March 31, 1955
'Waterfront,' Brando, Grace Kelly Win 'Oscars'
Kazan Best Director--Eva Marie Saint and O'Brien CitedBy Thomas M. Pryor, Special to The New York Times
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The Winner Was...
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ollywood -- Old-fashioned motion picture artistry triumphed tonight over mechanical innovations that have changed the shape of the screen. "On the Waterfront,"
filmed by a standard camera in black and white, was voted winner of the best picture award by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for 1954.
The victory was no surprise to the capacity audience of movie personalities who witnessed and also participated in the twenty-seventh presentation ceremony at the Pantages Theatre here. The picture, produced independently Sam Spiegel for Columbia Pictures, had won more nominations in the qualifying balloting last month than any of its four competitors.
The drama of labor strife on the New York piers won eight top awards. "Oscars" went to Marlon Brando, its star, for best actor, Elia Kazan for direction, Eva Marie Saint for best supporting performance by an actress, Budd Schulberg for the best story and screen play, Boris Kaufman for best black-and-white cinematography. Gene Milford for film editing and to Richard Day for art direction.
Two Ceremonies Held
Except for Mr. Brando and Mr. Spiegel, who were in the Hollywood audience, all of those associated with "On the Waterfront" were at the duplicate presentation ceremony held at the Century Theatre in New York. Mr. Spiegel, too nervous to come into the theatre, paced up and down at the rear of the auditorium until just before the best picture announcement was made.
The two theatres were linked by the National Broadcasting Company's television network, which carried the program to millions of home viewers throughout the country.
Grace Kelly, the newcomer who co-starred in "The Country Girl" with Bing Crosby and William Holden, both former "Oscar" recipients, won the award for best actress. She played the role of Mr. Crosby's wife in the Paramount production. George Seaton, who wrote and directed the film from the Clifford Odets play, won the best screen play award.
The "Oscar" for best actor in a supporting role went to Edmond O'Brien for his portrayal of the press agent in "The Barefoot Contessa." Mr. O'Brien was competing against three actors nominated for their work in "Waterfront"--Lee J. Cobb, Karl Malden and Rod Steiger.
