42nd Academy Awards — Award ceremony presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences for achievement in filmmaking in 1969
The 42nd Academy Awards was the first Oscar ceremony broadcast via satellite internationally, and recognized Midnight Cowboy as the only X-rated film to win Best Picture.
Key Facts
- Ceremony date
- April 7, 1970
- Venue
- Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles
- Best Picture winner
- Midnight Cowboy (only X-rated film to win)
- First satellite broadcast
- First Oscars aired live internationally via satellite
- They Shoot Horses record
- 9 nominations, zero Best Picture nomination
- Jack Nicholson
- First Oscar nomination, Best Supporting Actor for Easy Rider
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences annually recognizes outstanding achievements in filmmaking. The films eligible for the 42nd ceremony were those released in 1969, a year that included several boundary-pushing productions reflecting the New Hollywood era's challenging of traditional content norms.
On April 7, 1970, the 42nd Academy Awards were held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles with no official host for the second consecutive year. Midnight Cowboy won Best Picture, becoming the first and only X-rated film to do so. The ceremony was also the first Oscars broadcast via satellite to an international audience.
Midnight Cowboy's Best Picture win highlighted changing attitudes toward film content ratings. Its X rating was subsequently revised to R in 1971 after the MPAA updated its criteria. Jack Nicholson, who received his first nomination at this ceremony, went on to become the most-nominated male performer in Oscar history.