1939 (12th Annual Awards)
Nominations and Winners
Listed below are the Academy Award nominations and winners for the year 1939. The
symbol appears next to the winner in each category. Click on the name of a film, person or song in the list to display more information about that film, person or song. Or, click on a year in the column on the right to display the nominations and winners from that year.
Outstanding Production
Dark Victory, Warner Bros.-First National.Gone with the Wind, Selznick International Pictures; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.Goodbye, Mr. Chips, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. (UK)Love Affair, RKO Radio.Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Columbia.Ninotchka, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.Of Mice and Men, Hal Roach; United Artists.Stagecoach, Walter Wanger; United Artists.The Wizard of Oz, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.Wuthering Heights, Samuel Goldwyn Productions; United Artists.Best Actor
Best Actress
Actor in a Supporting Role
Actress in a Supporting Role
Directing
Art Direction
Cinematography
(Black-and-White)
(Color)
Gone with the Wind, Selznick International Pictures; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Ernest Haller and Ray Rennahan.Film Editing
Gone with the Wind, Selznick International Pictures; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Hal C. Kern and James E. Newcom.Music
(Original Score)
(Scoring)
Stagecoach, Walter Wanger; United Artists. Richard Hageman, Frank Harling, John Leipold and Leo Shuken.(Song)
I Poured My Heart into a Song from Second Fiddle, 20th Century-Fox. Music and lyrics by Irving Berlin.Over the Rainbow from The Wizard of Oz, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Music by Harold Arlen; lyrics by E. Y. Harburg.Short Subjects
(Cartoons)
Detouring America, Warner Bros. [Merrie Melodies Series]Peace on Earth, Hugh Harmon; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.The Ugly Duckling, Walt Disney Productions; RKO Radio. [Silly Symphony Series] Walt Disney, Producer.(One-reel)
Busy Little Bears, Paramount. [Paragraphics Series]Information Please, RKO Radio.Prophet Without Honor, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. [Miniature Series]Sword Fishing, Warner Bros. [Vitaphone Variety Series](Two-reel)
Drunk Driving, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. [Crime Doesn’t Pay Series]Five Times Five, Pathe; RKO Radio. [Special Series]Sons of Liberty, Warner Bros. [Historical Featurette Series]Sound Recording
Balalaika, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio Sound Department, Douglas Shearer, Sound Director.Gone with the Wind, Selznick International Pictures; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Samuel Goldwyn Studio Sound Department, Thomas T. Moulton, Sound Director.Goodbye, Mr. Chips, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. (UK) Denham Studio Sound Department, A. W. Watkins, Sound Director.The Great Victor Herbert, Paramount. Paramount Studio Sound Department, Loren L. Ryder, Sound Director.The Hunchback of Notre Dame, RKO Radio. RKO Radio Studio Sound Department, John Aalberg, Sound Director.Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Columbia. Columbia Studio Sound Department, John Livadary, Sound Director.Of Mice and Men, Hal Roach; United Artists. Hal Roach Studio Sound Department, Elmer A. Raguse, Sound Director.The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Studio Sound Department, Nathan Levinson, Sound Director.The Rains Came, 20th Century-Fox. 20th Century-Fox Studio Sound Department, E. H. Hansen, Sound Director.When Tomorrow Comes, Universal. Universal Studio Sound Department, Bernard B. Brown, Sound Director.Special Effects
Gone with the Wind, Selznick International Pictures; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. John R. Cosgrove, Fred Albin and Arthur Johns.NOTE: Special Effects was a new category in 1939.
Writing
(Original Story)
(Screenplay)
Special Award
To Douglas Fairbanks—recognizing the unique and outstanding contribution of Douglas Fairbanks, first President of the Academy, to the intenational development of the motion picture. [ [Statuette]]To The Motion Picture Relief Fund—acknowledging the outstanding services to the industry during the past year of the Motion Picture Relief Fund and its progressive leadership. Presented to Jean Hersholt, President; Ralph Morgan, Chairman of the Executive Committee; Ralph Block, First Vice-President; and Conrad Nagel. [ [Plaque]]To William Cameron Menzies for outstanding achievement in the use of color for the enhancement of dramatic mood in the production of Gone with the Wind. [ [Plaque]]To The Technicolor Company for its contributions in successfully bringing three-color feature production to the screen. [ [Statuette]](Juvenile)
To Judy Garland for her outstanding performance as a screen juvenile during the past year. [ [Miniature Statuette]]Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award
Scientific or Technical Award
(Class III)
To George Anderson of Warner Bros. Studio for an improved positive head for sun arcs.To John Arnold of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio for the M-G-M mobile camera crane.To Thomas T. Moulton, Fred Albin, and the Sound Department of the Samuel Goldwyn Studio for the origination and application of the Delta db test to sound recording in motion pictures.To Farciot Edouart, Joseph E. Robbins, William Rudolph and Paramount Pictures, Inc. for the design and construction of a quiet portable treadmill.To Emery Huse and Ralph B. Atkinson of the Eastman Kodak Company for their specifications for chemical analysis of photographic developers and fixing baths.To Harold Nye of Warner Bros. Studio for a miniature incandescent spot lamp.To A. J. Tondreau of Warner Bros. Studio for the design and manufacture of an improved sound track printer.Multiple Award for important contributions in cooperative development of new improved Process Projection Equipment:F. R. Abbott, Haller Belt, Alan Cook and the Bausch & Lomb Optical Company for faster projection lenses;
The Mitchell Camera Company for a new type process projection head;
Mole-Richardson Company for a new type automatically controlled projection arc lamp;
Charley Handley, David Joy and the National Carbon Company for improved and more stable high-intensity carbons;
Winton Hoch and the Technicolor Motion Picture Corp. for an auxiliary optical system;
Don Musgrave and Selznick International Pictures, Inc. for pioneering in the use of coordinated equipment in the production, Gone with the Wind.