1956

The 28th Academy Awards | 1956
RKO Pantages Theatre
Wednesday, March 21, 1956
Honoring movies released in 1955
Highlights
Memorable Moments
  • Jack Lemmon, Jo Van Fleet and Ernest Borgnine
    Supporting Actor winner for Mister Roberts, Supporting Actress winner for East of Eden, and Best Actor winner for Marty
  • Helen Keller in Her Story
    Helen Keller, posing with the Documentary Feature award
  • Joseph L. Mankiewicz and Claudette Colbert
    Oscar co-hosts in New York

Winners & Nominees

Actor

Winner

Ernest Borgnine

Marty

Nominees

James Cagney

Love Me or Leave Me

James Dean

East of Eden

Frank Sinatra

The Man with the Golden Arm

Spencer Tracy

Bad Day at Black Rock

Actor in a Supporting Role

Winner

Jack Lemmon

Mister Roberts

Nominees

Arthur Kennedy

Trial

Joe Mantell

Marty

Sal Mineo

Rebel without a Cause

Arthur O'Connell

Picnic

Actress

Winner

Anna Magnani

The Rose Tattoo

Nominees

Susan Hayward

I'll Cry Tomorrow

Katharine Hepburn

Summertime

Jennifer Jones

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing

Eleanor Parker

Interrupted Melody

Actress in a Supporting Role

Winner

Jo Van Fleet

East of Eden

Nominees

Betsy Blair

Marty

Peggy Lee

Pete Kelly's Blues

Marisa Pavan

The Rose Tattoo

Natalie Wood

Rebel without a Cause

Art Direction (Black-and-White)

Winner

The Rose Tattoo

Art Direction: Hal Pereira, Tambi Larsen; Set Decoration: Sam Comer, Arthur Krams

Nominees

Blackboard Jungle

Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Randall Duell; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Henry Grace

I'll Cry Tomorrow

Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Malcolm Brown; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Hugh B. Hunt

The Man with the Golden Arm

Art Direction: Joseph C. Wright; Set Decoration: Darrell Silvera

Marty

Art Direction: Edward S. Haworth, Walter Simonds; Set Decoration: Robert Priestley

Art Direction (Color)

Winner

Picnic

Art Direction: William Flannery, Jo Mielziner; Set Decoration: Robert Priestley

Nominees

Daddy Long Legs

Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, John DeCuir; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott, Paul S. Fox

Guys and Dolls

Art Direction: Oliver Smith, Joseph C. Wright; Set Decoration: Howard Bristol

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing

Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, George W. Davis; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott, Jack Stubbs

To Catch a Thief

Art Direction: Hal Pereira, Joseph McMillan Johnson; Set Decoration: Sam Comer, Arthur Krams

Cinematography (Black-and-White)

Winner

The Rose Tattoo

James Wong Howe

Nominees

Blackboard Jungle

Russell Harlan

I'll Cry Tomorrow

Arthur E. Arling

Marty

Joseph LaShelle

Queen Bee

Charles Lang

Cinematography (Color)

Winner

To Catch a Thief

Robert Burks

Nominees

Guys and Dolls

Harry Stradling

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing

Leon Shamroy

A Man Called Peter

Harold Lipstein

Oklahoma!

Robert Surtees

Costume Design (Black-and-White)

Winner

I'll Cry Tomorrow

Helen Rose

Nominees

The Pickwick Papers

Beatrice Dawson

Queen Bee

Jean Louis

The Rose Tattoo

Edith Head

Ugetsu

Tadaoto Kainoscho

Costume Design (Color)

Winner

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing

Charles LeMaire

Nominees

Guys and Dolls

Irene Sharaff

Interrupted Melody

Helen Rose

To Catch a Thief

Edith Head

The Virgin Queen

Charles LeMaire, Mary Wills

Directing

Winner

Marty

Delbert Mann

Nominees

Bad Day at Black Rock

John Sturges

East of Eden

Elia Kazan

Picnic

Joshua Logan

Summertime

David Lean

Documentary (Feature)

