34th Academy Awards

The 34th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film for 1961, were held on April 9, 1962, hosted by Bob Hope at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, California.

Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins became the first Best Director co-winners for West Side Story. The film won 10 of its 11 nominations, including Best Picture and both supporting acting Oscars, becoming the most successful musical in Oscars history.

Legendary filmmaker Federico Fellini received his first Best Director nomination for La Dolce Vita, while fellow Italian Sophia Loren became the second performer to win an Oscar for a non-English-language role, after Jane Wyman's American Sign Language performance in Johnny Belinda (1948), and the first to win a regular Oscar for a film made entirely in a language other than English. Directors Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins became the first pair to share an Oscar for the same film. George C. Scott became the first actor to refuse an award in advance, insisting that the Best Supporting Actor nomination for his performance in The Hustler be revoked. It was not, and he lost.

The most memorable event of the night came when Stan Berman, a New York City cabdriver famous for crashing celebrity parties, evaded security and made his way onstage to award Hope a homemade Oscar.

Awards
Nominations are announced on February 26, 1962. Winners are listed first and highlighted with boldface.

Academy Honorary Awards

 * William L. Hendricks "for his outstanding patriotic service in the conception, writing and production of the Marine Corps film, A Force in Readiness, which has brought honor to the Academy and the motion picture industry."
 * Fred L. Metzler "for his dedication and outstanding service to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences."
 * Jerome Robbins "for his brilliant achievements in the art of choreography on film."

Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award

 * Stanley Kramer

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award

 * George Seaton

Presenters

 * Eddie Albert and Dina Merrill (Presenters: Costume Design Awards)
 * Fred Astaire (Presenter: Best Picture)
 * Carroll Baker and Richard Chamberlain (Presenters: Art Direction Awards)
 * Charles Brackett (Presenter: Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to George Seaton)
 * Macdonald Carey and Shirley Knight (Presenters: Best Special Effects)
 * George Chakiris and Carolyn Jones (Presenters: Documentary Awards)
 * Cyd Charisse and Tony Martin (Presenters: Music Awards)
 * Wendell Corey (Presenter: Honorary Award to Fred L. Metzler)
 * Joan Crawford (Presenter: Best Actor)
 * Angie Dickinson and Rod Taylor (Presenter: Best Film Editing)
 * Vince Edwards and Shelley Winters (Presenters: Cinematography Awards)
 * Anthony Franciosa and Joanne Woodward (Presenters: Best Sound Recording)
 * Arthur Freed (Presenter: Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to Stanley Kramer)
 * Greer Garson (Presenter: Honorary Award to William L. Hendricks
 * George Hamilton and Glynis Johns (Presenters: Short Subjects Awards)
 * Rock Hudson (Presenter: Best Supporting Actress)
 * Eric Johnston (Presenter: Best Foreign Language Film)
 * Shirley Jones (Presenter: Best Supporting Actor)
 * Gene Kelly (Presenter: Honorary Award to Jerome Robbins)
 * Burt Lancaster (Presenter: Best Actress)
 * Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick (Presenters: Writing Awards)
 * Debbie Reynolds (Presenter: Best Original Song)
 * Rosalind Russell (Presenter: Best Director)

Performers

 * Ann-Margret ("Bachelor in Paradise" from Bachelor in Paradise)
 * Gogi Grant ("Pocketful of Miracles" from Pocketful of Miracles)
 * Johnny Mathis ("Love Theme from El Cid (The Falcon and the Dove)" from El Cid)
 * Gene Pitney ("Town Without Pity" from Town Without Pity)
 * Andy Williams ("Moon River" from Breakfast at Tiffany's)

Multiple nominations and awards
These films had multiple nominations:


 * 11 nominations: Judgment at Nuremberg and West Side Story
 * 9 nominations: The Hustler
 * 7 nominations: The Guns of Navarone
 * 5 nominations: Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Children's Hour, Fanny and Flower Drum Song
 * 4 nominations: La Dolce Vita and Summer and Smoke
 * 3 nominations: The Absent-Minded Professor, El Cid and Pocketful of Miracles
 * 2 nominations: Babes in Toyland, The Parent Trap and Splendor in the Grass

The following films received multiple awards.


 * 10 wins: West Side Story
 * 2 wins: Breakfast at Tiffany's, Judgment at Nuremberg and The Hustler