List of the Academy Awards for Best Picture (Differently)

Ceremony	Year	Movie	Producer	Summary	Notes
1st	1927/28	Wings	Paramount Pictures	Jack Powell and David Armstrong are rivals in the same small American town, both vying for the attentions of pretty Sylvia Lewis. Jack fails to realize that "the girl next door", Mary Preston, is desperately in love with him. The two young men both enlist to become combat pilots in the Air Service. When they leave for training camp, Jack mistakenly believes Sylvia prefers him. She actually prefers David and lets him know about her feelings, but is too kindhearted to turn down Jack's affection.
2nd	1928/29	The Patriot	Ernst Lubitsch for Paramount Pictures	In 18th-century Russia, the Czar, Paul, is surrounded by murderous plots and trusts only Count Pahlen. Pahlen wishes to protect his friend, the mad king, but because of the horror of the king's acts, he feels that he must remove him from the throne.
3rd	1929/30	Disraeli	Jack L. Warner for Warner Bros.	In 1874, Disraeli's ambitious foreign policy, aimed at extending the British empire, is voted down by the House of Commons after a speech by his great rival, William Gladstone. Later, Disraeli receives the welcome news that the spendthrift Khedive of Egypt is in dire need of money and is willing to sell the controlling shares in the Suez Canal. The purchase of the canal would secure control of India, but Michael Probert, head of the Bank of England, makes it clear to Disraeli that he is vehemently opposed to any such plan. Disraeli then summons Hugh Myers, a leading Jewish banker.
4th	1930/31	Trader Horn	Irving Thalberg for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer	The film depicts the adventures of real-life trader and adventurer Alfred Aloysius "Trader" Horn while on safari in Africa.
5th	1931/32	The Champ	King Vidor for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer	Andy "Champ" Purcell is the former world heavyweight champion, now down on his luck and living in squalid conditions with his eight-year-old son "Dink" in Tijuana, Mexico. Champ attempts to train and to convince promoters to set up a fight for him, but his efforts are consistently stymied by his alcoholism. Dink is repeatedly disappointed and let down by his father's irresponsible actions and frequent broken promises to quit drinking, but his utter devotion to his father nonetheless never wavers.
6th	1932/33	42nd Street	Darryl F. Zanuck for Warner Bros.	It is 1932, the depth of the Depression, and noted Broadway producers Jones and Barry are putting on Pretty Lady, a musical starring Dorothy Brock. She is involved with wealthy Abner Dillon , the show's "angel" (financial backer), but while she is busy keeping him both hooked and at arm's length, she is secretly seeing her old vaudeville partner, out-of-work Pat Denning.
7th	1934	Flirtation Walk	Jack L. Warner, Hal B. Wallis, and Robert Lord for First National	Richard Palmer Grant Dorcy Jr. a.k.a. "the Canary" and "the singing bird of the tropics," is an enlisted man in the United States Army. Stationed in the Hawaiian Islands, he has a contentious but friendly relationship with his sergeant, Scrapper Thornhill. When General Fitts visits the post with his daughter Kit on their way to Manila, Dick is assigned to drive her to a reception that evening. Falling victim to the moonlit night, Kit and Dick attend a luau instead, and he sings Aloha ‘Oe. They are discovered in each other's arms by Scrapper and Lieutenant Biddle, who is also in love with Kit. Biddle accuses Dick of ruining Kit's reputation and forcing her to accompany him off post.
8th	1935	Captain Blood	Hal B. Wallis, Harry Joe Brown, and Gordon Hollingshead for Warner Bros.	In 17th-century England, Irish doctor Peter Blood is summoned to aid Lord Gildoy, a wounded patron who participated in the Monmouth Rebellion. Arrested while performing his duties as a physician, he is convicted of treason against King James II and sentenced to death by the infamous Judge Jeffreys. By the whim of the king, who sees an opportunity for profit, Blood and the surviving rebels are transported to the West Indies to be sold into slavery.
9th	1936	Anthony Adverse	Henry Blanke for Warner Bros.	In 1773, young Scottish beauty Maria Bonnyfeather is the new bride of the cruel and devious middle-aged Spanish nobleman Marquis Don Luis. Don Luis suffers horribly from gout, so the consummation of their marriage must be postponed until his cure at a famous spa is complete. Meanwhile, Maria’s true love, Denis Moore, the man she loved before being forced to marry Don Luis, follows them and stays near the château where they are living
10th	1937	The Life of Emile Zola	Henry Blanke for Warner Bros.	Set in the mid through late 19th century, the film depicts Zola's early friendship with Post-Impressionist painter Paul Cézanne, and his rise to fame through his prolific writing. It explores his involvement late in the Dreyfus affair.