Winner

Helen Keller in Her Story

Nancy Hamilton, Producer

Nominees

Heartbreak Ridge

Rene Risacher, Producer

Documentary (Short Subject)

Winner

Men against the Arctic

Walt Disney, Producer

Nominees

The Battle of Gettysburg

Dore Schary, Producer

The Face of Lincoln

Wilbur T. Blume, Producer

Film Editing

Winner

Picnic

Charles Nelson, William A. Lyon

Nominees

Blackboard Jungle

Ferris Webster

The Bridges at Toko-Ri

Alma Macrorie

Oklahoma!

Gene Ruggiero, George Boemler

The Rose Tattoo

Warren Low

Honorary Foreign Language Film Award

Winner

Samurai, The Legend of Musashi

Special Award

Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture)

Winner

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing

Alfred Newman

Nominees

Battle Cry

Max Steiner

The Man with the Golden Arm

Elmer Bernstein

Picnic

George Duning

The Rose Tattoo

Alex North

Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture)

Winner

Oklahoma!

Robert Russell Bennett, Jay Blackton, Adolph Deutsch

Nominees

Daddy Long Legs

Alfred Newman

Guys and Dolls

Jay Blackton, Cyril J. Mockridge

It's Always Fair Weather

Andre Previn

Love Me or Leave Me

Percy Faith, George Stoll

Music (Song)

Winner

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing

Love Is A Many-Splendored Thing in "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" Music by Sammy Fain; Lyrics by Paul Francis Webster

Nominees

Love Me or Leave Me

I'll Never Stop Loving You in "Love Me or Leave Me" Music by Nicholas Brodszky; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn

Daddy Long Legs

Something's Gotta Give in "Daddy Long Legs" Music and Lyrics by Johnny Mercer

The Tender Trap

(Love Is) The Tender Trap in "The Tender Trap" Music by James Van Heusen; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn

Unchained

Unchained Melody in "Unchained" Music by Alex North; Lyrics by Hy Zaret

Best Motion Picture

Winner

Marty

Harold Hecht, Producer

Nominees

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing

Buddy Adler, Producer

Mister Roberts

Leland Hayward, Producer

Picnic

Fred Kohlmar, Producer

The Rose Tattoo

Hal B. Wallis, Producer

Short Subject (Cartoon)

Winner

Speedy Gonzales

Edward Selzer, Producer

Nominees

Good Will to Men

Fred Quimby, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, Producers

The Legend of Rock-a-bye Point

Walter Lantz, Producer

No Hunting

Walt Disney, Producer

Short Subject (One-reel)

Winner

Survival City

Edmund Reek, Producer

Nominees

Gadgets Galore

Robert Youngson, Producer

3rd Ave. El

Carson Davidson, Producer

Three Kisses

Justin Herman, Producer

Short Subject (Two-reel)

Winner

The Face of Lincoln

Wilbur T. Blume, Producer

Nominees

The Battle of Gettysburg

Dore Schary, Producer

On the Twelfth Day...

George K. Arthur, Producer

Switzerland

Walt Disney, Producer

24-Hour Alert

Cedric Francis, Producer

Sound Recording

Winner

Oklahoma!

Todd-AO Sound Department, Fred Hynes, Sound Director

Nominees

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing

20th Century-Fox Studio Sound Department, Carl W. Faulkner, Sound Director

Love Me or Leave Me

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio Sound Department, Wesley C. Miller, Sound Director

Mister Roberts

Warner Bros. Studio Sound Department, William A. Mueller, Sound Director

Not as a Stranger

Radio Corporation of America Sound Department, Watson Jones, Sound Director

Special Effects

Winner

The Bridges at Toko-Ri

Paramount Studio

Nominees

The Dam Busters

Associated British Picture Corporation, Ltd.

