23rd Academy Awards


The 23rd Academy Awards Ceremony awarded Oscars for the best in films in 1950. All About Eve received 14 Oscar nominations, beating the previous record of 13 set by Gone with the Wind.
Sunset Boulevard became the second film with nominations in every acting category not to win a single one. This would not happen again until American Hustle was shut out at the 86th Academy Awards.
All About Eve was the second film, after Mrs. Miniver, to receive five acting nominations. It also became the first to receive multiple nominations in two acting categories, and the first film to receive four female acting nominations--two each for Best Actress in a Leading Role and Best Actress in a Supporting Role. None was successful, losing to Judy Holliday in Born Yesterday and Josephine Hull in Harvey, respectively.

Awards

Nominations announced on February 12, 1951. Winners are listed first and highlighted in boldface.
Best Motion PictureBest Director

  • Joseph L. Mankiewicz – All About Eve
  • * John HustonThe Asphalt Jungle
  • * George CukorBorn Yesterday
  • * Billy WilderSunset Boulevard
  • * Carol ReedThe Third Man
  • Best ActorBest Actress
  • José FerrerCyrano de Bergerac as Cyrano de Bergerac
  • * Louis CalhernThe Magnificent Yankee as Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
  • * William HoldenSunset Boulevard as Joe Gillis
  • * James StewartHarvey as Elwood P. Dowd
  • * Spencer TracyFather of the Bride as Stanley T. Banks
  • Judy Holliday – Born Yesterday as Emma "Billie" Dawn
  • * Anne BaxterAll About Eve as Eve Harrington
  • * Bette DavisAll About Eve as Margo Channing
  • * Eleanor ParkerCaged as Marie Allen
  • * Gloria SwansonSunset Boulevard as Norma Desmond
  • Best Supporting ActorBest Supporting Actress
  • George SandersAll About Eve as Addison DeWitt
  • * Jeff ChandlerBroken Arrow as Cochise
  • * Edmund GwennMister 880 as "Skipper" Miller
  • * Sam JaffeThe Asphalt Jungle as "Doc" Erwin Riedenschneider
  • * Erich von StroheimSunset Boulevard as Max von Mayerling
  • Josephine Hull – Harvey as Veta Louise Simmons
  • * Hope EmersonCaged as Evelyn Harper
  • * Celeste HolmAll About Eve as Karen Richards
  • * Nancy OlsonSunset Boulevard as Betty Schaefer
  • * Thelma RitterAll About Eve as Birdie
  • Best ScreenplayBest Story and Screenplay
  • All About Eve – Joseph L. Mankiewicz from "The Wisdom of Eve" by Mary Orr
  • * The Asphalt JungleBen Maddow and John Huston from The Asphalt Jungle by W. R. Burnett
  • * Born YesterdayAlbert Mannheimer from Born Yesterday by Garson Kanin
  • * Broken ArrowAlbert Maltz from Blood Brother by Elliott Arnold
  • * Father of the BrideFrances Goodrich and Albert Hackett from Father of the Bride by Edward Streeter
  • Sunset Boulevard – Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder, and D. M. Marshman Jr.
  • * Adam's RibRuth Gordon and Garson Kanin
  • * CagedVirginia Kellogg and Bernard C. Schoenfeld
  • * The MenCarl Foreman
  • * No Way Out – Joseph L. Mankiewicz and Lesser Samuels
  • Best Motion Picture StoryBest Short Subject – Cartoons
  • Panic in the StreetsEdna Anhalt and Edward Anhalt
  • * Bitter RiceGiuseppe De Santis and Carlo Lizzani
  • * The GunfighterWilliam Bowers and André de Toth
  • * Mystery StreetLeonard Spigelgass
  • * When Willie Comes Marching HomeSy Gomberg
  • Gerald McBoing-Boing
  • * Jerry's Cousin
  • * Trouble Indemnity
  • Best Documentary FeatureBest Documentary Short Subject
  • * With These Hands
  • Why Korea?
  • * '
  • * The Stairs
  • Best Live Action Short Subject, One-ReelBest Live Action Short Subject, Two-Reel
  • Grandad of Races – Gordon Hollingshead
  • * Blaze BustersRobert Youngson
  • * Wrong Way ButchPete Smith
  • In Beaver Valley
  • * Grandma Moses
  • * My Country 'Tis of Thee
  • Best Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy PictureBest Scoring of a Musical Picture
  • Sunset BoulevardFranz Waxman
  • * All About EveAlfred Newman
  • * The Flame and the ArrowMax Steiner
  • * No Sad Songs for MeGeorge Duning
  • * Samson and DelilahVictor Young
