1974 ...The Oscars: What was showing in Cinemas ( that were worth seeing)

The 46th Academy Awards were presented on April 2, 1974, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. The ceremonies were presided over by Burt Reynolds, Diana Ross, John Huston and David Niven.

The Sting won 7 awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for George Roy Hill. The Exorcist and The Way We Were were the only other films to win multiple awards.

Winners

Jack Lemmon, Best Actor winner

Glenda Jackson, Best Actress winner

John Houseman, Best Supporting Actor winner

Tatum O'Neal, Best Supporting Actress winner

Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface and indicated with a double dagger ().

Best Picture	Best Director
The Sting – Tony Bill, Julia Phillips and Michael Phillips, producers American Graffiti – Francis Ford Coppola and Gary Kurtz, producers Cries and Whispers – Lars-Owe Carlberg, producer The Exorcist – William Peter Blatty, producer A Touch of Class – Melvin Frank, producer	George Roy Hill – The Sting George Lucas – American Graffiti Ingmar Bergman – Cries and Whispers William Friedkin – The Exorcist Bernardo Bertolucci – Last Tango in Paris
Best Actor	Best Actress
Jack Lemmon – Save the Tiger as Harry Stoner Marlon Brando – Last Tango in Paris as Paul Jack Nicholson – The Last Detail as Billy "Badass" Buddusky Al Pacino – Serpico as Frank Serpico Robert Redford – The Sting as Johnny Hooker	Glenda Jackson – A Touch of Class as Vicki Allessio Ellen Burstyn – The Exorcist as Chris MacNeil Marsha Mason – Cinderella Liberty as Maggie Paul Barbra Streisand – The Way We Were as Katie Morosky Joanne Woodward – Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams as Rita Pritchett-Walden
Best Supporting Actor	Best Supporting Actress
John Houseman – The Paper Chase as Professor Charles W. Kingsfield, Jr. Vincent Gardenia – Bang the Drum Slowly as Dutch Jack Gilford – Save the Tiger as Phil Jason Miller – The Exorcist as Damien Karras Randy Quaid – The Last Detail as Larry Meadows	Tatum O'Neal – Paper Moon as Addie Loggins Linda Blair – The Exorcist as Regan MacNeil Candy Clark – American Graffiti as Debbie Dunham Madeline Kahn – Paper Moon as Trixie Delight Sylvia Sidney – Summer Wishes, Winter Dreamsas Mrs. Pritchett
Best Story and Screenplay Based on Factual Material or Material Not Previously Produced or Published	Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium
The Sting – David S. Ward American Graffiti – George Lucas, Gloria Katz and Willard Huyck Cries and Whispers – Ingmar Bergman Save the Tiger – Steve Shagan A Touch of Class – Melvin Frank and Jack Rose	The Exorcist – William Peter Blatty based on his novel  The Last Detail – Robert Towne based on the novelby Darryl Ponicsan The Paper Chase – James Bridges based on the novel by John Jay Osborn, Jr. Paper Moon – Alvin Sargent based on the novel Addie Pray by Joe David Brown Serpico – Waldo Salt and Norman Wexler based on the book by Peter Maas
Best Documentary Feature	Best Documentary Short Subject
The Great American Cowboy – Kieth Merrill Always a New Beginning – John D. Goodell Journey to the Outer Limits – Alexander Grasshoff Battle of Berlin (Schlacht um Berlin) – Franz Baake and Jost von Morr Walls of Fire – Herbert Kline and Edmund Penney	Princeton: A Search for Answers – Julian Kraininand DeWitt L. Sage, Jr. Background Christo's Valley Curtain Four Stones for Kanemitsu Paisti ag obair
Best Live Action Short Subject	Best Animated Short Subject
The Bolero – Allan Miller and William Fertik Clockmaker – Richard Gayer Life Times Nine – Pen Densham and John Watson	Frank Film – Frank Mouris The Legend of John Henry – Nick Bosustow and David Adams Pulcinella – Emanuele Luzzati and Guilo Gianini
Best Original Dramatic Score	Best Original Song Score and/or Adaptation Score
The Way We Were – Marvin Hamlisch Cinderella Liberty – John Williams The Day of the Dolphin – Georges Delerue Papillon – Jerry Goldsmith A Touch of Class – John Cameron	The Sting – Adaptation Score by Marvin Hamlisch Jesus Christ Superstar – Adaptation Score by André Previn, Herbert W. Spencer and Andrew Lloyd Webber Tom Sawyer – Song Score by Richard M. Shermanand Robert B. Sherman; Adaptation Score by John Williams
Best Song	Best Sound
"The Way We Were" — The Way We Were • Music by Marvin Hamlisch • Lyrics by Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman "(You're So) Nice to Be Around" — Cinderella Liberty • Music by John Williams • Lyrics by Paul Williams "Live and Let Die" — Live and Let Die • Music by Paul McCartney • Lyrics by Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney "Love" — Robin Hood • Music by George Bruns • Lyrics by Floyd Huddleston "All That Love Went to Waste" — A Touch of Class• Music by George Barrie • Lyrics by Sammy Cahn	The Exorcist – Robert Knudson and Chris Newman The Day of the Dolphin – Richard Portman and Larry Jost The Paper Chase – Donald O. Mitchell and Larry Jost Paper Moon – Richard Portman and Les Fresholtz The Sting – Ronald Pierce and Robert R. Bertrand
Best Foreign Language Film	Best Costume Design
Day for Night – France The House on Chelouche Street – Israel L'Invitation – Switzerland The Pedestrian – Germany (West) Turkish Delight – Netherlands	The Sting – Edith Head Cries and Whispers – Marik Vos Ludwig – Piero Tosi Tom Sawyer – Don Feld The Way We Were – Dorothy Jeakins and Moss Mabry
Best Art Direction	Best Cinematography
The Sting – Art Direction: Henry Bumstead; Set Decoration: James W. Payne Brother Sun, Sister Moon – Art Direction: Lorenzo Mongiardino and Gianni Quaranta; Set Decoration: Carmelo Patrono The Exorcist – Art Direction: Bill Malley; Set Decoration: Jerry Wunderlich Tom Sawyer – Art Direction: Philip Jefferies; Set Decoration: Robert de Vestel The Way We Were – Art Direction: Stephen Grimes; Set Decoration: William Kiernan(posthumous nomination)	Cries and Whispers – Sven Nykvist The Exorcist – Owen Roizman Jonathan Livingston Seagull – Jack Couffer The Sting – Robert L. Surtees The Way We Were – Harry Stradling Jr.
Best Film Editing
The Sting — William H. Reynolds American Graffiti — Verna Fields and Marcia Lucas The Day of the Jackal — Ralph Kemplen The Exorcist – Jordan Leondopoulos, Bud S. Smith, Evan Lottman and Norman Gay Jonathan Livingston Seagull — Frank P. Keller and James Galloway