The Rains of Ranchipur

20th Century-Fox Studio

Writing (Motion Picture Story)

Winner

Love Me or Leave Me

Daniel Fuchs

Nominees

The Private War of Major Benson

Joe Connelly, Bob Mosher

Rebel without a Cause

Nicholas Ray

The Sheep Has Five Legs

Jean Marsan, Henry Troyat, Jacques Perret, Henri Verneuil, Raoul Ploquin

Strategic Air Command

Beirne Lay, Jr.

Writing (Screenplay)

Winner

Marty

Paddy Chayefsky

Nominees

Bad Day at Black Rock

Millard Kaufman

Blackboard Jungle

Richard Brooks

East of Eden

Paul Osborn

Love Me or Leave Me

Daniel Fuchs, Isobel Lennart

Writing (Story and Screenplay)

Winner

Interrupted Melody

William Ludwig, Sonya Levien

Nominees

The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell

Milton Sperling, Emmet Lavery

It's Always Fair Weather

Betty Comden, Adolph Green

Mr. Hulot's Holiday

Jacques Tati, Henri Marquet

The Seven Little Foys

Melville Shavelson, Jack Rose
0-9
3rd Ave. El
1 Nomination
Short Subject (One-reel) - Carson Davidson, Producer
24-Hour Alert
1 Nomination
Short Subject (Two-reel) - Cedric Francis, Producer
B
Bad Day at Black Rock
3 Nominations
Directing - John Sturges
Writing (Screenplay) - Millard Kaufman
Actor - Spencer Tracy in "Bad Day at Black Rock"
Battle Cry
1 Nomination
Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - Max Steiner
The Battle of Gettysburg
2 Nominations
Short Subject (Two-reel) - Dore Schary, Producer
Documentary (Short Subject) - Dore Schary, Producer
Blackboard Jungle
4 Nominations
Art Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Randall Duell; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Henry Grace
Film Editing - Ferris Webster
Writing (Screenplay) - Richard Brooks
Cinematography (Black-and-White) - Russell Harlan
The Bridges at Toko-Ri
2 Nominations, 1 Win
Film Editing - Alma Macrorie
* Special Effects - Paramount Studio
C
The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell
1 Nomination
Writing (Story and Screenplay) - Milton Sperling, Emmet Lavery
D
Daddy Long Legs
3 Nominations
Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Alfred Newman
Art Direction (Color) - Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, John DeCuir; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott, Paul S. Fox
Music (Song) - Something's Gotta Give in "Daddy Long Legs" Music and Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
The Dam Busters
1 Nomination
Special Effects - Associated British Picture Corporation, Ltd.
E
East of Eden
4 Nominations, 1 Win
Directing - Elia Kazan
Actor - James Dean in "East of Eden"
Writing (Screenplay) - Paul Osborn
* Actress in a Supporting Role - Jo Van Fleet in "East of Eden"
F
The Face of Lincoln
2 Nominations, 1 Win
* Short Subject (Two-reel) - Wilbur T. Blume, Producer
Documentary (Short Subject) - Wilbur T. Blume, Producer
G
Gadgets Galore
1 Nomination
Short Subject (One-reel) - Robert Youngson, Producer
Good Will to Men
1 Nomination
Short Subject (Cartoon) - Fred Quimby, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, Producers
Guys and Dolls
4 Nominations
Art Direction (Color) - Art Direction: Oliver Smith, Joseph C. Wright; Set Decoration: Howard Bristol
Cinematography (Color) - Harry Stradling
Costume Design (Color) - Irene Sharaff
Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Jay Blackton, Cyril J. Mockridge
H
Heartbreak Ridge
1 Nomination
Documentary (Feature) - Rene Risacher, Producer
Helen Keller in Her Story
1 Win, 1 Nomination
* Documentary (Feature) - Nancy Hamilton, Producer
I
