The 2nd Academy Awards was the first ceremony with winners kept secret in advance and the first broadcast on radio.
Key Facts
- Date
- April 3, 1930
- Venue
- Cocoanut Grove, Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles
- Attendance
- Over 300
- Eligible film period
- August 1, 1928 – July 31, 1929
- Award categories
- 7 (reduced from 12)
- Best Picture winner
- The Broadway Melody
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Following criticism and logistical issues with the inaugural ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revised its format, reducing award categories from twelve to seven and deciding, for the first time, to keep winners secret until the night of the ceremony, covering films released between August 1928 and July 1929.
On April 3, 1930, the Academy held its second awards banquet at the Cocoanut Grove of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, honoring films from the 1928–1929 eligibility period. The ceremony was broadcast live on radio station KNX, making it the first Academy Awards aired on radio. No official nominees were announced; winners were determined from judges' informal records.
The Broadway Melody won Best Picture without any writing nomination and without winning any additional awards, a notable anomaly. Jeanne Eagels became the first actress posthumously nominated for Best Actress. The secrecy of winners became a lasting tradition, and the radio broadcast expanded the ceremony's public reach beyond the attending membership.