Oldest living Best Director

[Big Magilla]

Mickey Rooney is the oldest living Best Actor nominee (I think...), but the earliest Best Actor nominee still alive (and the earliest competitive nominee still alive) is Jackie Cooper.

I knew I forgot someone.

Jackie Cooper is 87 and Mickey Rooney is 89. Kirk Douglas, 93 last November, is the oldest living Best Actor nominee, beating winner Ernest Borgnine by two months.

[tootpadu]

On a vaguely related note, can anyone come up with an earlier Oscar category in which all of the nominees are still alive? I suspect it's best supporting actress of 1969 - Catherine Burns, Dyan Cannon, Goldie Hawn, Sylvia Miles and Susannah York are all still with us.

1969 is indeed the year with the earliest complete acting category still alive.

The earliest year with all twenty acting nominees still alive is 1983.

And the earliest year with all the acting winners still alive is 1961 (Loren, Schell, Moreno, Chakiris).

The oldest living honorary recipient is art director Robert Boyle, who's a century old.



Edited By tootpadu on 1268603736

[dws1982]

Mickey Rooney is the oldest living Best Actor nominee (I think...), but the earliest Best Actor nominee still alive (and the earliest competitive nominee still alive) is Jackie Cooper.

[Big Magilla]

Unless I'm forgetting someone, Luise Rainer (1936) is the long living Best Actress nominee as well as winner. Mickey Rooney (1939) is the longest living Best Actor nominee, Ann Blyth (1945) the longest living Best Supporting Actress nominee and Kevin McCarthy (1951) the longest living Best Supporting Actor nominee.

Shirley Temple (Special Award, 1934) is the longest living acting winner of all.



Edited By Big Magilla on 1268498558

[rudeboy]

Yes, Attenborough looks to be the one - thanks!

On a vaguely related note, can anyone come up with an earlier Oscar category in which all of the nominees are still alive? I suspect it's best supporting actress of 1969 - Catherine Burns, Dyan Cannon, Goldie Hawn, Sylvia Miles and Susannah York are all still with us.

[dws1982]

Richard Attenborough is still alive, almost seven years older than Eastwood.

Nichols is the earliest winner who is still alive. Oldest living nominee is (unless I overlooked someone) Michael Cacoyannis, and Sidney Lumet is the earliest nominee still alive, first nominated back in 1957.

[rudeboy]

Whoah... you might be right, he's got a year or so on Nichols. I guess I don't think of Clint as ageing in the same way the rest of us do. Thanks.

[Sonic Youth]

Is it not Clint Eastwood?

I think Blake Edwards is the oldest living honorary recipient.

[rudeboy]

I believe (please correct me if I'm wrong!) that the elder statesmen of the four acting categories are Ernest Borgnine, Luise Rainer, George Kennedy and Celeste Holm. Can anyone tell me who is the oldest living winner of the best director Oscar? I'm guessing Mike Nichols, but he was rather young when he won for The Graduate, so I may be overlooking someone.