Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins ‪winning Oscars® for Directing "West Side Story"

Rosalind Russell presenting Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins with the Oscar® for Directing for "West Side Story" at the 34th Academy Awards® in 1962. Hosted by Bob Hope.

[@leonardodp34]

"The winners are...". Done. The announcement has been made already.

[@judekelly8324]

But she already read the card then she said The Winners Are, I don't think it was already announcement

[@jeffersonborges9932]

Well Deserved Oscars! Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins made a memorable work directing the movie! ''West Side Story'' is the greatest musical EVER! Leonard Bernstein is a genius! ''West Side Story'' to me is Hollywood at its best and I can watch it a million times and never gets old!

[@TheTerryE]

It's awful and a very poor choice. It hasn't stood the test of time. Almost everyone in it is miscast. Rossen or Kramer should have won. Oddly, Robbins was fired pretty early in the process of making the film. Robert Wise directed 3/4 of it himself.

[@ionacheaters3121]

TheTerryE YOU ARE THE odd ONE|!

[@TheTerryE]

Troll.

[@SymphonyBrahms]

@@TheTerryE It was a great choice and the best choice. West Side Story is a classic film.

[@yahiryellow1]

@@TheTerryE boy boy crazy boy

[@waltersolley9359]

Jefferson, I couldn't agree with you more. A terrific film, truly great directing.

[@juanraymondo6042]

wonderful, thank you academy

[@dflartist]

great clips. keep em comin!

[@ronaldososa]

She gave it away when she said "winnerS ARE"

[@jwelch5742]

West Side Story has great directing.

[@waltersolley9359]

Jefferson Borges, you are truly knowledgeable on this subject. Thank you for sharing your great comments. Very interesting!!

[@JerseySurvivor]

The Coen Brothers shared an Oscar for No Country for Old Men. Warren Beatty and Buck Henry shared a nod for Heaven Can Wait in 78. Wise and Robbins were not speaking at this point as the former had the latter removed from the film for taking too much time with the dances. Still, the final result is magic.

[@yahiryellow1]

So what award did it win and had more than one director?

[@JerseySurvivor]

Their distance speaks volumes. And at this late date, where is Gene Kelly's presentation of the Special Award to Robbins??

[@neutral7786]

It wasn't until 2008 that there was another directing duo that won the Oscar for Best Director, the Coen brothers(No country for old men)and finally in 2023 when history repeated itself with The Daniels(Everything everywhere all at once).

[@emiliobello2538]

One day an Italian will win Best Director

[@UFOSPACE1999]

Jerome took 3 months of rehearsal time...and kept'd changing it on all the dancers...making it even harder on them..and Production Cost were running sky high..because of Robbins retakes...He only filmed 4 dance sequences...Then The Mirsch Family Fired Robbins...and kept'd Robbins co-workers to help with the rest of the filming.

[@bestmoviesever1]

Back in the day when an acceptance speech was short and sweet.

[@gatewayski1]

Jerome Robbins, didn't he do the choreography?

[@jeffersonborges9932]

That's right! Jerome is also the responsible for the choreography in ''The King and I''. Jerome also won an Honorary Oscar ''for his brilliant achievements in the art of choreography on film'', presented by Gene Kelly.

[@karmicobsession1636]

He directed/resided over the dance scenes which are a significant part of the film.

[@GeometricMason]

Back when the Oscars were about merit. Now they're about politics.

[@oscarman42]

Jerome Robbins was fired by the studio - not Robert Wise - for taking too much time rehearsing the choreographed numbers. And from what I understand, Robbins was indeed tyrannical and brutally demanding - and look at the results. Performers who worked with him may not have found him warm and fuzzy, but did refer to him as a genius. Very well deserved Oscar for a great film (even with a miscast Beymer...wonder how Burt Reynolds would have done).

[@jeffersonborges9932]

Rita Moreno said in a special called ''West Side Memories'', that Jerome had the actors rehearsing until they drop.

[@thomasostrowski2005]

I think Spielberg will be next.

[@emiliobello2429]

Steven Spielberg will this again for the remake

[@emiliobello2538]

But it got to Jane Campion

[@drstrangelove6558]

the most people at the Oscars aready Knew that Robbins and Wise would win this Oscar for directing wset side story beacuse Russel said and the Winners ARE not is and there was 2 People who directed west side and all the other four nominees were only one who directed it. Also the people clapped already Before she said the names who the Winners are when she just said and the Winners ARE not IS.

[@judekelly8324]

But Rosalind already read the card then she said the winners are

[@jealousofmypuddin]

Yikes, no eye contact between the two.

[@christopherd.1200]

Hello- West Side Story is certainly a candidate for the best musical ever made unfortunately the currently available blu-ray disc has a technical; flaw no previous home video edition of the film had.

[@SymphonyBrahms]

I don't have blu-ray. I'm happy with my standard videos.

[@JayRaphaelJiaoInot]

The Tonys and Oscars friendly talk are always scripted. Hosts would read in a prompter in their "friendly" conversation before acknowledging the nominees or winners.

[@SymphonyBrahms]

I knew that already.

[@barbaraobach]

She was thSo humble, sorry Steven Speilberg's a good director, but pales against Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins , as does the remake cast comparred to the far superior 1961 cast

[@sickheadache9903]

Nope…Robert Wise was a Better Editor and Edited The Best Picture Ever Made..Citizen Kane…But Robert Wise directed that dreadful movie about some singing kids escaping Nazi Germany..Oh..The Sound of Mucus! Robert Wise went on to direct..that Bloated Zeppelin Flic..The Hindenburg..Where every German in the Wise’s Hindenburg sounded..American. Then let’s not forget A film that is 100% as Bloated as Robert Wise..The Sand Pebbles…Zzzz…Then Robert Wise was select..I don’t know how..to Direct that most muddle bullshit on the screen…Star Trek: The Truly Boring Picture! Let’s not forget about the massive dribble of the most dumb cluck movie..all because of the wonderful pacing and action of the Dull Directing of Robert Wise....The Abdominal Strain! Let’s not forget how Brilliant Robert Wise he was to CAST A WHITE GIRL TO PLAY LATINO MARIA IN WEST SIDE STORY! 🤮🥴👎☹💩…Are you talking about that fucked up bloated Robert Wise?

[@drstrangelove6558]

Rossen was robbed:/. the Hustler was also robbed for best Picture, best actor (Newman) best supporting actor (Gleason) and best Writing screenplay!:(

[@scorsese1]

Yes

[@SymphonyBrahms]

No.

[@yahiryellow1]

Yeah Paul newman was really god as his character in the hustler

[@johnv7060]

I know I'm in the minority here, but West Side Story is a terribly miscast and stagey screen musical. Part of the magic of the stage piece is how theatrical it is-- and stage and screen are different mediums entirely. I will say however, that the sequences that work best in the film, namely the Prologue and "Cool" were Jerome Robbins' work. Wise is a screen legend and made some wonderful films (and edited Citizen Kane!) but his two 60s screen musicals are hardly his best work. Sound of Music, too, works thanks to the charm of its leading lady. Not a great film, beloved or not.

[@gatewayski1]

I respect your opinion, it is very thoughtful and makes perfect good sense to me.

[@bman560]

The music and dancing are what make West Side Story worth watching. It seems very dated. However, I disagree with your opinion of Robert Wise and The Sound of Music. The Sound of Music, while extremely saccharine, is still very watchable and like West Side Story brilliantly edited. Wise deserves plenty of credit.

[@SymphonyBrahms]

West Side Story is a great and legendary film.

[@UFOSPACE1999]

Robert Wise HATED Jerome Robbins....Wise thought that Robbins slowed up the film...with his constant meddling. They never mentioned one another.

[@TheTerryE]

Everyone hated Jerome Robbins. He was horrid to work with. He was a genius but no one on Broadway or in Hollywood liked working with him. A real pain in the ass. WSS is an awful film. The only way to like it is if you've never seen a stage version. Wise did much better with Sound of Music, which is a far superior film, though not nearly as good a stage play as WSS.

[@gatewayski1]

TheTerryE Sounds like a good description of YOU.

[@TheTerryE]

Troll.

[@patbulfin5459]

At least Jerome acknowledged Robert Wise when he thanked the producers.

[@SymphonyBrahms]

@@TheTerryE West Side Story is a great film, and deserved to win the Oscar.

[@scorsese1]

Fellini and Rossen were robbed.

[@SymphonyBrahms]

Not at all. West Side Story was a better film.

[@scorsese1]

@@SymphonyBrahms I am talking about Director.. The Hustler and La Dolce Vita were better directed films.