43rd Academy Awards


The 43rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, was held on April 15, 1971, and took place at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion to honor the best films of 1970. The Awards presentation, hosting duties were handled by 34 "Friends of Oscar" and broadcast by NBC for the first time in 11 years.
It was during this ceremony that George C. Scott became the first actor to reject an Oscar, claiming that the Academy Awards were "a two-hour meat parade, a public display with contrived suspense for economic reasons."
With her Best Supporting Actress win, Helen Hayes became the first performer to win Oscars in both lead and supporting categories. She also has the record of having the biggest gap between acting wins.
The documentary film Woodstock garnered three Oscar nominations, making it the most nominated documentary film in Oscar history.
This was the only time since the 6th Academy Awards that all five nominees for Best Actress were first-time nominees, and was the last time to date that either lead acting category was entirely composed of new nominees. Also, this was the first time since the 7th Academy Awards in which none of the nominees for the Best Actor had a previous nomination in that category.

Winners and nominees

Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface and indicated with a double dagger.
Best PictureBest Director

  • Franklin J. Schaffner – Patton
  • *Federico Fellini – Fellini Satyricon
  • *Arthur Hiller – Love Story
  • *Robert Altman – M*A*S*H
  • *Ken Russell – Women in Love
  • Best ActorBest Actress
  • George C. Scott – Patton as General George S. Patton
  • *Melvyn Douglas – I Never Sang for My Father as Tom Garrison
  • *James Earl JonesThe Great White Hope as Jack Jefferson
  • *Jack Nicholson – Five Easy Pieces as Robert Eroica Dupea
  • *Ryan O'Neal – Love Story as Oliver Barrett IV
  • Glenda JacksonWomen in Love as Gundrun Brangwen
  • *Jane Alexander – The Great White Hope as Eleanor Backman
  • *Ali MacGraw – Love Story as Jennifer "Jenny" Cavalleri
  • *Sarah Miles – Ryan's Daughter as Rosy Ryan
  • *Carrie Snodgress – Diary of a Mad Housewife as Bettina "Tina" Balser
  • Best Supporting ActorBest Supporting Actress
  • John MillsRyan's Daughter as Michael
  • *Richard S. Castellano – Lovers and Other Strangers as Frank Vecchio
  • *Chief Dan George – Little Big Man as Old Lodge Skins
  • *Gene Hackman – I Never Sang for My Father as Gene Garrison
  • *John Marley – Love Story as Phil Cavalleri
  • Helen Hayes – Airport as Ada Quonsett
  • *Karen Black – Five Easy Pieces as Rayette Dipesto
  • *Lee Grant – The Landlord as Joyce Enders
  • *Sally Kellerman – M*A*S*H as Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan
  • *Maureen Stapleton – Airport as Inez Guerrero
  • Best Story and Screenplay Based on Factual Material or Material Not Previously Published or ProducedBest Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium
  • PattonFrancis Ford Coppola and Edmund H. North
  • *Five Easy Pieces – Screenplay by Adrien Joyce; Story by Bob Rafelson and Adrien Joyce
  • *JoeNorman Wexler
  • *Love StoryErich Segal
  • *My Night at Maud'sÉric Rohmer
  • M*A*S*H – Ring Lardner Jr. based on by Richard Hooker
  • *AirportGeorge Seaton based on the novel by Arthur Hailey
  • *I Never Sang for My FatherRobert Woodruff Anderson based on his play
  • *Lovers and Other StrangersRenée Taylor, Joseph Bologna and David Zelag Goodman based on the play by Joseph Bologna and Renée Taylor
  • *Women in LoveLarry Kramer based on the novel by D. H. Lawrence
  • Best Documentary FeatureBest Documentary Short Subject
  • WoodstockMichael Wadleigh
  • *Erinnerungen an die ZukunftHarald Reinl
  • *Jack JohnsonJimmy Jacobs
  • *' – Ely Landau
  • *Say Goodbye – David H. Vowell
  • Interviews with My Lai VeteransJoseph Strick
  • *The Gifts - Robert McBride
  • *A Long Way from Nowhere - Bob Aller
  • *Oisín - Patrick Carey and Vivien Carey
  • *Time Is Running Out - Horst Dallmayr and Robert Menegoz