11th	1938	Jezebel	Hal B. Wallis and Henry Blanke for Warner Bros.	In 1852 New Orleans, spoiled, strong-willed belle Julie Marsden is engaged to banker Preston "Pres" Dillard. In an important meeting, Pres is trying to convince the board to invest in railroads, as Northerners are doing, and supporting Dr. Livingstone's plea for measures to prevent an otherwise inevitable outbreak of yellow fever.
12th	1939	Of Mice and Men	John Steinbeck for Warner Bros.	A Film adaptation of the 1937 Novel	This Resulted in Steinbeck begin the first person to receive a Oscar and a Nobel Prize
13th	1940	The Grapes of Wrath	Darryl F. Zanuck and Nunnally Johnson for 20th Century Fox	The film opens with Tom Joad released from prison and hitchhiking his way back to his parents' family farm in Kansas. Tom finds an itinerant ex-preachernamed Jim Casy sitting under a tree by the side of the road. Casy was the preacher who baptized Tom, but now Casy has "lost the spirit" and his faith.
14th	1941	Citizen Kane	Orson Welles for Orson Welles Production	In a mansion called Xanadu, part of a vast palatial estate in California, the elderly Charles Foster Kane is on his deathbed. Holding a snow globe, he utters a word, "Rosebud", and dies; the globe slips from his hand and smashes on the floor. A newsreel obituary tells the life story of Kane, an enormously wealthy newspaper publisher and industrial magnate. Kane's death becomes sensational news around the world, and the newsreel's producer tasks reporter Jerry Thompson with discovering the meaning of "Rosebud".
15th	1942	Yankee Doodle Dandy	Jack L. Warner, Hal B. Wallis, and William Cagney for Warner Bros.	Cohan comes out of retirement to star as President Roosevelt in the Rodgers and Hart musical I'd Rather Be Right. On the first night, he is summoned to meet the president at the White House, who presents him with a Congressional Gold Medal. Cohan is overcome and chats with Roosevelt, recalling his early days on the stage. The film flashes back to his supposed birth on July 4, whilst his father is performing on the vaudeville stage.
16th	1943	Madam Curie	Sidney Franklin for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer	The Movie follows the life a Marie Curie after she marries Pierre Curie
17th	1944	Going My Way	Leo McCarey for Paramount	Father Charles “Chuck” O’Malley, an incoming priest from East St. Louis, is transferred to St. Dominic's Church in New York City. On his first day, his unconventional style gets him into a series of mishaps; his informal appearance and attitude make a poor impression with the elder pastor, Father Fitzgibbon. The very traditional Fitzgibbon is further put off by O’Malley's recreational habits – particularly his golf-playing – and his friendship with the even more casual Father Timmy O’Dowd.
18th	1945	Mildred Pierce	Jerry Wald for Warner Bros.	Monte Beragon, the second husband of Mildred Pierce, is murdered. The police tell Mildred that her first husband, Bert Pierce, has confessed. Mildred protests that he is too kind to commit murder, and reveals her story to the officer in flashback. Mildred and Bert are unhappily married. Mildred must sell her baked goods to support the family after Bert splits with his business partner, Wally Fay. Bert accuses Mildred of favoring their two daughters over him. Their quarrel intensifies after a phone call from Bert's mistress, Maggie Biederhof, and they separate.
