Oscars

The Academy Awards are presented each year by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The Academy is comprised of entertainment industry professionals and filmmakers, who vote on the which of the previous year's films, filmmakers and actors should receive special recognition. Though the awards handed out are technically called the "Academy Award of Merit," they are better known by the nickname "Oscar".http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/about/history.html

The first Oscar event was held on May 16, 1929 at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. 270 people who were involved in the entertainment industry gathered for dinner while awards and speeches were enjoyed. The following year, news of the event had spread and became much more serious. Academy members decided to maintain the secrecy of the winning list and only release the names of the winners to newspapers the evening before so that the news could be promoted to the public. As the popularity of the event and media in general increased, syndicated periodicles and importantly radio began to take note of the event.http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/about/history.html

Prior to 1947 The Oscars were held at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, The Ambassador Hotel or the Biltmore in L.A.. In 1947, attendance to the event had grown well beyond what hotel banquet rooms could accommodate and the Oscars moved to Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood which is now known as the Kodak Theater.http://www.manntheatres.com/chinese/

According to New York Magazine, 43.5 million people watched the televised broadcast in 2009.http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2005/02/28/050228ta_talk_radosh Millions more watched the Oscars online. In 2010 some sources, including the BBC speculate that true viewership of the Oscars will reach One Billion people in 2010. That speculation however is yet to be proven.http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2005/02/28/050228ta_talk_radosh