A Lifetime of the Oscars
The Oscars were a religious experience at our house. It was bigger than any of the other holidays on the calendar, bigger than anything at all, we would spend weeks and weeks preparing for it, seeing the movies, studying the reviews, preparing our predictions. When I was in school, it was the one day out of the year when I was allowed to stay up. After I got out of school, and we scattered as a family, it was my job to gather all the Oscar predictions and wherever we were, we would all watch the Oscars together, calling each other often to see how our picks were going.
I’ve talked a bit about being a first-generation American; one of the themes of my childhood was what it means to be an American—not politically or historically but in a more basic way. Americans went out on the Fourth of July to enjoy the fireworks. Americans watched the Jerry Lewis telethon on Labor Day. Americans enjoyed baseball and cookouts and the Super Bowl and eating turkey on Thanksgiving and going out to enjoy the Christmas lights and listening to Elvis records. Most of all, at least as I understood it, Americans watched the Oscars. It was our sacred duty.
Most of that has faded, alas. I honestly think it started changing when, quite out of nowhere, they started nominating 10 movies for Best Picture instead of five. I can’t explain why that should make a difference, but it did. We always went to see all five Oscar movies. But 10? That’s too much. And, I don’t know, one thing led to another led to another and, honestly, I didn’t watch even one minute of the Academy Awards on Sunday night. To be fair, I was in Arizona for the Tucson Festival of Books, and I got the chance to go dinner with the wonderful Jon Eig, so you know, I did that instead. Maybe if I were home I would have watched. Then again, maybe not. We don’t do a family pool anymore. We don’t talk much about the Oscars anymore. It’s just different.
But, I did wake up thinking about the Oscars—I was really happy to see Cord Jefferson win Best Adapted Screenplay for the wonderful “American Fiction”—and I’m on a plane home, and so I thought I’d try to do something that I hope is fun. I thought I’d go back and look at every year since I was born in 1967 at three things:
The Best Picture Oscar-winning movie (and whether I saw it/liked it).
The top-grossing movie of the year.
The movie I have seen the most times from that year.
I’m trying to make the third one as objective as I can. I’m not looking at the movie I liked the most from that year. I’m just choosing the movie that I, best of my recollection, have watched the most times.
Maybe this will make sense and be worthwhile. Maybe not. Either way, I should be home by the time I’m finished. By the way, this can get confusing because the Oscars, of course, look back at the year before. So, for example, the winner of the 1967 Oscar was “A Man for All Seasons” (saw it, liked it) but that movie actually came out in 1966. So I’m looking at the movies from the year they came out.
1967
Oscar winner: “In the Heat of the Night.”
Did I see it: Yes, on VHS. Thought it was terrific. Sidney Poitier was incredible.
Top-grossing movie: “The Graduate.”
Movie I’ve seen most: Probably “Cool Hand Luke.” I’ve seen “The Graduate” at least twice and “Bonnie and Clyde” maybe a couple of times, but I’m pretty sure that I’ve seen “Cool Hand Luke” the most.
1968
Oscar winner: “Oliver.”
Did I see it: Oh, yes. Several times. I grew up in a musical-loving family. I probably saw this on regular TV, on VHS and on streaming.
Top-grossing movie: “Funny Girl.”
Movie I’ve seen most: “Oliver.” I did see “The Odd Couple” and “Planet of the Apes” multiple times.
1969
Oscar winner: “Midnight Cowboy.”
Did I see it: No. Well, I’ve seen the “I’m walking here” scene many times, but it’s a movie I couldn’t see when I was young—I believe it was rated X at that point—and I’ve just never gone back to watch it.
Top-grossing movie: “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”
Movie I’ve seen most: I think “Butch Cassidy” is the only movie from this year I’ve seen more than once. Well, wait, no, I think I saw the original “True Grit” twice.
1970
Oscar winner: “Patton.”
Did I see it: Yes on VHS. Admired it. Very much liked the ending.
Top-grossing movie: “Love Story.”
Movie I’ve seen most: I’ve seen “M*A*S*H” more than once, but if I’m being honest, I probably have seen “The Aristocats” more than “M*A*S*H.”
1971
Oscar winner: “The French Connection.”
Did I see it: Yes, on VHS. It’s good, but I don’t love it as much as many others seem to love it.
Top-grossing movie: “Billy Jack.”
Movie I’ve seen most: “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.” I thought for sure the answer would be “Fiddler on the Roof”—I’m telling you, I grew up in a musical family—but “Willy Wonka” definitely topped that. It’s also a musical. Sort of. Kind of. The song “Smile Charlie”—or whatever that’s called—is the worst ever put on film. Also, I’ve never seen “Billy Jack.”
1972
Oscar winner: “The Godfather.”
Did I see it: Are you kidding? I’ve MEMORIZED it.
Top-grossing movie: “The Godfather.”
Movie I’ve seen most: “The Godfather.” I don’t even want to guess how many times I’ve seen it, and I don’t think there’s another movie from this year I’ve seen more than once.