Politics and the Oscars: The 1970s
Refused Oscars and Politics Were the Rule Rather Than the Exception
The political and social turmoil that characterized the United States in the 1970s were often reflected in the Oscar ceremonies.
In a decade of political unrest, Hollywood sometimes let its feelings be known, either through films or through the voices of those who created them.
Jane Fonda and Political Activism
Ms Fonda became the center of controversy during this decade with her espousal of anti-establishment causes and her anti-war activities. In 1971, Ms Fonda, who won Best Actress as a prostitute in Klute, stated that she took the starring role as a protest against the subjugation of women. That same year she announced that “I make movies to support my activist causes, certainly not for any honors.”
For the rest of the decade, Fonda was heavily criticized for her protests of the Vietnam War which included a trip to Hanoi. In 1978, she produced and starred in the Oscar nominated anti-Vietnam film, Coming Home. Although she won again as best actress, the movie lost to The Deer Hunter, another Vietnam movie that was more balanced. The following year, Fonda shifted gears and took a look at the perceived dangers of nuclear power in The China Syndrome.
Vanessa Redgrave Speaks Her Mind
A member of a well known British acting family, Ms Redgrave has always been known for her support of human rights and radical causes. In 1962, she was one of the first celebrities to visit communist Cuba and during the following decades became an outspoken critic of many U.S. and British policies.
In 1971, after being nominated as Best Actress for Isadora, Vanessa Redgrave refused to attend the Oscar ceremonies, claiming that Americans didn’t like her and that the Nixon administration had refused her a visa. Six years later, she did attend the ceremony to accept the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for Julia (1977). During her acceptance speech, she stunned the audience by denouncing Nixon and the “Zionist hoodlums” that had tried to intimidate her. She later denied charges that she was anti-Semitic and said she was using Zionist as a synonym for “fascist.”
Bert Schneider and Hearts and Minds
During his acceptance speech after winning the Best Documentary Oscar for the anti-Vietnam Hearts and Minds (1974), producer Bert Schneider read a letter from the Viet Cong basically thanking the American people for turning against the war. This so incensed host Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra, among others, that Hope quickly wrote a denunciation of Schneider that Sinatra read to those present and a national television audience.
Schneider later said that Sinatra and Hope had every right to express their opinion, but “it’s wrong to bring the Academy into it.” An angry John Wayne replied back that Schneider’s reading of the letter “was against the rules of the Academy.”
Oscars Refused
In 1970, George C. Scott defied Hollywood politics by refusing the Oscar as Best Actor for his powerful role in Patton, preferring to stay home and watch hockey on TV. Scott’s argument was that the Academy’s acting nominations were nothing more than a “two hour meat parade.”
Scott became the second person to refuse an Oscar, the first being writer Dudley Nichols in 1935. Unlike Dudley, who later changed his mind, Scott never changed his. Despite his refusal, the actor was nominated again the following year for Hospital and went on to win two Emmys and a Golden Globe among other honors.
Two years later, Marlon Brando refused his Oscar for Best Actor in The Godfather as a protest against the mistreatment of American Indians. At the ceremony, a “Sacheen Littlefeather” came forward when Brando’s name was announced to read a statement on Brando’s behalf. Later, it was discovered that “Littlefeather” was actually a little known Mexican-born actress, Maria Cruz.
Unlike Scott, who was supported by several actors, Brando was generally berated for his actions. He was criticized not so much for refusing the award, but for sending a young, naive woman in his place. “My own reaction is that he has no guts,” said Academy President Daniel Taradash.
Source: Wiley, Mason and Damien Bona; Inside Oscar (New York: Ballantine Books, 1986)
