What Can We Learn From the First Oscars?

In 1929, Wings became the first film to be called "Best Picture"... or, at least, that's what most people think. I'm here to tell you it all, from the shocking story of The Crowd vs Sunrise, to the entire reason the Academy Awards were created. These were the first Academy Awards, and there's so much to cover.
00:00 Introduction
03:32 Best Picture
16:56 Best Engineering Effects
19:13 Best Title Writing
21:15 Best Directing (Comedy)
26:31 The Jazz Singer
30:23 Best Writing (Adaptation)
33:39 Best Writing (Original Story)
36:21 Best Interior Design
41:21 Best Cinematography
42:48 Game Time!
44:07 Best Directing (Drama)
45:49 Best Actor
48:30 Best Actress
Sunrise: • Friedrich Wilhelm Murn...
Watch it!

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Which film would you have awarded Best Picture? After thinking about it, I think I'd ultimately give the top prize to Sunrise, with The Crowd as a close second. Thanks for watching!

[@kali3665]

The sad thing is that Wings and Sunrise have aged so badly that both are hard to sit through today. The Crowd hasn't aged at all, and it was ALWAYS hard to sit through. But I think I agree: Sunrise was just such a great looking film by one of the silent era's finest directors, and The Crowd deserves a lot more recognition than it ever gets.

[@ArthurSanford3706]

I will watch a breakdown of every Oscar ceremony no matter how long the video is.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

That’s great to hear! :) thank you

[@daniellajones2188]

I can just tell by the quality of this video that you’ve spent a lot of time making it. And I mean it when I say THANK YOU for being so dedicated to this craft!!! The amount of depth in each of your videos is always apparent, but this one especially stands out to me. Your visual gags are always some of my favorite aspects of your videos😂 the cricket wearing the I ❤ Glorious Betsy t shirt was my favorite in this video !! I totally agree that it seems that Sunrise was snubbed. Such a common theme at all Oscar ceremonies, for example I still feel that Iron Claw was snubbed for a ton of nominations for this year! I can’t wait to see where this series goes! Please keep up the amazing content! 🤩💞

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you so much! You have always been a huge supporter of the channel, and it doesn't go unnoticed! I'm glad you enjoyed the jokes and that you'd like the series to continue. This video is the most work I have ever put into a single episode, but if people enjoy it, I will gladly continue to make them! And I completely agree on The Iron Claw; it wasn't nominated in a single category! :(

[@Ce13stialBunny]

Also, Harold Lloyd is absolutely my favorite silent comedian, he’s so funny and also super cute

[@Ce13stialBunny]

I just love silent films so much, I’ve finally gotten others in to watch with me. They’re fantastic pieces of history and really entertaining.

[@jevinday]

I would have never thought to learn about the films of the first academy awards, what a cool video!

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you! I always appreciate your support :)

[@blaketremain385]

Your vids are criminally underrated

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you so much! That’s a huge compliment and it means a lot to me :)

[@johangade2832]

I love these types of videos. Both from you and a channel called "All Talking pictures" please continue it.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you! I’ll have to look into their channel :) I appreciate it

[@johnsullivan6843]

Whoa, G.R.E.A.T. work here!! Thanks for the diligent research, watching as many as possible (sad that some are lost forever). I do not mind the length here when the work is this comprehensive. I already knew name of this channel owes a bit to Gloria Swanson. 😉

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you so much! I would love to make many, many more of these, especially if people enjoy them :) and hahaha that’s great. I love Sunset Boulevard.

[@andresbecerra1183]

LOVE THIS! And love the Sunrise love and recommendation

[@samuelbarber6177]

1927 was like the original best year in movie history. Metropolis, Sunrise, Napoleon, sound, the first best picture winner. It’s up there with 1939. This was a brilliant and an exciting era for film. Silent films really are some of the best you’ll ever find. It’s just such a shame it was cut so short.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Yeah, I didn’t even get into the films not nominated tonight like Napoleon or Metropolis, but it’s absolutely the peak year for the silent film and it’s a shame the medium ended so abruptly.

[@bradwatson1048]

I'm a huge Sunrise fan too. Saw it in a film class in college nearly 50 years ago (and it was 50 years old then!), and still watch it as often as I can. But - one nit to pick: John Barrymore was from Philadelphia - not British.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

I love that! And thanks for the correction - not sure how I missed that. I guess I kind of assumed knowing he was such a big Shakespeare actor. But that’s good to know; thank you!

[@Ce13stialBunny]

I personally love the deep dives into these movies, I like how it was formatted here and all the information on the tangentially related. Very informative and interesting, I can feel your passion about the subject.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed it and I’ll definitely continue to make them!

[@eddiecruz6393]

I absolutely love these videos.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thanks for watching!

[@8ozz220]

Been watching through film history, so I'm super glad I found this. I hope it becomes a series! Edit: its fine to gloss over otherwise unimportant films, and as the awards ceremony bloats in size I think it will only become more necessary to do so.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thanks for the feedback! Yeah, I will try and keep the videos at a reasonable length as I go forward. The second ceremony breakdown will be slightly longer than this one, at just over an hour.

[@marshaprice8226]

I enjoyed this video with all the details. I had never heard of most of the movies; so it was all quite informative. This is the first time I have learned about the original awards categories and the real reason Louis B. Mayer created the Academy and the awards. So interesting! Please keep on doing what you did in this video!

[@Knight20006]

Incredible video!

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thanks a lot!

[@scheddoc]

Your channel is great! Lovely, interesting videos! You deserve to be getting way more views! Thank u !!!!

