Best Supporting Actor 1949

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Best Supporting Actor 1949

John Ireland - All the King's Men
1
5%
Dean Jagger - Twelve O'Clock High
4
20%
Arthur Kennedy - Champion
2
10%
Ralph Richardson - The Heiress
12
60%
James Whitmore - Battleground
1
5%
 
Total votes: 20

The Original BJ
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by The Original BJ »

I can't say I find this a terribly exciting lineup.

Watching Battleground, it's tough to figure out why James Whitmore would have been cited over anyone else in the cast, but for the fact that his character is the sergeant, and thus stands out more by virtue of being in charge. But in performance terms, not much of a standout.

John Ireland's nomination represents an early case of Rooney Mara syndrome, wherein the actor playing the film's protagonist is demoted to support by virtue of being the junior performer and having the less standout role. But here I thought the difference in performance quality was far more extreme -- Broderick Crawford completely dominates the screen in All the King's Men, whereas Ireland for me is mostly a black hole.

Arthur Kennedy was a good actor who may have never gotten the great standout role he might have needed to become an Oscar winner. He's a solid sparring partner for Kirk Douglas, and provides Champion with a lot of its emotional center, but just doesn't pop out enough to get my vote.

I fall on the side of those who find Dean Jagger's win a bit puzzling. Not that he's bad in any way -- he's a thoughtful, human presence throughout the movie, and has a fairly decent size role. But, though I don't think every performance needs a stereotypical "Oscar clip" to be successful, I admit that it's tough for me to vote for an actor who I don't think has any kind of standout moment in his film. And that's where I land with Jagger -- he's solid, but lacking any scene that tips the performance into truly memorable.

Plus, there's the option of Ralph Richardson, who I think is splendid in The Heiress. He manages to be both a cruel, domineering father, as well as one whose actions are grounded in a genuinely human need to protect his daughter, and Richardson balances these seemingly contradictory sides of his character perfectly. I think he's the clear choice in this field, and his impressive work in The Fallen Idol that same year only gives him bonus points.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Reza »

Damien wrote:Thanks, Tee. I now look forward to seeing the film again.
Actually now even I look forward to watching this again.

Forget Jagger, I never understood the acclaim for Peck's performance either. It was too much hand-to- the-forehead-and-look-anguished kind of a performance. Peck was a great star with a wonderful voice but he wasn't always successful in some of the dramatic films he made. He always looked fake when he had to shout out dialogue where his character had to appear angry or forceful.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Damien »

Mister Tee wrote:
Damien wrote:
Mister Tee wrote:
Whatever the reason, it made voters turn to Dean Jagger instead, and I’ll take the minority position here and say I think they made the right choice. I’ve had the precise opposite reaction from Damien: every time I’ve seen Twelve O’Clock High( starting when I was in high school; as recently as the past decade): I’ve found Jagger a clear standout, an easy pick for this award. (I also, by the way, think the movie is a VERY intelligent, probing film about the demands of war and leadership, in another league from Battleground). On career points, obviously it’d be Richardson in a landslide (Jagger never had another performance close to it). But head to head this one time, I go with the homegrown guy.
Tee, I'm sincerely interested. I agree with you that Twelve O'Clock High is an intelligent, adult war film (even more so than the previous year's not thematically dis-similar Command Decision). But what is it about Jagger's performance that impressed you? I don't remember any high points about his work, I just recall him sort of standing around.
Start with what I like about the film: It takes the view that, if you accept the idea that certain wars must be prosecuted (the fight against the Nazis being recent centuries’ best case for that position), you must be prepared to act in ways counter to your normal view of human behavior. It’s incumbent upon Peck’s Gen. Savage to create a pride of mission/striving for greater success among the men he commands, even though he knows that, the more he inculcates this view in his men, the more likely it is some will meet an early death. Peck can’t let this fact be spoken aloud -- it would undermine all the morale he builds up in the course of the film. But awareness of what he’s doing – the great cost – eats away at him, and at the film’s climax he’s an emotional basket case.