  • Best Live Action Short SubjectBest Short Subject – Cartoons
  • The Resurrection of Broncho Billy – John Longenecker
  • *Shut Up...I'm Crying – Robert Siegler
  • *Sticky My Fingers...Fleet My Feet – John D. Hancock
  • Is It Always Right to Be Right? – Nick Bosustow
  • *The Further Adventures of Uncle Sam: Part Two – Robert Mitchell and Dale Case
  • *The Shepherd – Cameron Guess
  • Best Original ScoreBest Original Song Score
  • Love Story – Francis Lai
  • *AirportAlfred Newman
  • *CromwellFrank Cordell
  • *PattonJerry Goldsmith
  • *I GirasoliHenry Mancini
  • Let It BeMusic and Lyrics by The Beatles: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr
  • *The Baby Maker – Music by Fred Karlin; Lyrics by Tylwyth Kymry
  • *A Boy Named Charlie Brown – Music by Rod McKuen and John Scott Trotter; Lyrics by Rod McKuen, Bill Melendez, and Al Shean; Adapted by Vince Guaraldi
  • *Darling Lili – Music by Henry Mancini; Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
  • *Scrooge – Music and Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse; Adapted by Ian Fraser and Herbert W. Spencer
  • Best Song Original for the PictureBest Sound
  • "For All We Know" – Lovers and Other Strangers • Music by Fred Karlin • Lyrics by Robb Royer and Jimmy Griffin
  • *"Whistling Away the Dark" – Darling Lili • Music by Henry Mancini • Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
  • *"Till Love Touches Your Life" – Madron • Music by Riz Ortolani • Lyrics by Arthur Hamilton
  • *"Pieces of Dreams" – Pieces of Dreams • Music by Michel Legrand • Lyrics by Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman
  • *"Thank You Very Much" – Scrooge • Music and Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse
  • Patton – Douglas Williams and Don Bassman
  • *AirportRonald Pierce and David H. Moriarty
  • *Ryan's DaughterGordon McCallum and John Bramall
  • *Tora! Tora! Tora!Murray Spivack and Herman Lewis
  • *WoodstockDan Wallin and Larry Johnson
  • Best Foreign Language FilmBest Costume Design
  • Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion
  • *First Love
  • *Hoa-Binh
  • *Paix sur les champs
  • *Tristana
  • Cromwell – Vittorio Nino Novarese
  • *AirportEdith Head
  • *Darling LiliDonald Brooks and Jack Bear
  • *The HawaiiansBill Thomas
  • *ScroogeMargaret Furse
  • Best Art DirectionBest Cinematography
  • Patton – Art Direction: Urie McCleary and Gil Parrondo; Set Decoration: Antonio Mateos and Pierre-Louis Thévenet
  • *Airport – Art Direction: Alexander Golitzen and E. Preston Ames; Set Decoration: Jack D. Moore and Mickey S. Michaels
  • *The Molly Maguires – Art Direction: Tambi Larsen; Set Decoration: Darrell Silvera
  • *Scrooge – Art Direction: Terence Marsh and Bob Cartwright; Set Decoration: Pamela Cornell
  • *Tora! Tora! Tora! – Art Direction: Jack Martin Smith, Yoshirō Muraki, Richard Day, and Taizoh Kawashima; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott, Norman Rockett and Carl Biddiscombe
  • Ryan's DaughterFreddie Young
  • *AirportErnest Laszlo
  • *Patton – Fred J. Koenekamp
  • *Tora! Tora! Tora! – Charles F. Wheeler, Osami Furuya, Masamichi Satoh, and Sinsaku Himeda
  • *Women in LoveBilly Williams
  • Best Film EditingBest Special Visual Effects
  • Patton – Hugh S. Fowler
  • *AirportStuart Gilmore
  • *M*A*S*H – Danford B. Greene
  • *Tora! Tora! Tora! – James E. Newcom, Pembroke J. Herring, and Inoue Chikaya
  • *WoodstockThelma Schoonmaker
  • Tora! Tora! Tora! – A. D. Flowers and L. B. Abbott'
  • *Patton'' – Alex Weldon
  • Films with multiple wins and nominations

    NominationsFilm
    10Airport
    10Patton
    7Love Story
    5M*A*S*H
    5Tora! Tora! Tora!
    4Five Easy Pieces
    4Ryan's Daughter
    4Scrooge
    4Women in Love
    3Darling Lili
    3I Never Sang for My Father
    3Lovers and Other Strangers
    3Woodstock
    2Cromwell
    2The Great White Hope

    WinsFilm
    7Patton
    2Ryan's Daughter

    Presenters and performers

    The following individuals presented awards or performed musical numbers.

    Presenters

    Performers