SDA Festival: Day 2

Today started with workshops while the students from last night's shows met with the adjudicator. I have to say that I had a totally awesome, wildly inventive and hysterically funny group of students in my workshop. My workshop is all about using improv as a playwrighting tool and I was amazed at the level of creativity that I found in my group. Each and every one of them had something vital to say that would make great plays. I hope at least one or two of them will go on to actually write a play of their own because I know they all would be capable of doing so. I sure hope they had as much fun as I did. I'm always inspired by the students I meet at these workshops, so what I really wanted to do afterwards was rush to my hotel and start writing something. But there was no time for such things, as the first two plays of the day began precisely at 1 o'clock...

EARWIG by Fraser MacFarlane, presented by Spiritwood High School - I had never heard of this play before and am so glad that I had no idea how the plot was going to unfold. It was a macabre story about three postal workers who find a severed head that had been boxed up and sent in the mail. Despite the grim and grisly plot elements, I loved this play far more that I probably should admit. What I liked best about the production was how cavalier the actors treated the entire situation. They were mature enough to allow the script to dictate a leisurely pace that made the entire play feel like "just another boring day at the office." Far too often I find that high school comedies are overly aggressive when it comes to comedy and end up assaulting the audience with a frenetic pace that would have been so much better had they dialed things down a notch. Not so with this production. Even in the face of a severed head, these characters barely batted an eyelash. The contrast of the shocking news and their lackadaisical reaction was refreshing and unexpected.

TWO DUMB DOGS: THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF FERDO AND FLOOF by Edith Weiss, presented by Lampman High School - A little over 7 months ago I adopted my very first dog. He has changed my life in more ways than I could possibly write about here, so you can imagine how thrilled I was to see there was going to be a play about dogs. The script beautifully captures what I believe it would be like to be a dog. One of my favorite newspaper comics (Mutts by Patrick McDonnell) put it best when a dog is asked for the time and he replies "NOW!" Indeed, dogs live only the present; an idea that was put to good use in Ms. Weiss' script. The group had a lot of material to cram into 60 minutes, but they somehow managed to do it. What stood out for me were the costumes. They were truly stunning, inventive and well-crafted. If ever there was a Project Runway for costume design, this would have been the winner, hands down.

After a quick bite to eat and some more adjudications, the festivities continued with three more productions...

TRACKS by Peter Tarsi, presented by Carrot River Junior Senior High School - I came across this script not long ago and it struck me as one of the most beautiful ensemble pieces I had ever read. But plays are not meant to be read, they are meant to be produced, and the students at Carrot River brought this wonderful play to life in such an astounding manner that I was struck all over again by its powerful message. The ensemble of actors worked so beautifully together that I could have sworn I was watching professionals. The visual concept, from the set design to the sound and lighting, was utter perfection. I truly believed these characters were inhabiting their space, which is something that should be always treasured in the theater. Kudos to the directors and performers alike.

INTERVIEW by Jean-Claude Van Itallie, presented by Warman High School - I have had a copy of this play on my shelf for years and have never been quite able to make heads or tails of it. Yet every time I see the play (and I think this is the third or forth time I have seen it) I am always entertained, even if I am never quite sure why. The staging of this production was jam packed with interesting levels, action and choreography. I am looking forward to attending the adjudication of this play in particular because I would love to hear how the students approached the material.

AND THEN THERE WAS ONE by Michael Druce, presented by Charlebois Community School - This school made their first appearance at the provincial festival two years ago. Last year they came back stronger than the first and this year even stronger still. This is certainly a group to watch because they have scads of enthusiasm that the audience found truly infectious. All of the actors were committed to their roles and had a glimmer in their eyes that made it obvious how much fun they were having up there on the stage. In particular, there was an uproarious chase sequence that had everyone in stitches. They seemed to really "get" farce by always keeping the audience in on the joke. Bravo!

It's hard to believe, but there are only two more plays before this festival comes to a close. Time flies when you're having fun, I guess. With that, I will meet you back here tomorrow with more commentary from the 2011 SDA provincial festival!