Dean Jagger’s role in all this? He’s the only one who sees it all. By rank, he’s with the men, but he’s not OF the men – he cheers them on, but by and large doesn’t participate in the missions (though my vague memory is of him going on one run). He’s equally part of Peck’s staff – Peck has his ear – but he’s not an intimate. This neither-one-nor-the-other position makes him the only one who can truly appreciate what each side is going through. It’s because of Jagger we see the inner agony Peck is undergoing. And Jagger achieves this almost entirely through body language. He never has a scene where he articulates, to Peck or the men, how much he understands. But we can see it, more and more as the film goes on, in how he reacts to both sides: we can see he understands the cruelty of what Peck is doing, also the necessity of it, and finally what it’s irrevocably taking away from Peck. Conveying all this is no small feat, and what I’ve always loved about this performance.
Thanks, Tee. I now look forward to seeing the film again.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Mister Tee »

Damien wrote:
Mister Tee wrote:
Whatever the reason, it made voters turn to Dean Jagger instead, and I’ll take the minority position here and say I think they made the right choice. I’ve had the precise opposite reaction from Damien: every time I’ve seen Twelve O’Clock High( starting when I was in high school; as recently as the past decade): I’ve found Jagger a clear standout, an easy pick for this award. (I also, by the way, think the movie is a VERY intelligent, probing film about the demands of war and leadership, in another league from Battleground). On career points, obviously it’d be Richardson in a landslide (Jagger never had another performance close to it). But head to head this one time, I go with the homegrown guy.
Tee, I'm sincerely interested. I agree with you that Twelve O'Clock High is an intelligent, adult war film (even more so than the previous year's not thematically dis-similar Command Decision). But what is it about Jagger's performance that impressed you? I don't remember any high points about his work, I just recall him sort of standing around.
Start with what I like about the film: It takes the view that, if you accept the idea that certain wars must be prosecuted (the fight against the Nazis being recent centuries’ best case for that position), you must be prepared to act in ways counter to your normal view of human behavior. It’s incumbent upon Peck’s Gen. Savage to create a pride of mission/striving for greater success among the men he commands, even though he knows that, the more he inculcates this view in his men, the more likely it is some will meet an early death. Peck can’t let this fact be spoken aloud -- it would undermine all the morale he builds up in the course of the film. But awareness of what he’s doing – the great cost – eats away at him, and at the film’s climax he’s an emotional basket case.

Dean Jagger’s role in all this? He’s the only one who sees it all. By rank, he’s with the men, but he’s not OF the men – he cheers them on, but by and large doesn’t participate in the missions (though my vague memory is of him going on one run). He’s equally part of Peck’s staff – Peck has his ear – but he’s not an intimate. This neither-one-nor-the-other position makes him the only one who can truly appreciate what each side is going through. It’s because of Jagger we see the inner agony Peck is undergoing. And Jagger achieves this almost entirely through body language. He never has a scene where he articulates, to Peck or the men, how much he understands. But we can see it, more and more as the film goes on, in how he reacts to both sides: we can see he understands the cruelty of what Peck is doing, also the necessity of it, and finally what it’s irrevocably taking away from Peck. Conveying all this is no small feat, and what I’ve always loved about this performance.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Damien »

Mister Tee wrote:
Whatever the reason, it made voters turn to Dean Jagger instead, and I’ll take the minority position here and say I think they made the right choice. I’ve had the precise opposite reaction from Damien: every time I’ve seen Twelve O’Clock High( starting when I was in high school; as recently as the past decade): I’ve found Jagger a clear standout, an easy pick for this award. (I also, by the way, think the movie is a VERY intelligent, probing film about the demands of war and leadership, in another league from Battleground). On career points, obviously it’d be Richardson in a landslide (Jagger never had another performance close to it). But head to head this one time, I go with the homegrown guy.
Tee, I'm sincerely interested. I agree with you that Twelve O'Clock High is an intelligent, adult war film (even more so than the previous year's not thematically dis-similar Command Decision). But what is it about Jagger's performance that impressed you? I don't remember any high points about his work, I just recall him sort of standing around.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Mister Tee »

I haven’t been pulling my weight in these threads. I really need to try and catch up here…though I have to admit we’re in a stretch of years I find pretty unispiring. Far too many of the actors involved (and their films) fall into the dependable/honorable/unexciting category for me.

For instance, James Whitmore – always an amiable actor, but his Holy Joe is a dull character in a movie whose wild popularity in 1949 can only be explained by early-onset war nostalgia.

Likewise, John Ireland – a solid enough presence, but in All the Kings’ Men he pales next to the fireworks offered by Crawford and McCambridge.

I’ve always had affection for Arthur Kennedy, and would like to support him in at least one of his five nominations, but that may not be possible. This may actually be his strongest time at bat, but for me he runs clearly behind the other two candidates.

