-reel) - Jack Eaton, Producer
The Atomic City
1 NominationWriting (Story and Screenplay) - Sydney Boehm
B
The Bad and the Beautiful
6 Nominations, 5 Wins* Art Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Edward Carfagno; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Keogh Gleason
* Writing (Screenplay) - Charles Schnee
* Actress in a Supporting Role - Gloria Grahame in "The Bad and the Beautiful"
* Costume Design (Black-and-White) - Helen Rose
* Cinematography (Black-and-White) - Robert Surtees
Actor - Kirk Douglas in "The Bad and the Beautiful"
Because You're Mine
1 NominationMusic (Song) - Because You're Mine in "Because You're Mine" Music by Nicholas Brodszky; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
The Big Sky
2 NominationsActor in a Supporting Role - Arthur Hunnicutt in "The Big Sky"
Cinematography (Black-and-White) - Russell Harlan
Breaking the Sound Barrier
2 Nominations, 1 Win* Sound Recording - London Film Sound Department
Writing (Story and Screenplay) - Terence Rattigan
Bridge of Time
1 NominationShort Subject (Two-reel) - London Film Production
C
Carrie
2 NominationsArt Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Hal Pereira, Roland Anderson; Set Decoration: Emile Kuri
Costume Design (Black-and-White) - Edith Head
Come Back, Little Sheba
3 Nominations, 1 Win* Actress - Shirley Booth in "Come Back, Little Sheba"
Actress in a Supporting Role - Terry Moore in "Come Back, Little Sheba"
Film Editing - Warren Low
D
Desert Killer
1 NominationShort Subject (One-reel) - Gordon Hollingshead, Producer
Devil Take Us
2 NominationsShort Subject (Two-reel) - Herbert Morgan, Producer
Documentary (Short Subject) - Herbert Morgan, Producer
F
Five Fingers
2 NominationsDirecting - Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Writing (Screenplay) - Michael Wilson
Flat Top
1 NominationFilm Editing - William Austin
Forbidden Games
1 Win, 1 Nomination* Honorary Foreign Language Film Award - Special Award
G
The Garden Spider (Epeira Diadema)
1 NominationDocumentary (Short Subject) - Alberto Ancilotto, Producer
The Greatest Show on Earth
5 Nominations, 2 WinsFilm Editing - Anne Bauchens
Directing - Cecil B. DeMille
Costume Design (Color) - Edith Head, Dorothy Jeakins, Miles White
* Best Motion Picture - Cecil B. DeMille, Producer
* Writing (Motion Picture Story) - Fredric M. Frank, Theodore St. John, Frank Cavett
H
Hans Christian Andersen
6 NominationsArt Direction (Color) - Art Direction: Richard Day, Clave; Set Decoration: Howard Bristol
Costume Design (Color) - Clave, Mary Wills, Madame Karinska
Cinematography (Color) - Harry Stradling
Sound Recording - Samuel Goldwyn Studio Sound Department, Gordon Sawyer, Sound Director
Music (Song) - Thumbelina in "Hans Christian Andersen" Music and Lyrics by Frank Loesser
Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Walter Scharf
High Noon
7 Nominations, 4 WinsWriting (Screenplay) - Carl Foreman
Directing - Fred Zinnemann
Best Motion Picture - Stanley Kramer, Producer
* Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - Dimitri Tiomkin
* Film Editing - Elmo Williams, Harry Gerstad
* Actor - Gary Cooper in "High Noon"
* Music (Song) - High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin') in "High Noon" Music by Dimitri Tiomkin; Lyrics by Ned Washington
The Hoaxters
1 NominationDocumentary (Feature) - Dore Schary, Producer
I
Ivanhoe
3 NominationsCinematography (Color) - F. A. Young
Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - Miklos Rozsa
Best Motion Picture - Pandro S. Berman, Producer
J
The Jazz Singer
1 NominationMusic (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Ray Heindorf, Max Steiner
Johann Mouse
1 Win, 1 Nomination* Short Subject (Cartoon) - Fred Quimby, Producer
Just for You
1 NominationMusic (Song) - Zing A Little Zong in "Just for You" Music by Harry Warren; Lyrics by Leo Robin
L
The Lavender Hill Mob
2 Nominations, 1 WinActor - Alec Guinness in "The Lavender Hill Mob"
* Writing (Story and Screenplay) - T. E. B. Clarke
Light in the Window: The Art of Vermeer
1 Win, 1 Nomination* Short Subject (One-reel) - Boris Vermont, Producer
Little Johnny Jet
1 NominationShort Subject (Cartoon) - Fred Quimby, Producer
M
Madeline
1 NominationShort Subject (Cartoon) - Stephen Bosustow, Executive Producer
Man Alive!
