As everyone gears up for the 2024 Academy Awards, we have another interesting Oscars Trivia for you. If you’ve followed the award ceremony for years, you must be aware that there have been times when the Academy grabbed headlines for unexpected events. From The Godfather actor Marlon Brando not attending the awards to the Will Smith and Chris Rock slap gate, there’s a lot that startles the audience. But did you know, once, two actresses won the Best Actress Award at the same time?
Yes, you read it right. In 1969, there was a tie between Barbra Streisand and Katharine Hepburn for the Best Actress category at the Oscars. Barbra was nominated for Funny Girl, and Katharine was nominated in the same category for her performance in The Lion in Winter. However, only one of the actresses was present for the award ceremony.
The actress who attended the Oscars in 1969 was Barbra Streisand. Ingrid Bergman presented the award to Barbra, who gave a wonderful speech. Anthony Harvey accepted the award on Katharine’s behalf. Hepburn has a reputation for not attending award ceremonies in general.
Katharine Hepburn in The Lion in Winter
In her speech, Barbra said, “I’m very honoured to be in such magnificent company as Katharine Hepburn. And gee whiz, it’s kind of a wild feeling. Sitting there tonight I was thinking that the first script of “Funny Girl” was written when I was only eleven years old, and thank God it took so long to get it right, you know. So, I would like to thank my co-producer, Ray Stark, for waiting till I grew up. And Jule Styne and Bob Merrill, for giving me such a great score to sing. And Isobel Lennart, for writing such a terrific character. All the Hollywood people who made our show into a movie: Herb Ross, and my dear Harry Stradling, who I haven’t let go since, and my dear friend and director, William Wyler. Wow.”
She added, “It’s like, somebody once said to me, asked me, if I was happy. And I said, “Are you kidding? I’d be miserable if I was happy.” And I’d like to thank all the members of the Academy for making me really miserable. Thank you.”
Meanwhile, the 2024 Oscar Award ceremony will take place on March 10 at 7 PM ET. Viewers can watch the ceremony on the ABC app. This year, the list of nominations is quite interesting. From Christopher Nolan to Robert Downey Jr to Emma Stone, some exceptional talents are in the race to take the award home.
Both Robert Downey Jr and Ryan Gosling have received immense appreciation for their performances in Oppenheimer and Barbie. Will there be a tie again at the Academy Awards? Well, we will find out in 2 days.