You’d think Ralph Richardson would have been a strong candidate for the victory, given (as others have pointed out) his even finer work in The Fallen Idol the same year. But Italiano’s take strikes me as likely. Hard as it is to imagine now, at the time simply being a Brit was a handicap, and an Academy that had had to be whipped into voting for Olivier – International Star Olivier! – the previous year was not apt to pop for a far less well-known actor so soon. The fact that The Heiress was, apparently, not a box-office success presumable didn’t help, either.

Whatever the reason, it made voters turn to Dean Jagger instead, and I’ll take the minority position here and say I think they made the right choice. I’ve had the precise opposite reaction from Damien: every time I’ve seen Twelve O’Clock High( starting when I was in high school; as recently as the past decade): I’ve found Jagger a clear standout, an easy pick for this award. (I also, by the way, think the movie is a VERY intelligent, probing film about the demands of war and leadership, in another league from Battleground). On career points, obviously it’d be Richardson in a landslide (Jagger never had another performance close to it). But head to head this one time, I go with the homegrown guy.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Damien »

Big Magilla wrote:I always thought Richardson's loss was due to his casting over the beloved Basil Rathbone who played the part in the original 1947-48 Broadway production to great acclaim with Wendy Hiller, Peter Cookson and Patricia Collinge. He was the only cast member nominated for a Tony for his performance. He lost to Henry Fonda in Mister Roberts. Paul Kelly was the third nominee for Command Decision. Marlon Brando wasn't nominated, although Jessica Tandy shared the Best Actress award for A Streetcar Named Desire with Judith Anderson in Medea. Katharine Cornell was the thrid nominee for Antony and Cleopatra. James Whitmore won a Special Tony for Best Newcomer for Command Decision.

Rathbone was the only cast member of The Heiress to return in the brief 1950 revivial with Margaret Phillips (Dame May Whitty's daughter), John Dall and Edna Best. Had he done the film version he would likely have won the Oscar in a walk.
There's going to be another Broadway revival of The Heiress later this year, starring Jessica Chastain.

Reza, I had completely forgotten about Ralph Richardson's nomination for Greystoke.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Big Magilla »

I don't know, but it may be he was a victim of his own popularity. He was so ingrained in filmgoers' minds as Sherlock Holmes, maybe William Wyler or the suits at Paramount thought the public wouldn't beleive him as the stern father.

Although he voiced Mr. Toad in Disney's The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad pposite Bing Crosby in 1949 and had numerous guest roles on TV in the early 1950s, he did not apper on screen from the last Sherlock Holmes film in 1946 until 1954's Casanova's Big Night.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Reza »

Big Magilla wrote:I always thought Richardson's loss was due to his casting over the beloved Basil Rathbone who played the part in the original 1947-48 Broadway production to great acclaim with Wendy Hiller, Peter Cookson and Patricia Collinge. He was the only cast member nominated for a Tony for his performance. He lost to Henry Fonda in Mister Roberts. Paul Kelly was the third nominee for Command Decision. Marlon Brando wasn't nominated, although Jessica Tandy shared the Best Actress award for A Streetcar Named Desire with Judith Anderson in Medea. Katharine Cornell was the thrid nominee for Antony and Cleopatra. James Whitmore won a Special Tony for Best Newcomer for Command Decision.

Rathbone was the only cast member of The Heiress to return in the brief 1950 revivial with Margaret Phillips (Dame May Whitty's daughter), John Dall and Edna Best. Had he done the film version he would likely have won the Oscar in a walk.
I'm curious.....why didn't Rathbone get to be in the film, considering he won so much acclaim? And it's not that he wasn't a familiar name in Hollywood unlike Jessica Tandy, who lost her part in Streetcar to Vivien Leigh when that was filmed.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Big Magilla »

I always thought Richardson's loss was due to his casting over the beloved Basil Rathbone who played the part in the original 1947-48 Broadway production to great acclaim with Wendy Hiller, Peter Cookson and Patricia Collinge. He was the only cast member nominated for a Tony for his performance. He lost to Henry Fonda in Mister Roberts. Paul Kelly was the third nominee for Command Decision. Marlon Brando wasn't nominated, although Jessica Tandy shared the Best Actress award for A Streetcar Named Desire with Judith Anderson in Medea. Katharine Cornell was the thrid nominee for Antony and Cleopatra. James Whitmore won a Special Tony for Best Newcomer for Command Decision.