19th	1946	Henry V	Laurence Olivier for United Artists	A Film about Henry V’s reign as King of England
20th	1947	A Gentleman’s agreement	Darryl F. Zanuckfor 20th Century Fox	Philip Schuyler Green is a widowed journalist who has just moved to New York City with his son Tommy and mother. Green meets with magazine publisher John Minify, who asks Green, a Gentile, to write an article on anti-Semitism. He is not very enthusiastic at first, but after initially struggling with how to approach the topic in a fresh way, Green is inspired to adopt a Jewish identity and writes about his first-hand experiences.	This was the first film to win Best Picture, Best Direct, Lead Actor and Lead Actress
21st	1948	The Treasure of the Sierra Madre	Henry Blanke for Warner Bros.	In 1925, in the Mexican oil-town of Tampico, Fred C. Dobbs and Bob Curtin, two unemployed American drifters, survive by bumming for spare change. They are recruited by an American labor contractor, Pat McCormick, as roughnecks to construct oil rigs for $8 a day. When the project is completed, McCormick skips out without paying the men.	This film saw a father and son receive an Oscar, John Huston (Best Director) and his father Walter Huston (Best Supporting actor)
22nd	1949	Battleground	Dore Schary for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer	In mid-December 1924, Pvt. Jim Layton and his buddy Pvt. William J. Hooper are assigned to the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. As a newcomer, Layton receives a chilly welcome from his squad. PFC Holley returns to the company after recuperating from a wound.
23rd	1950	All about Eve	Darryl F. Zanuck for 20th Century Fox	Margo Channing is one of the biggest stars on Broadway. But having just turned forty she is worried about what her advancing age will mean for her career. After a performance of Margo's latest play, Aged in Wood, Margo's close friend Karen Richards, wife of the play's author Lloyd Richards, brings in a besotted fan, Eve Harrington, to meet Margo.
24th	1951	A Streetcar named Desire	Anatole Litvak and Frank McCarthy for 20th Century Fox	Blanche DuBois, a middle-aged high school English teacher, arrives in New Orleans. She takes a streetcar named "Desire" to the French Quarter, where her sister, Stella, and her husband, Stanley Kowalski, live in a dilapidated tenement apartment. Blanche claims to be on leave from her teaching job due to her nerves and wants to stay with Stella and Stanley. Blanche's demure, refined manner is a stark contrast to Stanley's crude, brutish behavior, making them mutually wary and antagonistic. Stella welcomes having her sister as a guest, but Blanche often patronizes and criticizes her.	Became the first film to win Best Picture, Best Director and all the acting categories
25th	1952	Moulin Rouge	John Huston for United Artists	In 1890 Paris crowds pour into the Moulin Rouge nightclub as artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec finishes a bottle of cognac while sketching the club's dancers. The club's regulars arrive: singer Jane Avril teases Henri charmingly, dancers La Goulue and Aicha fight, and owner Maurice Joyant offers Henri free drinks for a month in exchange for painting a promotional poster. At closing time, Henri waits for the crowds to disperse before standing to reveal his four-foot six-inch stature. As he walks to his Montmartre apartment, he recalls the events that led to his disfigurement.
26th	1953	Roman Holiday	William Wyler for Paramount Pictures	Ann, a crown princess from an unnamed European nation, is on a state visit to Rome, becomes frustrated with her tightly scheduled life, and secretly leaves her country's embassy. The delayed effect of a sedative makes her fall asleep on a bench, where Joe Bradley, an expatriate reporter for the "American News Service", finds her, without recognizing who she is. Thinking that she is intoxicated, Joe lets her spend the night in his apartment.
27th	1954	On the Waterfront	Sam Spiegel for Columbia Pictures	Mob-connected union boss Johnny Friendly gloats about his iron-fisted control of the waterfront. The police and the Waterfront Crime Commission know that Friendly is behind a number of murders, but witnesses play "D and D" ("deaf and dumb"), accepting their subservient position, rather than risking the danger and shame of informing.
28th	1955	Marty	Harold Hecht for United Artists	In 1955, Marty Piletti is an Italian American butcher who lives in The Bronx with his mother. Unmarried at 34, the good-natured but socially awkward Marty faces constant badgering from family and friends to settle down, pointing out that all his brothers and sisters are already married with children. Not averse to marriage but disheartened by his lack of prospects, Marty has reluctantly resigned himself to bachelorhood.
29th	1956	The Race which Kills Careers	Sargent Shriver for Shriver Entertainment	Jefferson Derringer as a Speaker of the House whose worked his entire life for the Presidency and Fredrick Jersey as a newly elected Mayor of New York who was originally a actor who starts to gain support.
30th	1957	The Bridge on the River Kwai	Sam Spiegel, producer	In early 1923, American POWs arrive by train at a Japanese prison camp in Burma. The commandant, Colonel Saito, informs them that all prisoners, regardless of rank, are to work on the construction of a railway bridge over the River Kwai that will help connect Bangkok and Rangoon. The senior British officer, Lieutenant Colonel Nicholson, informs Saito that the Geneva Conventions exempt officers from manual labour. Nicholson later forbids any escape attempts because they had been ordered by headquarters to surrender, and escapes could be seen as defiance of orders.