I'll Cry Tomorrow
4 Nominations, 1 Win
Art Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Malcolm Brown; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Hugh B. Hunt
Cinematography (Black-and-White) - Arthur E. Arling
Actress - Susan Hayward in "I'll Cry Tomorrow"
* Costume Design (Black-and-White) - Helen Rose
Interrupted Melody
3 Nominations, 1 Win
Actress - Eleanor Parker in "Interrupted Melody"
Costume Design (Color) - Helen Rose
* Writing (Story and Screenplay) - William Ludwig, Sonya Levien
It's Always Fair Weather
2 Nominations
Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Andre Previn
Writing (Story and Screenplay) - Betty Comden, Adolph Green
L
The Legend of Rock-a-bye Point
1 Nomination
Short Subject (Cartoon) - Walter Lantz, Producer
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
8 Nominations, 3 Wins
Sound Recording - 20th Century-Fox Studio Sound Department, Carl W. Faulkner, Sound Director
Art Direction (Color) - Art Direction: Lyle Wheeler, George W. Davis; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott, Jack Stubbs
Best Motion Picture - Buddy Adler, Producer
Actress - Jennifer Jones in "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing"
Cinematography (Color) - Leon Shamroy
* Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - Alfred Newman
* Costume Design (Color) - Charles LeMaire
* Music (Song) - Love Is A Many-Splendored Thing in "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" Music by Sammy Fain; Lyrics by Paul Francis Webster
Love Me or Leave Me
6 Nominations, 1 Win
* Writing (Motion Picture Story) - Daniel Fuchs
Writing (Screenplay) - Daniel Fuchs, Isobel Lennart
Music (Song) - I'll Never Stop Loving You in "Love Me or Leave Me" Music by Nicholas Brodszky; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Actor - James Cagney in "Love Me or Leave Me"
Sound Recording - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio Sound Department, Wesley C. Miller, Sound Director
Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Percy Faith, George Stoll
M
A Man Called Peter
1 Nomination
Cinematography (Color) - Harold Lipstein
The Man with the Golden Arm
3 Nominations
Art Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Joseph C. Wright; Set Decoration: Darrell Silvera
Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - Elmer Bernstein
Actor - Frank Sinatra in "The Man with the Golden Arm"
Marty
8 Nominations, 4 Wins
Art Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Edward S. Haworth, Walter Simonds; Set Decoration: Robert Priestley
Actress in a Supporting Role - Betsy Blair in "Marty"
Actor in a Supporting Role - Joe Mantell in "Marty"
Cinematography (Black-and-White) - Joseph LaShelle
* Directing - Delbert Mann
* Actor - Ernest Borgnine in "Marty"
* Best Motion Picture - Harold Hecht, Producer
* Writing (Screenplay) - Paddy Chayefsky
Men against the Arctic
1 Win, 1 Nomination
* Documentary (Short Subject) - Walt Disney, Producer
Mister Roberts
3 Nominations, 1 Win
* Actor in a Supporting Role - Jack Lemmon in "Mister Roberts"
Best Motion Picture - Leland Hayward, Producer
Sound Recording - Warner Bros. Studio Sound Department, William A. Mueller, Sound Director
Mr. Hulot's Holiday
1 Nomination
Writing (Story and Screenplay) - Jacques Tati, Henri Marquet
N
No Hunting
1 Nomination
Short Subject (Cartoon) - Walt Disney, Producer
Not as a Stranger
1 Nomination
Sound Recording - Radio Corporation of America Sound Department, Watson Jones, Sound Director
O
Oklahoma!
4 Nominations, 2 Wins