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you for the feedback and kind words! It means a lot :)

[@jesustovar2549]

Wow man, I watched this full video, I gotta agree with a lot of what you say, regarding Wings, I loved it, it's truly a dazzling spectacle, visual effects aged well, great love story, I love Clara Bow, she's just so cute and loveable to watch, she just has 'it' (get it?), no snub here, I would rewatch it (also me being a war film lover helps), it's the Top Gun of the 1920s, what a coincidence both films were produced by Paramout, they had a great night back in 1927. The Jazz Singer, I enjoy it, Al Jolson is truly "magnetic" to watch just like Elvis, it's release must have been something bigger at the time, I don't mind the black face, I'm not black and I'm not american but I'm truly conscious about their history with racism, but I don't consider this to be a big deal, I like to look at it as a way in which Jackie has to choose between his jewish heritage and his dream of being a jazz singer, which is black music originally, Jolson also had it's black fans at the time (yeah the plot is pretty much High School Musical), he and his mother has such chemistry on screen, you truly believe it, I'm not jewish but I get so emotional hearing Jolson singing Kol Nidrei. Being cinema (that includes classic cinema) one of my passions, just discovered your channel and you earned a new sub, you truly deserve to get BIGGER. P. S: That Emil Jannings story, using his Oscar so he can't be shot by american soldiers, WOW, mad respect. Also Chaplin's The Circus is fun, I remember there was an old lady carrying a "cellphone" in the film, saying this was a proof of time travel and I believed it lol.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Yes, I wish that “It” had been nominated this year! If Gaynor was nominated for three films, Bow totally deserved noms for Wings and It! And totally agree that it’s the Top Gun of the 1920s. And I didn’t mention that Jolson and his mom had great chemistry, but you’re totally right. Those were easily the best scenes in the film! She was the beating heart of the movie and what kept me interested. Thank you for watching and for your long comment! I’ll definitely do another one soon :)

[@rmgaspar49]

Fabulous. It just took me some time to see it. I wanted to get closer to the Oscar. Same format. Same depth. Same subjective x objective split. Length is not an issue to me as I see each one as a normal documentary, not a tik tok video. I stop and watch it, not just take a quick look while having a sandwich. Maybe not make the series completely chronogical, jump here and there, back and forth. I'd pay for that, no question. It just reminded me whan I used to go to book stores to read about nominees and ceremonies because there wasn't simply any sources. Much to book sellers despair.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you so much! This is exactly what I was hoping people would gain from the video, and I’m so happy to hear you were able to devote some time to it :) Also, I appreciate the feedback on the future of the series. I think jumping around is likely the way to go; perhaps I could open up a vote to determine a ceremony to cover at some point?

[@kali3665]

Well, considering that the Academy was intended as an anti-union organization to monitor all of Hollywood's peons under the "benevolent" hand of Louis B Mayer, and the Academy Awards was intended as a self-honoring club controlled BY Mayer, I think we best learned that: a) Mayer was a total b___tard b) The Awards were easily manipulated, and still are today. c) The Awards too often are awarded to the wrong parties, either because of revenge, compensation, or convenience. Charlie Chaplin never won a competitive Academy Award, and Alfred Hitchcock never won Best Director, despite five nominations.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

I agree with pretty much everything you said! Chaplin came *so* close, too. I think he certainly would have won one of his three categories that night, but I guess it wasn't in the cards. And don't get me started on Hitchcock! Comedy and suspense are two genres that the Academy often shies away from, unfortunately. Thank you for watching!

[@kali3665]

@@whenthepicturesgotbigger If you haven't read it, check out Danny Peary's Alternate Oscars. He has some very good essays on why certain films should have won the Award and his objections on why the winner shouldn't have won. The book came out in 1993, and I really wish he wrote a follow-up focusing on the years since. For one thing, Peary thought that the first Best Actor Award should have been given to Charlie Chaplin for The Circus and the second Best Actor to Buster Keaton for Steamboat Bill Jr. I think we would ALL agree with that.

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

@@kali3665 thank you for the recommendation! I haven’t read it yet, but it sounds great! For some reason, I thought the book was much newer, but I don’t mind. The newer ceremonies already have an abundance of coverage anyway.

[@kali3665]

@@whenthepicturesgotbigger My pleasure!

[@user-kf7ne7hw2v]

Hi! Would you consider doing a video about the two films John Ford made in Ireland - "The Quiet Man" and the lesser known "The Rising of the Moon" (and maybe "Young Cassidy" as a honorable mention -or a whole essay about Ford's quixotic attempts to film Sean O'Casey)? Especially since you had to edit the second half of your John Ford essay

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

These are wonderful ideas. I’ve been working hard on some videos for another iconic filmmaker at the moment, but should get back to Ford soon too :) Also I’m glad you shouted out Rising of the Moon, that one is quite underrated in my opinion!

[@user-mc3np2rq5k]

Bravo! So well-done! I know cinema history, started learning about it as far back as Pauline Kael. You know your onions! Abbe

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you!

[@samuelbarber6177]

What we can learn is that the Oscars have always had dumb opinions.

[@ethanskelly6064]

how does it feel to be heartless and say the 7th heaven ending is ridiculous lol, borzage4life

[@mariao577]

I wish you boys would do a podcast on "Keeper of the Flame" to illustrate our current political goings on. Maria From Westmoor,

[@whenthepicturesgotbigger]

Thank you for the idea! I actually love that idea :) we’ve toyed with the idea of doing a podcast but we’d need a clear idea for how and what kind, but Keeper of the Flame would be a great movie to discuss. Thank you for the comment Maria!