31st	1958	Auntie Mame	Jack L. Warner, producer	Patrick Dennis, orphaned in 1928 when his father unexpectedly dies, is placed in the care of Mame Dennis, his father's sister in Manhattan. Mame is a flamboyant and exuberant woman, who hosts frequent parties with eclectic, bohemian guests.
32nd	1959	Ben-Hur	Sam Zimbalist, producer	In AD 26, Judah Ben-Hur is a wealthy Jewish prince and merchant in Jerusalem, who lives with his mother, Miriam; his sister, Tirzah; and their female servant Amrah. The family's loyal slave, the merchant Simonides who manages Judah's affairs, pays a visit with his daughter, Esther.
33rd	1960	The Alamo	John Wayne, producer	The film depicts the Battle of the Alamo and the events leading up to it. Sam Houston leads the forces fighting for Texas independence and needs time to build an army. The opposing Mexican forces, led by General Santa Anna, numerically are stronger as well as better armed and trained.
34th	1961	The Hustler	Robert Rossen, producer	Small-time pool hustler "Fast Eddie" Felson travels cross-country with his partner Charlie to challenge the legendary player "Minnesota Fats". Arriving at Fats' home pool hall, Eddie declares he will win $10,000 that night. Fats arrives and he and Eddie agree to play straight pool for $200 a game. After initially falling behind, Eddie surges back to being $1,000 ahead and suggests raising the bet to $1,000 a game; Fats agrees.
35th	1962	The Music Man	Darryl F. Zanuck, producer	The film opens in July 1912, with a traveling salesman being chased onto a train just about to depart. As the train gets underway, the salesmen on the train get into a rhythmic conversation about credit that veers off to discussion of the con man 'Professor' Harold Hill.
36th	1963	The Cardinal	Sargent Shriver	A newly ordained Irish Catholic priest, Stephen Fermoyle, returns home to Boston in 1917. He discovers that his parents are upset about daughter Mona having become engaged to marry a Jewish man, Benny Rampell. Mona seeks Stephen's counsel as a priest. Concerned about the young priest's ambition, the archbishop assigns Stephen to an out-of-the-way parish where it is hoped he will learn humility. There he meets the humble pastor, Father Ned Halley, and Fermoyle observes the unpretentious way he lives his life and treats his parishioners. Father Halley is very sick with multiple sclerosis. Fermoyle learns humility from him and his housekeeper, Lalage.
37th	1964	Zorba the Greek	Michalis  Cacoyannis	Basil is a British-Greek writer raised in Britain who bears the hallmarks of an uptight, middle-class Englishman. He is waiting at the Athens port of Piraeus on mainland Greece to catch a boat to Crete when he meets a gruff, yet enthusiastic Greek-Macedonianpeasant and musician named Zorba. Basil explains to Zorba that he is traveling to a rural Cretan village where his father owns some land, with the intention of reopening a lignitemine and perhaps curing his writer's block. Zorba relates his experience with mining and persuades Basil to take him along.
38th	1965	Doctor Zhivago	Carlo Ponti	The film takes place mostly against a backdrop since the World War I years, the Russian Revolution of 1917, and the Russian Civil War. A narrative framing device, set in the late 1940s or early 1950s, involves KGB Lieutenant General Yevgraf Andreyevich Zhivago searching for the daughter of his half brother, Doctor Yuri Andreyevich Zhivago, and Larissa ("Lara"). Yevgraf believes a young woman, Tonya Komarova, may be his niece and tells her the story of her father's life.
39th	1966	Alfie	Lewis Gilbert	A handsome Cockney, self-centered, narcissistic chauffeur in London named Alfred (Alfie) Elkins enjoys the sexual favours of married and single women, while avoiding any commitment. He ends an affair with a married woman, Siddie, just as he gets his submissive single girlfriend, Gilda, pregnant. Alfie thinks nothing of pilfering fuel and money from his employer, and tells Gilda to do the same. Although Alfie refuses to marry Gilda and cheats on her constantly, Gilda decides to have the child, a boy named Malcolm Alfred, and keep him rather than give him up for adoption.