SDA Festival: Day 1

At long last, the 2011 Saskatchewan Drama Association provincial festival is upon us. When I was a teenager it felt like an eternity before the festival would roll around, but now it feels like I was just here for last year's festival. I started out the day at a delicious luncheon with a few of the adult directors and SDA staff. I have to say that the SDA staff and volunteers are some of the most awesome people I know. Their dedication to providing arts education is awe inspiring. Lunch was followed by a workshop I facilitated about how to write a collective play in five days. The teachers and volunteers in that workshop were fantastic, making me believe more than ever that students in Saskatchewan are extremely lucky. Especially considering the lack of interest in theater arts I have seen elsewhere.

Then came my favorite part of the festival...the performances themselves! I remember sitting in the audience when I was 15 years old, my eyes agape at all of the high quality productions. I learned so much from all the shows that advanced to the provincial level and continue to think about them whenever I am writing a play. I thought perhaps it was my untrained eye that made them seem so magnificent, but I am happy to report that it not the case. So far they are every bit as creative as ever.

There are 10 shows in the festival this year and tonight got off to a terrific start...

TWITCH by Stephen Gregg, presented by Campbell Collegiate - After what seems like self imposed exile from writing high school plays, Stephen Gregg of This is a Test fame has returned with a wonderfully funny and rather bizarre new comedy. What could easily have been a script for The Twilight Zone, a suburban couple is pitted against their two extremely deranged neighbors. What I enjoyed most was the breezy pace of the production. Rather than race through the material, as happens quite often at the high school level, the actors found a unique rhythm that suited the material perfectly. All four players were terrific and the titular "twitch" was hysterical. Also, there was a really cool puppet involved and I am rather partial to puppets.

TO BURN A WITCH by James L. Bray, presented by Vanier Collegiate - Much like This is a Test, this is another play that turns up regularly at festivals. And for good reason. It's a phenomenal piece of writing that tells a tale similar to The Crucible, but in a bite sized portion. The actors appeared very confident with their interpretation of the material, which helped tremendously in drawing in the audience. The visual impact of the set was huge, adding to the atmosphere without swallowing the action. A very solid production from top to bottom.

ROMEO AND JULIE by Bill Comeau, presented by James Hamblin School - Parodies of Shakespeare's plays seem to be sprouting up like dandelions and now I know why. It was a terrific choice of material for this particular group. So I am told, the entire cast was comprised of sixth to ninth graders. In a festival that is generally made up of senior high students, this junior high group was far from in over their head. They had gobs of energy that spilled over into the audience. The play also had an 80's theme, which is always a good thing.

OMNIPOTENCE AND THE WHEELBARROW MAN by Alan Haehnel, presented by Swift Current Comprehensive School - I am partial to comedies about the theatrical experience, so I thoroughly enjoyed this tale of a narrator on a power trip. In particular, there was a young couple in love that was played to absolute perfection. They had sensational timing and pitch-perfect reactions. I also enjoyed the group's clever use of the entire playing space, from every corner of the stage to out front in the audience. I would have loved it even more had the omniscient narrator appeared in even more locations; perhaps from under the stage or way up in the balcony.

Obviously the first evening was a huge success, so I look forward to more great plays tomorrow!

To Catch a Play

I have often referred to my plays as unicorns. Rumor has it they exist, yet catching a performance is about as rare as seeing a mystical beast with a horn coming out of its forehead. The year 2010 was a great year for my plays with more productions than any other year. I am so grateful that there are teachers, students and publishers out there who find my plays appealing enough to spend hours working on them. The royalties trickle in, as do emails from students around the globe thanking me for putting words in their mouths. I have many folders of photos from these productions and videos of new plays in their formative stages. Yet of all these productions, I was only in the audience for one of them. So while I'm thrilled to have a loyal and appreciative audience, it gives my heart a slight pang to have missed out on the sheer exhilaration that comes with sitting amongst a group of strangers and hearing my words come alive. So you can imagine my thrill when I made my way through the cold and rain to Bayview Glen Prep School this evening and caught myself a unicorn!

"Apostrophe's" is one of my most popular plays, thanks partly to its vignette structure, gender flexible cast and minimal set requirements. I owe most of its success, however, to the incredible promotion it has received from its publisher, Theatrefolk. They have helped put my name on the high school theater map and I will forever be thankful for their support. I was so happy when, just the other day, I received a notice from Theatrefolk that Bayview Glen Prep School would be performing the play. I quickly Googled their location and am not ashamed to admit that I skipped joyously around my apartment when it turned out the school was only one bus ride away.

