And the Winner Is . . . Oscar History 101
Written by Beth Sederstrom
Last updated · 13 min play time
Test your Academy Awards trivia skills with this fun, challenging quiz all about the highs, lows, and hiccups in Oscar history.
The Academy Awards were created to celebrate cinema excellence. Why is the trophy a little gold dude named Oscar? Who has the most Oscars lining his or her mantle? Whose been nominated again and again but can't seem to seal the deal? See if you know the answers to these questions and many more with this fun, glamorous quiz all about the history of the Oscars.
Okay, so maybe a taking a quiz isn't glamorous — but this one comes close. Put on your most paparazzi-friendly face and get ready to tread the red carpet of knowledge on your way to Oscar-quiz glory. And if you're going to give a tearful acceptance speech each time you get one right, just try to keep it short, OK?
Quiz written by
Beth SederstromBeth Sederstrom is a writer and editor from Indiana. You might recognize her from her 1990 appearance Nickelodeon's Outta Here. But probably not.
Oscars History Quiz Questions
30 Questions · 836 Plays · No comments
Question 1
How many times was sound mixer Kevin O'Connell nominated for an Oscar before he actually took a little gold guy home?
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A5
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B15
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C10
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D20
20
Looks like the twenty-first time is the charm. O'Connell finally won Best Sound Mixing for 2016's "Hacksaw Ridge."
Question 2
The Academy Awards weren't always a reason to party hard on a Sunday night. In what year were the Oscars first televised?
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A1933
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B1939
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C1953
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D1943
1953
The first Oscar broadcast to be televised hit the airwaves on March 19, 1953. The awards were shown on NBC. "From Here to Eternity" took home the top prize, while William Holden, Frank Sinatra, Audrey Hepburn, and Donna Reed took home Oscars for acting.
Question 3
According to Oscar lore, the Academy Award was given its nickname by Margaret Herrick, the Academy librarian. Who did she name it after?
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AComposer Oscar Hammerstein
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BAuthor Oscar Wilde
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CSwedish industrialist Oscar Dickson
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DHer Uncle Oscar
Her Uncle Oscar
The story goes that when Herrick saw the award, she said, "Why, it looks like my Uncle Oscar!" (We don't know why her uncle walked around naked and carrying a sword, either.) The nickname was officially adopted in 1939.
Question 4
The Oscar trophy is a knight holding a sword on a reel of film with five spokes. What do those five spokes represent?
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AComedy, drama, action, adventure, and romance
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BIntegrity, imagination, motion, creativity, and truth
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CUnited Artists Studio and its four founders: Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, D.W. Griffith, and Douglas Fairbanks
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DActors, directors, producers, technicians, and writers
Actors, directors, producers, technicians, and writers
The five spokes symbolize the five initial branches of the Academy. It was designed by Cedric Gibbons, MGM's chief art director, and sculpted by George Stanley, an artist based in Los Angeles.
Question 5
Which performer has been nominated for the most Oscars?
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AJack Nicholson
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BKatharine Hepburn
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CMeryl Streep
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DLaurence Olivier
Meryl Streep
Streep has been nominated 17 times as of 2018. Trailing behind her and tied at 12 are Katharine Hepburn and Jack Nicholson.
Question 6
Which performer has won the most Oscars as of 2018?
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AJack Nicholson
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BMeryl Streep
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CKatharine Hepburn
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DLaurence Olivier
Katharine Hepburn
She may trail behind Meryl when it comes to noms, but when it comes to wins, Kate reigns supreme. She won Best Actress four times: "Morning Glory" (1933), "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" (1967), "The Lion in Winter" (1969), and "On Golden Pond" (1982).
Question 7
Ties at the Oscars are rare. What two actors tied for Best Actor at the fifth Academy Awards?
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AWalter Brennan and Paul Muni
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BWallace Beery and Frederic March
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CClark Gable and Charles Laughton
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DLionel Barrymore and George Arliss
Wallace Beery and Frederic March
Beery, who won for "The Champ," technically lost by a single vote. According to the rules, that constituted a win, though. Sorry, Fred.
Question 8
With whom did Katharine Hepburn tie for Best Actress at the 1969 Oscars?
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AMaggie Smith
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BSophia Loren
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CBarbra Streisand
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DElizabeth Taylor
Barbra Streisand
Here's the crazy part: At the time, members of the Academy couldn't actually vote on the awards until two years after they'd first been in a movie. Gregory Peck, who was the president of the Academy at the time, bent the rules for Streisand. It's a safe bet she voted for herself, causing the tie that led to her snagging an Oscar for her first film, "Funny Girl."
