The 40th Academy Awards honored film achievements of 1967. Originally scheduled for April 8, 1968, the awards were postponed to two days later, April 10, 1968, because of the

assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...

of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Bob Hope was once again the host of the ceremony. Due to the increasing rarity of black and white feature films, the awards for cinematography, art direction and costume design were merged into single categories rather than having a distinction between color and monochrome. The Best Picture nominees were an eclectic group of films reflecting the chaos of their era. The event was the first one since the

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...

awards show to feature film clips from the Best Picture nominated films. This year's nominations also marked the first time that three different films were nominated for the "Top Five" Academy Awards: Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenplay. The three films were ''

Bonnie and Clyde Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910May 23, 1934) and Clyde Chestnut (Champion) Barrow (March 24, 1909May 23, 1934) were an American criminal couple who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression. The co ...

'', '' The Graduate'' and '' Guess Who's Coming to Dinner''. However, the winner of Best Picture was producer Walter Mirisch and director Norman Jewison's thriller/mystery film, '' In the Heat of the Night'' (with seven nominations and five wins – Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Screenplay, Best Film Editing and Best Sound). '' The Graduate'' became the seventh film to win Best Director and nothing else, and the last until the 94th Academy Awards. For the first time since the introduction of the

Academy Award for Best Costume Design The Academy Award for Best Costume Design is one of the Academy Awards presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) for achievement in film costume design. The award was first given in 1949, for films made in 194 ...

, Edith Head did not receive a nomination, after tallying 30 nominations and 7 wins over the previous 18 years. Due to an all-out push by Academy President

Gregory Peck Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an American actor and one of the most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1970s. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Peck the 12th-greatest male star of Classic Hollywood ...

, 18 of the 20 acting nominees were present at the ceremony. Only

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...

and the late Spencer Tracy, who was nominated posthumously, were missing.

Edith Evans Dame Edith Mary Evans, (8 February 1888 – 14 October 1976) was an English actress. She was best known for her work on the stage, but also appeared in films at the beginning and towards the end of her career. Between 1964 and 1968, she was no ...

was the final nomination for any acting role to be born in the 1880s.

Winners and nominees

Nominations were announced on February 19, 1968. Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface and indicated with a double dagger ().

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award

Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

Honorary Oscar

Arthur Freed was presented for distinguished service to the Academy and the production of six top-rated Awards telecasts.

Trivia

*This was the last Oscars broadcast by network radio in the US. The ABC radio network (which had just split into four separate services) carried the ceremony over the ABC Entertainment network. *Of the 20 performers nominated in the acting categories only two didn't attend:

, whose award for Best Actress was accepted by George Cukor, was in France filming ''

The Lion in Winter ''The Lion in Winter'' is a 1966 play by James Goldman, depicting the personal and political conflicts of Henry II of England, his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, their children and their guests during Christmas 1183. It premiered on Broadway at the ...

'', and Spencer Tracy, whose nomination was posthumous. *There was no Governor's Ball. *Prior to the two-day postponement, four African-American stars who were scheduled to take part in the ceremony:

Sidney Poitier Sidney Poitier ( ; February 20, 1927 – January 6, 2022) was an American actor, film director, and diplomat. In 1964, he was the first black actor and first Bahamian to win the Academy Award for Best Actor. He received two competitive ...

, Sammy Davis Jr., Louis Armstrong, and

Diahann Carroll Diahann Carroll (; born Carol Diann Johnson; July 17, 1935 – October 4, 2019) was an American actress, singer, model, and activist. She rose to prominence in some of the earliest major studio films to feature black casts, including '' C ...

, announced they were withdrawing in mourning for Dr. King. Prior to the postponement,

Jack Lemmon John Uhler Lemmon III (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001) was an American actor. Considered equally proficient in both dramatic and comic roles, Lemmon was known for his anxious, middle-class everyman screen persona in dramedy pictures, leadin ...

was announced as a replacement for Poitier, and Shirley Jones for Davis, but once the event was delayed, the original quartet returned. *Alfred Hitchcock's acceptance speech is on record as one of the shortest in Academy Awards history: "Thank you very much indeed". This is one word longer than William Holden's acceptance speech for ''

Stalag 17 ''Stalag 17'' is a 1953 American war film which tells the story of a group of American airmen confined with 40,000 prisoners in a World War II German prisoner of war camp "somewhere on the Danube". Their compound holds 630 Sergeants represent ...

'' at the 26th Academy Awards, which was simply "Thank you ... thank you." *This was the only year in which two films (''

'' and '' Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'') received nominations in all four acting categories. *Legendary film composer John Williams received his first nomination for scoring ''

Valley of the Dolls Valley of the Dolls may refer to: * ''Valley of the Dolls'' (novel), a 1966 novel by Jacqueline Susann ** ''Valley of the Dolls'' (film), a 1967 film adapted from the novel *** " (Theme from) Valley of the Dolls", the title song from the film, pe ...

''. He would go on to receive 50 more nominations, winning 5.

Multiple nominations and awards

These films had multiple nominations: *''10 nominations'': ''

'' and '' Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'' *''9 nominations'': '' Doctor Dolittle'' *''7 nominations'': '' The Graduate'', '' In the Heat of the Night'' and ''

Thoroughly Modern Millie ''Thoroughly Modern Millie'' is a 1967 American musical- romantic comedy film directed by George Roy Hill and starring Julie Andrews. The screenplay, by Richard Morris based on the 1956 British musical ''Chrysanthemum'', follows a naïve you ...

'' *''5 nominations'': ''

Camelot Camelot is a castle and court associated with the legendary King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described as the ...

'' *''4 nominations'': ''

Cool Hand Luke ''Cool Hand Luke'' is a 1967 American prison drama film directed by Stuart Rosenberg, starring Paul Newman and featuring George Kennedy in an Oscar-winning performance. Newman stars in the title role as Luke, a prisoner in a Florida prison ca ...

'', '' The Dirty Dozen'' and ''

In Cold Blood ''In Cold Blood'' is a non-fiction novel by American author Truman Capote, first published in 1966. It details the 1959 murders of four members of the Clutter family in the small farming community of Holcomb, Kansas. Capote learned of the ...

'' *''2 nominations'': ''

A Place to Stand "A Place to Stand, a Place to Grow" (''Ontari-ari-ari-o!'') is the unofficial regional anthem, provincial anthem of the Canadian province of Ontario. It was written as the signature tune for a movie of the same name that was featured at the Expo 67 ...

'' and ''

The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken ...

'' The following films received multiple awards. *''5 wins'': '' In the Heat of the Night'' *''3 wins'': ''

'' *''2 wins'': ''

'', '' Doctor Dolittle'' and '' Guess Who's Coming to Dinner''

Presenters and performers

The following individuals, listed in order of appearance, presented awards or performed musical numbers.

Presenters

Performers

References

External links

* *
A Place to Stand
', 1967, Archives of Ontario YouTube Channel (winner of Best Live Action Short Subject) {{DEFAULTSORT:Academy Awards, 40 Academy Awards ceremonies 1967 film awards 1968 in California 1968 in American cinema April 1968 events in the United States Events in Santa Monica, California 20th century in Santa Monica, California