  • Annie Get Your GunAdolph Deutsch and Roger Edens
  • * CinderellaOliver Wallace and Paul J. Smith
  • * I'll Get ByLionel Newman
  • * Three Little WordsAndré Previn
  • * The West Point StoryRay Heindorf
  • Best Original SongBest Sound Recording
  • "Mona Lisa" from Captain Carey, U.S.A.Music and Lyrics by Ray Evans and Jay Livingston
  • * "Be My Love" from The Toast of New Orleans – Music by Nicholas Brodszky; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
  • * "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo" from Cinderella – Music and Lyrics by Mack David, Al Hoffman, and Jerry Livingston
  • * "Mule Train" from Singing Guns – Music and Lyrics by Fred Glickman, Hy Heath, and Johnny Lange
  • * "Wilhelmina" from Wabash Avenue – Music by Josef Myrow; Lyrics by Mack Gordon
  • All About Eve – Thomas T. Moulton
  • * Cinderella – C. O. Slyfield
  • * Louisa – Leslie I. Carey
  • * Our Very Own – Gordon E. Sawyer
  • * TrioCyril Crowhurst
  • Best Art Direction – Set Decoration, Black-and-WhiteBest Art Direction – Set Decoration, Color
  • Sunset Boulevard – Art Direction: Hans Dreier and John Meehan; Set Decoration: Samuel M. Comer and Ray Moyer
  • * All About Eve – Art Direction: Lyle R. Wheeler and George Davis; Set Decoration: Thomas Little and Walter M. Scott
  • * The Red Danube – Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons and Hans Peters; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis and Hugh Hunt
  • Samson and Delilah – Art Direction: Hans Dreier and Walter Tyler; Set Decoration: Samuel M. Comer and Ray Moyer
  • * Annie Get Your Gun – Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons and Paul Groesse; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis and Richard A. Pefferle
  • * Destination Moon – Art Direction: Ernst Fegté; Set Decoration: George Sawley
  • Best Cinematography, Black-and-WhiteBest Cinematography, Color
  • The Third Man – Robert Krasker
  • * All About EveMilton Krasner
  • * The Asphalt JungleHarold Rosson
  • * The FuriesVictor Milner
  • * Sunset Boulevard – John F. Seitz
  • King Solomon's Mines – Robert Surtees
  • * Annie Get Your GunCharles Rosher
  • * Broken ArrowErnest Palmer
  • * The Flame and the ArrowErnest Haller
  • * Samson and DelilahGeorge Barnes
  • Best Costume Design, Black-and-WhiteBest Costume Design, Color
  • All About Eve – Edith Head and Charles LeMaire
  • * Born YesterdayJean Louis
  • * The Magnificent YankeeWalter Plunkett
  • Samson and Delilah – Edith Head, Dorothy Jeakins, Elois Jenssen, Gile Steele, and Gwen Wakeling
  • * The Black RoseMichael Whittaker
  • * That Forsyte Woman – Walter Plunkett and Valles
  • Best Film EditingBest Special Effects
  • King Solomon's Mines – Ralph E. Winters and Conrad A. Nervig
  • * All About EveBarbara McLean
  • * Annie Get Your Gun – James E. Newcom
  • * Sunset Boulevard – Arthur P. Schmidt and Doane Harrison
  • * The Third ManOswald Hafenrichter
  • Destination Moon – George Pal Productions and Eagle Lion Classics'
  • * Samson and Delilah'' – Cecil B. DeMille Productions and Paramount
  • Academy Honorary Awards

  • George Murphy "for his services in interpreting the film industry to the country at large".
  • Louis B. Mayer "for distinguished service to the motion picture industry".

    Best Foreign Language Film

  • The Walls of Malapaga

    Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award

  • Darryl F. Zanuck

    Presenters

  • Lex Barker and Arlene Dahl
  • Charles Brackett
  • Ralph Bunche
  • Ruth Chatterton
  • Broderick Crawford
  • Marlene Dietrich
  • Coleen Gray
  • Jane Greer
  • Helen Hayes
  • Dean Jagger
  • Gene Kelly
  • Phyllis Kirk
  • Mercedes McCambridge
  • Leo McCarey
  • Marilyn Monroe
  • Debra Paget
  • Debbie Reynolds
  • Jan Sterling
  • David Wayne

    Performers

  • Gloria DeHaven and Alan Young
  • Frankie Laine
  • Martin and Lewis
  • Lucille Norman

    Multiple nominations and awards

  • These films had multiple nominations:
    The following films received multiple awards.