50 Oscar nights Iconic stars & filmmakers on their career-defining wins

This glitzy debut from Turner Classic Movies host Karger compiles actors', directors', and musicians' recollections of what it was like to win an Academy Award. Many recount feeling shocked and humbled, as when Jennifer Hudson recalls hardly believing she had been awarded the trophy for best supporting actress for her role in Dreamgirls: "I looked up and everybody is looking at me, and I'm like, Oh, they called me for real? Oh, wow." Offstage drama spices up some of the accounts. Marlee Matlin, for instance, remembers how after winning best actress for her part in Children of a Lesser God, William Hurt, her partner at the time, who had been nominated for his role in the film but didn't win, treated her with scorn, asking her "What makes you think you deserve it?" Elsewhere, Clint Eastwood, Barry Jenkins, Rita Moreno, and Octavia Spencer reflect on their speeches, the after-parties, and where they keep their Oscars (Louis Gossett Jr., best supporting actor winner for An Officer and a Gentleman, is keeping his in storage until he can "be free of it"). Hearing the winners' memories in their own words is a delight, and the bountiful photos of the stars are an added treat. It's a glamorous coffee-table book for movie buffs. Photos. (Jan.)

Turner Classic Movies host Karger compiles fascinating interviews with 50 Oscar winners, who discuss their films, nominations, fashion choices, winners' speeches, and the after-parties that followed. Speaking with actors, directors, screenwriters, songwriters, costume and production designers, and sound mixers, Karger finds that most awardees cherish the Oscars, didn't expect to win, and stress the importance of collaboration in film. Several non-white winners--John Legend (Selma), Halle Berry (Monster's Ball), Rita Moreno (West Side Story), Louis Gossett Jr. (An Officer and a Gentleman)--consider the award a particularly meaningful recognition. Others, such as Emma Thompson (Howards End and Sense and Sensibility), believe it signified the long-overdue appreciation of women in film. And a few felt that the Oscar highlighted such social issues as climate change (Melissa Etheridge, An Inconvenient Truth), the battle against genocide (Steven Spielberg, Schindler's List), and LGBTQIA+ rights (Rob Epstein, The Times of Harvey Milk). VERDICT In only four pages of text for each award winner, the book captures the strong feelings of camaraderie among the tight-knit film community, the tension-filled waiting period, the elation of victory, and the after-party giddiness or loneliness that the interviewees experienced. Highly recommended.--Dr. Dave Szatmary