On May 16th, 1929, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) hosted the first ever Academy Awards at the Hollywood Roosevelt Theatre in Hollywood. The ceremony was fifteen minutes long, and the tickets were $5 each (about $69 today). The winners were announced three months beforehand, and Oscars were awarded in categories that no longer exist, such as “Engineering Effects,” and “Title Writing.” By examining the first ever Academy Awards, it tells the story of how drastically Hollywood has changed in the near 90 years since the launch of the awards.
Today, the Academy Awards are the second most watched television event, after the Super bowl. 270 people attended the first Awards ceremony. Since 2002, the awards have taken place at the Dolby Theatre, which accommodates 3,332 people. Throughout the history of the awards, the discontinuation of certain categories and addition of others shows how the film industry has evolved to incorporate new technology and innovation. For example, the first Academy Award for Best Special Effects was awarded to Fred Sersen and E. H. Hansen of 20th Century Fox in 1939 for their film “The Rains Came.” Similarly, the first Academy Award for Best Animated Film was awarded to “Shrek” in 2002. Overall, the differences between the 1st and 89th Academy Award showcases the drastic evolution in the creation of film and film industry, as well as the size and prestige of the Awards themselves.