2nd Academy Awards

The 2nd Academy Awards were presented on April 3, 1930 at an awards banquet in the Cocoanut Grove of The Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, and broadcast live on the radio.

The awards were for films released between August 1, 1928 and July 31, 1929.

As the ceremony was being held more than eight months after the end of the eligibility period, it was decided that the 3rd Academy Awards would be held in November 1930, so as to bring the awards ceremony closer to the relevant time period. As a result 1930 was the only year in which two awards ceremonies were held in the same calendar year.

The second ceremony included a number of changes over the first. Most importantly, it was the first presentation where the winners were not announced in advance. Additionally the number of categories was reduced from twelve to seven.

The 2nd Academy Awards is unique in being the only occasion where there were no official nominees. Subsequent research by AMPAS has resulted in a list of unofficial or de facto nominees, based on records of which films were evaluated by the judges.

Best Picture
Winner: The Broadway Melody (1929) - M-G-M
Other Nominees:
- Alibi (1929) - Feature Productions
- In Old Arizona (1928) - Fox
- The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929) - M-G-M
- The Patriot (1928) - Paramount Famous Lasky

Best Actor in a Leading Role
Winner: In Old Arizona (1928) - Warner Baxter
Other Nominees:
- Alibi (1929) - Chester Morris
- The Patriot (1928) - Lewis Stone
- The Valiant (1929) - Paul Muni
- Thunderbolt (1929) - George Bancroft

Best Actress in a Leading Role
Winner: Coquette (1929) - Mary Pickford
Other Nominees:
- Madame X (1929) - Ruth Chatterton
- The Barker (1928) - Betty Compson
- The Broadway Melody (1929) - Bessie Love
- The Divine Lady (1929) - Corinne Griffith
- The Letter (1929) - Jeanne Eagels

Best Director
Winner: The Divine Lady (1929) - Frank Lloyd
Other Nominees:
- Drag (1929) - Frank Lloyd
- In Old Arizona (1928) - Irving Cummings
- Madame X (1929) - Lionel Barrymore
- The Broadway Melody (1929) - Harry Beaumont
- The Patriot (1928) - Ernst Lubitsch
- Weary River (1929) - Frank Lloyd

Best Writing, Achievement
Winner: The Patriot (1928) - Hanns Kräly
Other Nominees:
- A Woman of Affairs (1928) - Bess Meredyth
- In Old Arizona (1928) - Tom Barry
- Our Dancing Daughters (1928) - Josephine Lovett
- Sal of Singapore (1928) - Elliott J. Clawson
- Skyscraper (1928) - Elliott J. Clawson
- The Cop (1928) - Elliott J. Clawson
- The Last of Mrs. Cheyney (1929) - Hanns Kräly
- The Leatherneck (1929) - Elliott J. Clawson
- The Valiant (1929) - Tom Barry
- Wonder of Women (1929) - Bess Meredyth

Best Cinematography
Winner: White Shadows in the South Seas (1928) - Clyde De Vinna
Other Nominees:
- 4 Devils (1928) - Ernest Palmer
- In Old Arizona (1928) - Arthur Edeson
- Our Dancing Daughters (1928) - George Barnes
- Street Angel (1928) - Ernest Palmer
- The Divine Lady (1929) - John F. Seitz

Best Art Direction
Winner: The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1929) - Cedric Gibbons
Other Nominees:
- Alibi (1929) - William Cameron Menzies
- Dynamite (1929) - Mitchell Leisen
- Street Angel (1928) - Harry Oliver
- The Awakening (1928) - William Cameron Menzies
- The Patriot (1928) - Hans Dreier
Posted by Greg S. at 12:33 AM
Labels: 2nd Academy Awards, index