1 NominationDocumentary (Short Subject) - Stephen Bosustow, Executive Producer
The Man in the White Suit
1 NominationWriting (Screenplay) - Roger MacDougall, John Dighton, Alexander Mackendrick
The Medium
1 NominationMusic (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Gian-Carlo Menotti
The Member of the Wedding
1 NominationActress - Julie Harris in "The Member of the Wedding"
The Merry Widow
2 NominationsArt Direction (Color) - Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Paul Groesse; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Arthur Krams
Costume Design (Color) - Helen Rose, Gile Steele
Million Dollar Mermaid
1 NominationCinematography (Color) - George J. Folsey
Miracle of Fatima
1 NominationMusic (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - Max Steiner
Moulin Rouge
7 Nominations, 2 Wins* Art Direction (Color) - Art Direction: Paul Sheriff; Set Decoration: Marcel Vertes
* Costume Design (Color) - Marcel Vertes
Actress in a Supporting Role - Colette Marchand in "Moulin Rouge"
Directing - John Huston
Actor - Moulin Rouge
Film Editing - Ralph Kemplen
Best Motion Picture - Romulus Films
My Cousin Rachel
4 NominationsArt Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, John DeCuir; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott
Costume Design (Black-and-White) - Charles LeMaire, Dorothy Jeakins
Cinematography (Black-and-White) - Joseph LaShelle
Actor in a Supporting Role - Richard Burton in "My Cousin Rachel"
My Son John
1 NominationWriting (Motion Picture Story) - Leo McCarey
N
The Narrow Margin
1 NominationWriting (Motion Picture Story) - Martin Goldsmith, Jack Leonard
Navajo
2 NominationsDocumentary (Feature) - Hall Bartlett, Producer
Cinematography (Black-and-White) - Virgil E. Miller
Neighbours
2 Nominations, 1 WinShort Subject (One-reel) - Norman McLaren, Producer
* Documentary (Short Subject) - Norman McLaren, Producer
P
Pat and Mike
1 NominationWriting (Story and Screenplay) - Ruth Gordon, Garson Kanin
Pink and Blue Blues
1 NominationShort Subject (Cartoon) - Stephen Bosustow, Executive Producer
Plymouth Adventure
1 Win, 1 Nomination* Special Effects - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
The Pride of St. Louis
1 NominationWriting (Motion Picture Story) - Guy Trosper
The Promoter
1 NominationSound Recording - Pinewood Studios Sound Department
Q
The Quiet Man
7 Nominations, 2 WinsArt Direction (Color) - Art Direction: Frank Hotaling; Set Decoration: John McCarthy, Jr., Charles Thompson
Writing (Screenplay) - Frank S. Nugent
Best Motion Picture - John Ford and Merian C. Cooper, Producers
Sound Recording - Republic Studio Sound Department, Daniel J. Bloomberg, Sound Director
Actor in a Supporting Role - Victor McLaglen in "The Quiet Man"
* Directing - John Ford
* Cinematography (Color) - Winton C. Hoch, Archie Stout
R
Rashomon
1 NominationArt Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Matsuyama; Set Decoration: H. Motsumoto
Romance of Transportation
1 NominationShort Subject (Cartoon) - Tom Daly, Producer
Royal Scotland
1 NominationShort Subject (One-reel) - Crown Film Unit
S
The Sea around Us
1 Win, 1 Nomination* Documentary (Feature) - Irwin Allen, Producer
Singin' in the Rain
2 NominationsActress in a Supporting Role - Jean Hagen in "Singin' in the Rain"
Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Lennie Hayton
The Sniper
1 NominationWriting (Motion Picture Story) - Edna Anhalt, Edward Anhalt
The Snows of Kilimanjaro
2 NominationsArt Direction (Color) - Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, John DeCuir; Set Decoration: Thomas Little, Paul S. Fox
Cinematography (Color) - Leon Shamroy
Son of Paleface
1 NominationMusic (Song) - Am I In Love in "Son of Paleface" Music and Lyrics by Jack Brooks
The Star
1 NominationActress - Bette Davis in "The Star"
Sudden Fear
4 NominationsCinematography (Black-and-White) - Charles B. Lang, Jr.
Actor in a Supporting Role - Jack Palance in "Sudden Fear"
Actress - Joan Crawford in "Sudden Fear"
Costume Design (Black-and-White) - Sheila O'Brien
T
Thar She Blows!
1 NominationShort Subject (Two-reel) - Gordon Hollingshead, Producer
The Thief
1 NominationMusic (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - Herschel Burke Gilbert
V
Viva Zapata!
5 Nominations, 1 WinMusic (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - Alex North
Art Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, Leland Fuller; Set Decoration: Thomas Little, Claude Carpenter
Writing (Story and Screenplay) - John Steinbeck
Actor - Marlon Brando in "Viva Zapata!"
* Actor in a Supporting Role - Anthony Quinn in "Viva Zapata!"
W
Water Birds
1 Win, 1 Nomination* Short Subject (Two-reel) - Walt Disney, Producer
With a Song in My Heart
5 Nominations, 1 WinSound Recording - 20th Century-Fox Studio Sound Department, Thomas T. Moulton, Sound Director
Costume Design (Color) - Charles LeMaire
Actress - Susan Hayward in "With a Song in My Heart"
Actress in a Supporting Role - Thelma Ritter in "With a Song in My Heart"
* Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Alfred Newman