1st Supporting Actor Award

For the 9th Annual Academy Awards two new categories were included for acting. This was the first year awards were given out for Best Supporting Actor and Actress, and WALTER BRENNAN, rightfully won the first.

Adpated from the Edna Furber book of the same name, Come and Get It, in 1884 lumberman Barney Glasgow leaves his true love, saloon singer Lotta Morgan, to marry Emma Louise, his boss’s daughter. His buddy Swan Bostrom played by Brenna marries Lotta instead. Barney becomes a lumber magnate by stripping the Wisconsin forests, without re-planting. After 23 years, Barney finally visits Swan. Lotta has died, but Barney is smitten by their daughter Lotta Bostrom, who looks almost like her mother. His lavish attentions to Lotta create gossip and a rivalry between Barney and his son Richard.

Walter Brennan (July 25, 1894 – September 21, 1974) was a three-time Academy Award winning American actor. He is remembered as one of the premier character actors in motion picture history. Throughout his career, Brennan was frequently called upon to play characters considerably older than he was in real life. A 1932 accident that cost him many teeth, his rapidly thinning hair, thin build, and raspy voice all made him seem older than he really was. He used these physical features to great effect in many of his roles.

Film historians and critics have long regarded Brennan as one of the finest character actors in motion picture history. While the roles he was adept at playing were extremely diverse, he is probably best remembered for his portrayals in movie Westerns, such as trail hand Nadine Groot in Red River. He was the first actor to win three Academy Awards. He remains the only person to have won three Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actor