Question 9
Despite being nominated for multiple Oscars, British film editor Roderick Jaynes has never attended the ceremony. Why not?
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AHe was banned from the Oscars for life after punching host Bob Hope backstage.
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BHe doesn't exist.
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CHe's legally barred from entering the United States.
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DHe died in 1938.
He doesn't exist.
"Roderick Jaynes" is a cantankerous old Brit — and 100 percent a creation of Joel and Ethan Coen, who edit all of their own films.
Question 10
Who is the youngest competitive Oscar winner ever as of 2018?
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AJudy Garland
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BShirley Temple
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CTatum O'Neal
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DAnna Paquin
Tatum O'Neal
O'Neal won for playing a plucky orphan in 1973's "Paper Moon" opposite her real-life dad, Ryan O'Neal.
Question 11
Who is the oldest actor to win a competitive Oscar as of 2018?
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AGloria Stewart
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BJessica Tandy
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CNormal Lloyd
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DChristopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Plummer was a youthful 82 when he won Best Supporting Actor for playing Hal, a terminally ill man who comes out in his 70s, in the 2010 dramedy "Beginners."
Question 12
How much does an Oscar weigh?
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A14 pounds
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B6 pounds
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C2.5 pounds
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D8.5 pounds
8.5 pounds
The statuette comes in at 8.5 pounds, making it the perfect dumbbell for your Aunt Karen. It's also 13.5 inches tall.
Question 13
Who was the first African American performer to win an Oscar?
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ALena Horne
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BDiahann Carroll
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CHattie McDaniel
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DSidney Poitier
Hattie McDaniel
McDaniel won Best Supporting Actress for 1939's "Gone with the Wind." It would be another 62 years before an African American actress snagged the Best Actress Oscar, when Halle Berry won in 2001 for "Monster's Ball."
Question 14
At the 15th Oscars, actress Greer Garson gave the longest acceptance speech on record. Approximately how long was it?
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A15 minutes
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B24 minutes
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C6 minutes
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D11 minutes
6 minutes
Garson won Best Actress for her role as Mrs. Miniver in 1942's "Mrs. Miniver." The film tells the story of a British housewife and her experiences in World War II. It's based on the 1940 novel "Mr. Floodmuffin." Just kidding; The novel's called "Mrs. Miniver." Duh.
Question 15
Even the Academy got patriotic and did its duty for America during World War II. Due to a metal shortage, what were the Oscars made of instead of bronze at the 1943 ceremony?
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APlastic
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BPlaster
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CWood
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DClay
Plaster
That year's winners — which included William Wyler, James Cagney and Greer Garson (Mrs. Miniver!) — were given their real-deal Oscars in 1946. A real-deal Oscar, BTW, is plated in 24-karat gold.
Question 16
Which of the following used to be an Oscar category?
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ABest Stunt Coordinator
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BBest Boy
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CBest Assistant Director
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DBest Camera Operator
Best Assistant Director
Oscar has phased out a handful of categories over the years, but Best Assistant Director is one that many people in the film industry would like to see return. Assistant directors are vital to a film set — especially as moviemaking becomes a bigger and bigger undertaking. Many films need multiple assistant directors to stay on track.
Question 17
What was the first animated film to get a Best Picture nomination?
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AToy Story 3
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BBeauty and the Beast
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CThe Lion King
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DUp
Beauty and the Beast
While "Up" and "Toy Story 3" both earned their own Best Picture nods, 1991's "Beauty and the Beast" did it first.
Question 18
What do Tom Hanks, Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn, Louise Rainer, and Jason Robards have in common?
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AThey all lost an Oscar to a member of the Fonda family.
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BThey all won back-to-back Oscars.
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CThey've all won exactly three Oscars (as of 2018).
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DThey all won Oscars for playing lawyers.
They all won back-to-back Oscars.
Hanks, the most recent winner, snagged his Oscars for "Philadelphia" and "Forrest Gump." Rainer, the first to do it, won for "The Great Ziegfeld" and "The Good Earth."
Question 19
At the 2017 Academy Awards, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway presented the Best Picture Oscar to the wrong film. What film actually won Best Picture?
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ALa La Land
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BManchester by the Sea
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CHidden Figures
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DMoonlight
Moonlight
An American audience of 33 million film fans watched the "Bonnie and Clyde" stars erroneously call out "La La Land" as the winner. Then they watched in shock as "La La Land" producer Jordan Horowitz corrected them.
Question 20
Who was the first actor to win a posthumous Oscar?
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AJames Dean
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BPeter Finch
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CHeath Ledger
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DMarlon Brando
Peter Finch
Finch won for his "mad as hell" performance in the 1976 satire "Network." While a handful of Oscars have been awarded posthumously during the awards' history, as of 2018, Finch and Heath Ledger, who won Best Supporting Actor in 2008, are the only two performers to win an Oscar after their deaths.
Question 21
As of 2018, which country has the most nominations for Best Foreign Language Film?
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AJapan
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BFrance
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CHungary
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DSpain
France
France may have the most noms at 39, but, as of 2018, Italy has 14 wins to France's 12. Spain comes in a distant third.
Question 22
What performer has the most Oscar nominations without a competitive win as of 2018?
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AJohnny Depp
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BRalph Fiennes
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CPeter O'Toole
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DTom Cruise
Peter O'Toole
O'Toole was nominated eight times but never won. In 2002, the Academy awarded him an honorary Oscar. He would go on to be nominated once more for 2006's "Venus." He passed away in 2013.
Question 23
Which individual has won the most Oscars?
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AWalt Disney
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BJohn Williams
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CGene Kelly
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DBetty White
Walt Disney
Disney was nominated for 59 competitive Oscars (also a record) and won 22 of them. He also received four additional Academy Awards, including an honorary award in 1932 for creating Mickey Mouse.
Question 24
What's notable about P.H. Vazak's Oscar nomination for writing 1984's "Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes?"
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AIt was his fourth in a row.
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BThe film won Worst Screenplay at that year's Razzie Awards.
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CVazak was a Hungarian sheepdog.
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DHis nomination as revoked after it was discovered that he plagiarized large parts of the script.
Vazak was a Hungarian sheepdog.
The film's real writer, Robert Towne, disliked how the film turned out and didn't want his name associated with it. Woof. Sadly, his dog lost to "Amadeus."
Question 25
When did the first woman win Best Director?
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A1977
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B1997
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C2001
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D2010
2010
When Kathryn Bigelow won for "The Hurt Locker," she became the first woman — after 82 years of Oscars being handed out — to take home the top directing prize. As of 2018, Bigelow was only the fourth of five women to be nominated for Best Director in Oscar's long, dude-filled history.
Question 26
Which multiple-Oscar-winner who famously never attends the ceremony made an exception after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and gave a brief tribute to New York City at the 2002 Oscars?
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ADiane Keaton
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BRobert De Niro
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CEllen Barkin
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DWoody Allen
Woody Allen
The controversial director has set the majority of his films in his native New York. He was born in Brooklyn on December 1, 1935, and was a longtime Knicks season ticket holder.
Question 27
As of 2018, what film is the only one to sweep all four acting categories?
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AWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
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BSunset Boulevard
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CNo film has pulled this off yet.
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DAmerican Hustle
No film has pulled this off yet.
Nope, no film has done it yet. Three films have come close, taking three of the four acting categories. They include "From Here to Eternity," "A Streetcar Named Desire," and — here she is again — "Mrs. Miniver."
Question 28
Who was the first person to win an Oscar for playing another Oscar winner?
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ALeonardo DiCaprio
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BChristian Bale
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CKate Winslet
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DCate Blanchett
Cate Blanchett
Blanchett played Katharine Hepburn in the 2004 Howard Hughes biopic "The Aviator." Hepburn, as you'll recall from earlier in this quiz, was a four-time Oscar winner.
Question 29
Liza Minnelli is the daughter of Vincente Minnelli and Judy Garland. Which one of them is the only one who doesn't have an Oscar?
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ALiza Minnelli
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BNice try; they've all won an Oscar
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CVincente Minnelli
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DJudy Garland
Nice try; they've all won an Oscar
Liza won Best Actress for 1972's "Cabaret." Her dad, Vincente, won Best Director in 1959 for "Gigi", and her legendary mother was given an honorary mini-Oscar in 1939.
Question 30
Who was the first performer to say "thanks, but no thanks" to the Academy after winning an Oscar?
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AGrace Kelly
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BMarlon Brando
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CBette Davis
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DGeorge C. Scott
George C. Scott
First, he tried to refuse his nomination. Then, he refused his Best Actor statuette for playing General George S. Patton in the cleverly titled 1970 film "Patton." Scott thought judging artists against each other was a really dumb idea.
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