The first Oscars

In May 1927, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was established as a non-profit corporation to promote the art of movie making. The Academy had 36 members in the first year, with Douglas Fairbanks Sr as president. 

The first Academy Awards, now better known as the Oscars, were presented at a private dinner in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, with less than 250 persons attending. The first television broadcast of the Oscars took place in 1953 – on black and white TV, telecasted throughout the US and Canada. Today, the Academy has over 6 000 honorary members – the Oscar Awards are viewed by more than a billion people. 

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