Were I to win the lottery, I would not plan extravagant trips to exotic locations, but rather theatrical vacations to any and every school producing one of my plays. On several occasions I have driven hours to see one of my plays and I have even hopped on an airplane. While I am excited to see how my words are interpreted (each play is entirely different every time), I am mostly inspired by the amount of camaraderie that fills each performance space. Over the years thousands of students have come together because of things I have written and there is nothing quite so overwhelming as being in the presence of all that support. Parents gather for cookies in the lobby, siblings scatter with programs in hand and the actors huddle together for last minute line readings. I have always said that in high school theater the process is far more important than the product, so it's the cookies, scatters and huddles that give what I do so much meaning. But when the production is also good... well, there's nothing quite as exciting!

The entire cast and crew of Bayview Glen's "Apostrophe's" blew me away. There was so much talent and enthusiasm up on that stage that it was mind boggling. And this was no high school performance either; it was fifth and sixth graders performing at a level far beyond their years. The amount of concentration that was required of them by their director showed that he has great trust in their abilities. And for good reason! There were so many great moments that it's nearly impossible to pick out any favorites, but some were so terrific that they deserve special mention.

Early in the play a group of students fall asleep in their desks and collapse to the floor. Every time I've seen the show the actors have fallen to the floor and then exited the stage when the scene was over and the lights had blacked out. For the first time (at least that I have seen) the director had the good sense to never go a blackout and, thus, keep the play moving at a brisk pace. This meant, however, that these actors were stuck on stage. On the floor. Asleep. For forty minutes. They are eventually revived toward the end, but it must have been a long wait there on the stage without being able to move. Yet they did it beautifully. And I am not being sarcastic in the least. If anyone says it's difficult to speak on stage, I tell them to go up there and say nothing. They learn pretty quickly that concentrating when there is "nothing to do" is much harder than it looks. I was so impressed that the director asked this of his cast and even more so that they were up to the challenge. This was one hell of an acting exercise and they passed with flying colors.

One of the characters is an English teacher who is exasperated by his students and their lack of respect for punctuation. I based the character on my eleventh grade English teacher, Mr. Sully, who would occasionally get into a lather whenever a semi-colon was used out of turn. I thought this was hilarious at the time, so it was just a matter of time before he ended up in one of my plays. I had some of the funniest (and craziest) high school teachers you can imagine and have often mined them for comedy. But this play came before I started disguising their identities, so to Mr. Sully: It's all out of love. Anyways, the young man playing Mr. Sully was so funny that I had to stop myself from bursting into a distracting guffaw several times. I was truly disappointed when his scene was over because he had the audience in the palm of his hand. Later in the play (and this shows you how often I have looked at it), I was pleased to find out that Mr. Sully returns and is integral to the play's resolution. I can't believe I forgot how the play ended, but it was written many moons ago and I have a difficult enough time keeping track of the one I'm working on right now. At this rate I am concerned that I will one day write an entire play and not realize that I had written it already.

One of my personal favorite scenes I have ever written is an exchange between a troubled young teenager and a sock puppet. Usually the scene is played to the hilt for maximum laughs, but I was pleasantly pleased to have seen it played with such restraint. Both the teenager and the principal playing opposite him found a deeper meaning to the scene than its wacky words suggest. They did it exactly as I had imagined when I put the words to paper and that never happens!

I could go on and on - about the terrific Emcee, the hysterical gym teacher, the adorable German exchange student, the wonderfully bizarre poetry reading, the awesome light and sound effects, the super cool ending montage - and on and on. These students should be so proud of their hard work and, thanks to their teacher, I think that is exactly the case. I received some very generous compliments after it was all said and done, but my conversations afterward were overwhelmingly about what an inspiration Mr. Moore has been to his students. I only had the opportunity to speak with him for a few minutes, but based on the positive comments I heard (from both students and parents) I assume that these kids are mighty lucky to have him.

Let it be said that I would be nowhere without the drama teachers of the world. I have made it my mission to provide plays for teenagers that encourage them to have their voices heard, both on and off the stage. Yet without drama teachers, they would be nothing but words on a page. And plays are not meant to be read; they are meant to be performed. Perhaps some teachers see students come and go for so many years that they forget what an impact they have on their lives. But when I attend a performance of this quality and encounter students with this much enthusiasm, the power of a good teacher becomes crystal clear.