Streaking incident

The 46th Academy Awards ceremony is perhaps best remembered as the ceremony in which a streaker named Robert Opel ran across the stage naked while flashing a peace sign with his hand. In response, host David Niven jokingly quipped, "The only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings."In 2001, this incident was voted^{[citation needed]} as the most memorable Oscar moment in history, coming in first over Marlon Brando's 1972 boycott of the 45th Academy Awards, in which he nominated Sacheen Littlefeather to explain why he would not be coming to collect his Oscar for The Godfather.

Other notable events

• First-time nominee George Lucas made his debut at the Academy Awards with his nostalgic teen drama American Graffiti. It was nominated for Best Picture (Francis Ford Coppola and Gary Kurtz), Director & Story and Screenplay Based on Factual Material or Material Not Previously Produced or Published (Lucas), Editor (Marcia Lucas) and Candy Clark for Best Supporting Actress.
• Jack Lemmon won his second career Oscar that night; his first was for 1955's Mister Roberts. As he accepted the award, he announced that "In recent years, especially, there has been a great deal of criticism about this award. And probably, a great deal of that criticism is very justified; I would just like to say that, whether it is justified or not, I think it is one hell of a honor and I am thrilled, and I thank you all, very, very much."
• Katharine Hepburn made her first and only appearance at the ceremony to present The Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to her longtime friend Lawrence Weingarten. Whenever she won an Oscar, she always had either the presenter or another person associated with her film accept it on her behalf. Upon taking the stage, she received a standing ovation, to which she replied "I'm living proof that a person can wait forty-one years to be unselfish."
• Coincidentally, Debbie Reynolds, Elizabeth Taylor and Connie Stevens, who were all ex-wives of Eddie Fisher's, each appeared in some form.
• This was Susan Hayward's last public appearance before she died of brain cancer in 1975.
• At 10 years, 148 days of age, Tatum O'Neal won Best Supporting Actress for her role in Paper Moon. She became the youngest winner of an Oscar, a feat unmatched to this day.
• During the ceremony, the whole in memoriam tribute was for legendary producer Samuel Goldwyn, who had died at age 94, three months prior to the event. He is the only person to have an Academy Awards ceremony dedicated solely to him.
• Longtime film veteran/comedian Groucho Marx was presented with an Honorary Academy Award for his contributions to the cinema.
• Julia Phillips became the first female producer to win for Best Picture.
• With Tatum O'Neal being 10 years old and John Houseman being 71 years old, this was the biggest age gap ever for 2 acting wins.

Multiple nominations and awards

These films had multiple nominations: 10 nominations: The Sting and The Exorcist 6 nominations: The Way We Were 5 nominations: American Graffiti, Cries and Whispers and A Touch of Class 4 nominations: Paper Moon 3 nominations: Cinderella Liberty, The Last Detail, Paper Chase, Save the Tiger and Tom Sawyer 2 nominations: The Day of the Dolphin, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Last Tango in Paris, Serpico and Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams