By the time James Cameron (above) took the stage to accept
his Academy Award for Best Director on the night of March 23,
1998, the Oscar dominance of his blockbuster film Titanic was
all but assured.
Titanic tied the record for most Oscar nominations with 14—
joining 1950’s _All About Eve—_and by night’s end would tie
with Ben Hur (1959) for most wins by sweeping 11 categories,
including the coveted Best Picture.
Morgan Freeman opened the annual In Memoriam segment at the
2025 Oscars by sharing kind words about his former co-star, Gene Hackman, who died last week.
Freeman addressed the Dolby Theatre audience in Hollywood by
saying, “This week, our community lost a giant — and I lost a dear
friend, Gene Hackman.”
Freeman continued, “I had the pleasure of working alongside Gene
on two films, Unforgiven and Under Suspicion, and like everyone
who ever shared a scene with him, I learned he was a generous performer and a man whose gifts elevated everyone’s work.
He received two Oscars, but more importantly, he won the hearts
of film lovers all over the world.”
1992 
2000
Gone with the Wind won eight Academy Awards: Best Picture,
Actress (Vivien Leigh), Supporting Actress (Hattie McDaniel),
Art Direction (Lyle R. Wheeler), Color Cinematography (Ernest
Haller, Ray Rennahan), Directing (Victor Fleming), Film Editing
(Hal C. Kern, James E. Newcom) and Writing – Screenplay
(Sidney Howard).
Vivien Leigh during the 12th Academy Awards Oscar night.
David O. Selznick in 1940.
On February 29, 1940, Gone with the Wind is honored with eight
Oscars by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences. An epic Southern romance set during the hard times
of the Civil War, the movie swept the prestigious Best Picture,
Director, Screenplay, Cinematography, Art Direction, Film Editing,
and Actress categories.
However, the most momentous award that night undoubtedly
went to Hattie McDaniel for her portrayal of “Mammy,” the
housemaid and former enslaved woman.
McDaniel, who won the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award,
was the first African American actress or actor ever to be honored
with an Oscar.
Born in Wichita, Kansas, in 1895, McDaniel demonstrated her
talents as a singer and actress while growing up in Denver,
Colorado.
She left school while a teenager to become a performer in several traveling minstrel groups and in 1924 became one of the first
African American women to sing on U.S. radio. In 1952 McDaniel
died of breast cancer at the age of 57.
On February 19, 1992, 24-year-old recent film school graduate
John Singleton became the youngest and first Black film
director nominated for an Academy Award for his movie,
Boyz n the Hood.
The poignant coming-of-age drama set in gang-ridden South
Central Los Angeles brought inner-city realities to the screen
in a way not seen in Hollywood before. Its success created
opportunities for a generation of Black filmmakers to tell their
stories.
On April 17, 2019, Singleton suffered a stroke and was placed
under intensive care.
On April 25, it was reported that he was in a coma, and was
was removed from life support and he died on April 28 at the
age of 51 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Dozens of actors
and musicians paid tribute to him.