After the play I was mobbed by a group of students who wanted my autograph and I briefly felt like a rock star. I happily obliged, but what I really wanted to tell them is that they are the rock stars. They are the reason I do what I do. As I write this, it occurs to me that my excitement may seem a tad excessive. However, unlike most working people, I rarely get a chance to see the fruits of my labor, so an entire years worth of pride comes bursting out all at once. I sure hope another year doesn't pass before I catch another unicorn, but in the meantime I will keep putting them out there for others to discover.

Thanks again to everyone at Bayview Glen for a great show!

Drama Geeks

I have a brand new play that's been added to my website and is available for production. Please visit Drama Geeks by clicking on the title.

SYNOPSIS: Nine over-dramatic high school students gather on a bare stage. They've been invited by a cheeky narrator who poses a question that has confused actors for generations: “To be or not to be?” Knowing the answer becomes the difference between chic and geek, so the stakes are raised and tempers begin to flare. When a couple of jokers in the tech booth add light and sound effects to the mix, it’s every actor for themselves. Will this ensemble figure things out before it’s time to raise the curtain? Nobody knows, but Shakespeare is on the edge of his seat…

The Waking Moment

Craig and Lindsay "Spread the Love" for The Waking Moment. Reading copies can be purchased at www.theatrefolk.com. Theatrefolk is a great publisher of plays for high school and middle school performers, so definitely check out all the wonderful material they have available!

30 Performances Snubbed by Oscar

Over the years, the Academy Award nominations have been fraught with dozens of egregious errors of judgment and exclusion. Following are 30 sensational performances that were, for one reason or another, completely ignored by the Academy. I'm not saying all of them should have won, but to leave them off the ballot entirely should make any Academy member blush. Now that we are gearing up for Oscar season yet again, I thought it only right to honor a few of my favorites from the past. In random order, enjoy!

(PS: No disrespect to Geraldine Page, but in 1985 there were at least three other actresses more worthy of a nomination, let alone the win. I'm just saying.)

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BEST ACTRESS 1985
Mia Farrow, The Purple Rose of Cairo

She has yet to be nominated for any movie, ever. Not Broadway Danny Rose, not The Great Gatsby, and not even Rosemary's Baby. However, the biggest oversight of them all is being ignored for her pitch perfect performance as a depression era housewife swept away by the movies. Just watch her crestfallen face as she realizes the love of her life is nothing more than a flicker on the silver screen and try not to cry. Impossible.

Who Won: Geraldine Page, The Trip to Bountiful

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS 1977
Lily Tomlin, The Late Show

Tomlin created a wonderfully daffy character in this kooky mystery/comedy from director Robert Benton. Her off-kilter performance manages to keep up with the incomparable Art Carney, which is not an easy feat by any stretch of the imagination.

Who Won: Vanessa Redgrave, Julia

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BEST ACTOR 1960
Anthony Perkins, Psycho

The quintessential "mama's boy," Norman Bates is equal parts sympathetic and creepy. That we are able to switch focus from Janet Leigh as our main character and care so deeply about a man we really know very little about is a remarkable achievement. Growing more paranoid and twitchy as the film progresses, Perkins is astonishing to watch as his plan unravels before our very eyes.

Who Won: Burt Lancaster, Elmer Gantry

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BEST ACTOR 1959
James Stewart, Vertigo

Of Stewart's five nominations (and one win for The Philadelphia Story), it's impossible to understand how he was not acknowledged for his work in what is possibly the greatest film in the Alfred Hitchcock canon. Perhaps it was too startling for viewers to accept George Bailey from It's a Wonderful Life as a man obsessed with the ghost of a lost love. Whatever the reason, it's a rich performance that is every bit as iconic as his roles in Harvey or Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.

Who Won: David Niven, Separate Tables

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS 2003
Patricia Clarkson, The Station Agent

While she was nominated this year for Pieces of April, it's her subtle performance here that I believe should have been recognized. As a lonely drifter among other small town odd balls, Clarkson takes what could have been a dialogue driven role and infuses it with heart and humor.