Rathbone was the only cast member of The Heiress to return in the brief 1950 revivial with Margaret Phillips (Dame May Whitty's daughter), John Dall and Edna Best. Had he done the film version he would likely have won the Oscar in a walk.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by ITALIANO »

I saw Twelve O'Clock High many years ago, and I remember that I found Dean Jagger's Oscar win quite puzzling, too. I should probably see the movie again, but I think I'd have the same reaction today.

In general, the acting this time is a bit on the bland side - probably as a reaction to the year before, they picked some young actors who in theory could have had a "future" - and it's true that, while they never became stars, Kennedy, Whitmore and Ireland would become familiar faces in American films. But none of them - including Ireland - is at his best here.

So the only possible winner can be the great Ralph Richardson, who the same year could have been nominated for Best Actor, too, for his subtle, ambiguous performance in Carol Reed's The Fallen Idol, one of the best British movies of the time. He's very good in The Heiress too, of course (and believable as the father of an actress who was younger but not THAT younger) and in retrospect - and with such competition - it's absurd that he didn't win. I guess that after Olivier they didn't want to give their precious trophy to another English thespian so soon.
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Reza »

Damien wrote:Richardson was a great actor, and, even though I'm no fan of the dreary The Heiress, he deserved to win on his only nomination.
Actually he was nominated a second time years later in 1984, although posthumously, for Greystoke.

I totally agree with you about Jagger. Apparently it was the first time he appeared without his wig and bared his scalp which may have had something to do with it. I wish I were an actor too. I would be an Oscar winner, too, then.

My picks for 1949:

Ralph Richardson, The Heiress
Paul Douglas, A Letter to Three Wives
Arthur Kennedy, Champion
Richard Todd, The Hasty Heart
John Ireland, All the King's Men

The 6th Spot: Juano Hernandez, Intruder in the Dust
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Damien »

Both times I've seen Twelve O'Clock High I kept straining to figure out what it is about Dean Jagger's performance that got him an Oscar (or even a nomination, for that matter). I still have no idea. He doesn't do much of anything. Never particularly liked Jagger. He was charismatically challenged, and he always sounded to me as if he had a speech impediment, like his upper plate was loose.

James Whitmore was a dependable character actor, although in Battleground he was called upon to do little other then be amiable. Also dependable throughout his career was John Ireland. He gives a good solid performance in All The King's Men, but it's hardly award-worthy.

Arthur Kennedy is quite good in Champion, but the role's not all that interesting. As supporting actors in Champion go, I would rather have had Paul Stewart nominated.

Ralph Richardson, then, is the easy winner. I wish he had slightly toned down the harshness of the character, but he still does manage to convey that he does love his daughter, Richardson was a great actor, and, even though I'm no fan of the dreary The Heiress, he deserved to win on his only nomination.

My Own Top 5:
1. Luther Adler in House Of Strangers
2. Frank Lovejoy in Home Of The Brave
3. Paul Douglas in A Letter To Three Wives
4. Oliver Hardy in The Fighting Kentuckian
5. S. Z. “Cuddles” Sakall in In The Good Old Summertime
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Re: Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by Big Magilla »

Ralph Richardson by a mile, bouyed by his performance in The Fallen Idol also in play this year.

The reamining nominees, with the sole excpetion of John Ireland, are all fine, desrving also-rans, but the fifth slot should have gone to either Juano Hernandez in Intruder in the Dust or Paul Douglas inA Letter to Three Wives.
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Best Supporting Actor 1949

Post by ksrymy »

The only two performances I would dismiss here are James Whitmore's and John Ireland's.

I have always been an Arthur Kennedy fan and but I think Champion is one of his weakest nominations. It is nowhere near his work in Trial which, funny enough, has Juano Hernandez who should have been nominated this year for Intruder in the Dust.

Dean Jagger is great in his role and does much more than needed. He avoids military archetypes to make Harvey Stovall a treat to see on screen.

But then there's Ralph Richardson: one of the all-time greats and he thoroughly defends his title as such with this performance as Olivia de Havilland's protective, all-seeing father. He towers above the competition and never chews up scenery shamelessly and not only is he the best of the group he is the best of this entire year.

1. Ralph Richardson - The Heiress
2. Dean Jagger - Twelve O'Clock High
3. Juano Hernandez - Intruder in the Dust
4. Paul Douglas - A Letter to Three Wives
5. Arthur Kennedy - Champion
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