Film Editing - Gene Ruggiero, George Boemler
Cinematography (Color) - Robert Surtees
* Music (Scoring of a Musical Picture) - Robert Russell Bennett, Jay Blackton, Adolph Deutsch
* Sound Recording - Todd-AO Sound Department, Fred Hynes, Sound Director
On the Twelfth Day...
1 Nomination
Short Subject (Two-reel) - George K. Arthur, Producer
P
Pete Kelly's Blues
1 Nomination
Actress in a Supporting Role - Peggy Lee in "Pete Kelly's Blues"
The Pickwick Papers
1 Nomination
Costume Design (Black-and-White) - Beatrice Dawson
Picnic
6 Nominations, 2 Wins
* Art Direction (Color) - Art Direction: William Flannery, Jo Mielziner; Set Decoration: Robert Priestley
* Film Editing - Charles Nelson, William A. Lyon
Actor in a Supporting Role - Arthur O'Connell in "Picnic"
Best Motion Picture - Fred Kohlmar, Producer
Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - George Duning
Directing - Joshua Logan
The Private War of Major Benson
1 Nomination
Writing (Motion Picture Story) - Joe Connelly, Bob Mosher
Q
Queen Bee
2 Nominations
Cinematography (Black-and-White) - Charles Lang
Costume Design (Black-and-White) - Jean Louis
R
The Rains of Ranchipur
1 Nomination
Special Effects - 20th Century-Fox Studio
Rebel without a Cause
3 Nominations
Actress in a Supporting Role - Natalie Wood in "Rebel without a Cause"
Writing (Motion Picture Story) - Nicholas Ray
Actor in a Supporting Role - Sal Mineo in "Rebel without a Cause"
The Rose Tattoo
8 Nominations, 3 Wins
Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) - Alex North
Costume Design (Black-and-White) - Edith Head
Best Motion Picture - Hal B. Wallis, Producer
Actress in a Supporting Role - Marisa Pavan in "The Rose Tattoo"
Film Editing - Warren Low
* Actress - Anna Magnani in "The Rose Tattoo"
* Art Direction (Black-and-White) - Art Direction: Hal Pereira, Tambi Larsen; Set Decoration: Sam Comer, Arthur Krams
* Cinematography (Black-and-White) - James Wong Howe
S
Samurai, The Legend of Musashi
1 Win, 1 Nomination
* Honorary Foreign Language Film Award - Special Award
The Seven Little Foys
1 Nomination
Writing (Story and Screenplay) - Melville Shavelson, Jack Rose
The Sheep Has Five Legs
1 Nomination
Writing (Motion Picture Story) - Jean Marsan, Henry Troyat, Jacques Perret, Henri Verneuil, Raoul Ploquin
Speedy Gonzales
1 Win, 1 Nomination
* Short Subject (Cartoon) - Edward Selzer, Producer
Strategic Air Command
1 Nomination
Writing (Motion Picture Story) - Beirne Lay, Jr.
Summertime
2 Nominations
Directing - David Lean
Actress - Katharine Hepburn in "Summertime"
Survival City
1 Win, 1 Nomination
* Short Subject (One-reel) - Edmund Reek, Producer
Switzerland
1 Nomination
Short Subject (Two-reel) - Walt Disney, Producer
T
The Tender Trap
1 Nomination
Music (Song) - (Love Is) The Tender Trap in "The Tender Trap" Music by James Van Heusen; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Three Kisses
1 Nomination
Short Subject (One-reel) - Justin Herman, Producer
To Catch a Thief
3 Nominations, 1 Win
Art Direction (Color) - Art Direction: Hal Pereira, Joseph McMillan Johnson; Set Decoration: Sam Comer, Arthur Krams
Costume Design (Color) - Edith Head
* Cinematography (Color) - Robert Burks
Trial
1 Nomination
Actor in a Supporting Role - Arthur Kennedy in "Trial"
U
Ugetsu
1 Nomination
Costume Design (Black-and-White) - Tadaoto Kainoscho
Unchained
1 Nomination
Music (Song) - Unchained Melody in "Unchained" Music by Alex North; Lyrics by Hy Zaret
V
The Virgin Queen
1 Nomination
Costume Design (Color) - Charles LeMaire, Mary Wills