Who Won: Renee Zellweger, Cold Mountain

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR 2007
John Travolta, Hairspray

For the most exuberant performance in recent memory, look no further than Travolta's transformation from movie icon to large-and-in-charge 60's housewife Edna Turnblad. He shakes his ample moneymaker and sings like in the movie that made him a superstar; all the while, he creates a sweet and believable portrait of a woman who finally finds herself liberated.

Who Won: Javier Bardem, No Country for Old Men

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BEST ACTOR 1993
Robin Williams, Mrs. Doubtfire

Dustin Hoffman did it in Tootsie, as did John Travolta in Hairspray; however, no man has ever played a woman so convincingly as Robin Williams in his portrayal of British housekeeper Mrs. Doubtfire. In a performance that could have gone over the top, he instead plays for realism and heart, completely disappearing into the role. He is equally warm and believable in his scenes as Daniel Hillard, caught between his juvenile behavior and deep devotion for his children.

Who Won: Tom Hanks, Philadelphia

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR 2003
Albert Finney, Big Fish

Finney is fantastic in any role he chooses, and his wide variety of credits proves his talent in character roles. Finney's character is confined to his deathbed for the majority of this film, but his gift for storytelling leads to a reconciliation between father and son before his death and the result is nothing short of magical.

Who Won: Tim Robbins, Mystic River

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BEST ACTRESS 1996
Debbie Reynolds, Mother

I have always enjoyed Debbie Reynolds in the musical roles of her youth, but let's be honest here and admit that her acting was often wooden in those films. Well, toss out any preconceived notion you might have about her lack of ability and enjoy the many delights of her performance in Mother. She's the mother of all mothers and manages to run circles around Albert Brooks, turning her passive aggression into comedy gold.

Who Won: Frances McDormand, Fargo

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BEST ACTOR 1990
James Caan, Misery

Misery is clearly Kathy Bates' movie, but she could not have done what is basically a two-hander without the support of her co-star. Caan takes all kinds of abuse from the the maniacal Annie Wilkes, but he is so intelligent that we believe as we watch him hatch a plan to escape that he has a chance for survival. And that we want him to exact his revenge makes it all the more satisfying when he finally succeeds.

Who Won: Jeremy Irons, Reversal of Fortune

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BEST ACTOR 1941
Joel McCrae, Sullivan's Travels

Joel McCrae should have been a superstar, but despite starring in over 90 movies, he never managed to rise above the minor material he was given by the studios. With barely a classic film to his name, he did manage to star in two Preston Sturges laffers, The Palm Beach Story and Sullivan's Travels. He is incredibly funny in Palm Beach, but in Travels he melds farce with pathos so beautifully that we are never quite sure whether to laugh or cry. At times there is no choice but to do both, which is the mark of a great actor.

Who Won: James Stewart, The Philadelphia Story

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BEST ACTOR 2009
Hugh Dancy, Adam

It's easy to laud actors for playing characters who are developmentally challenged, such as Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man, Claire Danes in Temple Grandin, or Robert DeNiro in Awakenings. Great performances all, but there are also many examples of turning such characters into caricatures. I'm talking to you, Cuba Gooding. Hugh Dancy avoids this trap entirely as Adam, turning in a genuinely delightful performance as not a man with Asperger's syndrome, but a man in love.

Who Won: Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart

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BEST ACTOR 1974
Gene Hackman, The Conversation

How Hackman was not Oscar nominated for one of the quintessential performances of his career is just plain nuts. He is alone onscreen for the majority of the film, given very little action and even less dialogue. The fact that he is so compelling speaks to his formidable screen presence. If ever there was a do-over in order, this is it.

Who Won: Art Carney, Harry and Tonto

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BEST ACTOR 2000
Michael Douglas, Wonder Boys

Stuck in a deep rut, writer/professor Grady Tripp is perhaps the most complex character to hit the screen in over a decade. Tossing his vanity aside, Michael Douglas bravely gives us a craggy, depressed man in the middle of a mid-life crisis that has gone on for years. That he is also funny in the role is even more amazing.

Who Won: Russell Crowe, Gladiator

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BEST ACTRESS 1995
Annette Bening, The American President

This delightful Capra-esque comedy boasts the luminous Annette Bening in her finest role to date. Assigned to a role that would have gone to the likes of Carole Lombard, Claudette Colbert or Joan Fontaine in the 40's, Bening captures the magic of Hollywood past while adding a modern sexual twist. It's both a light and feisty performance.

Who Won: Susan Sarandon, Dead Man Walking

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS 2000
Jennifer Coolidge, Best in Show

I dare you not to (forgive me) pee your pants every moment Coolidge opens that genius little mouth of hers. Hands down, I have never laughed so hard at a performance before or since, and that says something given her solid company in the same film. Supporting actress seems to be the only category where comedy is routinely rewarded, so it boggles the mind she was not amongst the nominees. Her expression as she declares "we both love soup" deserves an Oscar unto itself.

Who Won: Marcia Gay Harden, Pollack

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BEST ACTOR 1959
Rock Hudson, Pillow Talk

Giving Charlton Heston an Oscar is perhaps the dumbest decision in their long history (save Reese Witherspoon), especially considering his bloated performance in Ben-Hur was delivered the same year as Hudson's suave and hilarious turn in Pillow Talk. It's easy to dismiss the film as lightweight fluff, but its impact, largely thanks to the sizzle between he and Doris Day, opened the door for the Harry and Sallys, Sam and Dianes, Ross and Rachels, and Jim and Pams of today. If that doesn't deserve an award, I don't know what does.

Who Won: Charlton Heston, Ben-Hur

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BEST ACTRESS 1942
Ingrid Bergman, Casablanca

"Play it, Sam." Enough said. Or at least it should be. Her chemistry with Humphrey Bogart set a precedent for every romance that followed. If you can look at Bergman's face as she sits wistfully at the piano and not get misty eyed, you simply have no heart at all.

Who Won: Greer Garson, Mrs. Miniver

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BEST ACTOR 1944
Fred MacMurray, Double Indemnity

Barbara Stanwyck was nominated for her venomous performance as the ultimate femme fatale, but somehow MacMurray as a harried insurance salesman was not so lucky even though he matches her intensity from frame to frame. MacMurray is not often held in as high regard as Jimmy Stewart, Cary Grant or John Wayne, yet at the time this film was made he was the highest paid actor in Hollywood and the fourth highest paid man in all of America. (For those interested, Stanwyck was the highest paid actress and woman in America.) With such a pedigree, it comes as no surprise that the film was nominated for seven Oscars, yet MacMurray curiously did not make the cut. For shame.

Who Won: Bing Crosby, Going My Way

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BEST ACTOR 1938
Cary Grant, Bringing Up Baby

When someone is as good looking as Cary Grant it becomes easy to dismiss their abilities. Quite often Grant fell victim to this curse, but such is not the case in Bringing Up Baby. He was blessed with many physical perks, one of them being physical comedy, and never was his talent more ably showcased than in his whiz-bang screwball that barely stops to catch its breath. He plays suave and debonair in the same reel as delirious and daffy. And best of all, he makes it look easy. Perhaps too easy for anyone to realize what a marvel he was.

Who Won: Spencer Tracy, Boys Town

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BEST ACTRESS 1985
Cher, Mask

Cher was terrific in Moonstruck and heartbreaking in Silkwood. Sandwiched between these two performances was her role in Mask; a role that completely obliterated any preconceived notion people had about her transition from television comedienne to film actress. She went on to win an Oscar for Moonstruck, which is the perfect example of the right actor/wrong year phenomenon. Russell Crowe for Gladiator instead of The Insider, Renee Zellweger for Cold Mountain instead of Chicago or Marlon Brando for On the Waterfront instead of A Streetcar Named Desire. At least she scored the award a couple of years later, but it should have been for this movie.

Who Won: Geraldine Page, The Trip to Bountiful

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS 1959
Marilyn Monroe, Some Like it Hot

Monroe had the "dumb blonde" down pat, which sadly meant the world viewed her as such. What a pity, given her roster of truly incredible movies and indelible screen persona. She may have been a pain in the neck to work with, but the fuss was always worth the extra effort. Cast alongside Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis, she shook what the good Lord gave her and added just the right amount of sass to come up with the joyously original "Sugar Kane." She did it so well, most likely the Academy didn't even know she was acting.

Who Won: Shelley Winters, The Diary of Anne Frank

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS 1974
Teri Garr, Young Frankenstein

Wide-eyed and hysterically naive as Inga, the buxom lab assistant to Gene Wilder's Dr. Frankenstein, Garr's performance is inspired in all its black and white glory. What's funniest is how she seems to have absolutely no idea how sexy she is, which is terrific given the amount of screen time dedicated to her ample assets. She's so good that you almost forget about her beauty as she delivers one punchline after another. Almost.

Who Won: Ingrid Bergman, Murder on the Orient Express

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS 1998
Joan Allen, Pleasantville

Whether in black and white or technicolor, Joan Allen is always a wonder to behold. Her sexual awakening in Pleasantville could have been the ending to a thin one-joke comedy, but in this Gary Ross masterpiece, it is merely the beginning of a poignant journey about a woman trying to escape from a 1950's suburban utopia. I love Judi Dench, but her 8 minutes in Shakespeare in Love come nowhere close to the impact of Allen's bittersweet turn.

Who Won: Judi Dench, Shakespeare in Love

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR 1946
Lionel Barrymore, It's a Wonderful Life

Christmas just wouldn't be the same without Mr. Potter in this holiday classic. As a modern day Ebenezer Scrooge (well, it was modern at the time), Barrymore is such a horrifying presence that I was loathe to open a bank account as a teenager. As one misfortune after another piles on poor George Bailey, Barrymore's tyrant takes the cake, sending our hero off a bridge and into the icy river.

Who Won: Harold Russell, The Best Years of Our Lives

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BEST ACTOR 1994
Johnny Depp, Ed Wood

Before Johnny Depp became a mega-star thanks to Walt Disney and a pirate costume, he regularly took on bizarre roles that could have destroyed his career were he not so damned cool. He peaked in 1994 when he took on the role of schlock director Ed Wood. He's so phenomenal that if I didn't know it was Depp, I would believe it was someone else entirely.

Who Won: Tom Hanks, Forrest Gump

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS 1997
Sigourney Weaver, The Ice Storm

Ang Lee's maudlin tale about adultery, alcoholism and social unrest during a sub-zero Connecticut Thanksgiving boasts a number of solid performances from its ensemble cast. Coldest (and best) among them is Sigourney Weaver as Janey, a housewife with numerous lovers scattered around the neighborhood. As she tries to maintain her image as caring parent and kitten-with-a-whip, she grows increasingly intense until she finally shuts down completely. It's one hell of a great performance.

Who Won: Kim Basinger, LA Confidential

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BEST ACTRESS 1985
Julie Hagerty, Lost in America

It's hard to believe Hagerty's first film role was the lead in what is arguably the funniest movie of all time, Airplane!. Blessed be the directors of that classic for discovering such an original, if only so that she could go on to star with Albert Brooks and a Winnebago in this hysterical satire about marriage and greed. I still get the giggles whenever I hear the number "twenty two" because all I picture is Hagerty's frazzled face and she hovers dangerously over the roulette table and gambles away her nest-egg.

Who Won: Geraldine Page, The Trip to Bountiful

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BEST ACTOR 1952
Gene Kelly, Singing in the Rain

The Gene Kelly/Fred Astaire war continues to wage on in my head and heart. Most people have a favorite between the pair, but I have never been able to decide. Kelly's dancing is broad and athletic, while Astaire is more graceful and appears to be lighter than air. That said, Astaire was not much of an actor while Kelly excelled at being arrogant and adorable at the same time. Singing is not my favorite movie of his (that would be Summer Stock), but I do think it contains his finest performance that taught me the best life lesson I could have ever learned. Whenever it rains, I still want to go outside and splash around in the puddles. Who could ask for more?

Who Won: Gary Cooper, High Noon

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BEST ACTRESS 1939
Judy Garland, The Wizard of Oz

The Academy really didn't start taking child actors seriously until the 70's, when Tatum O'Neal, Justin Henry and Quinn Cummings were all nominated. Sure, they gave Garland a crappy miniature Oscar as if to say "aww, how cute," but looking back it's ridiculous that the most instantly recognizable and memorable performance ever did not win a competitive award. I keep saying the Academy Awards have been messed up for the last decade or so, but proof that it might have always been case is in the pudding, when a little girl from Kansas found her way home from the Kingdom of Oz and all she got was the equivalent of a lousy T-shirt.

Who Won: Vivien Leigh, Gone With the Wind

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