Awards

1988 Oscars 60th Academy Awards

Posted by Joe Hummel IIIPosted 37 years ago April 11, 1988

1988 Oscars 60th Academy Awards

Winners Announced: April 11, 1988
Held at: Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Host: Chevy Chase
Eligibility Year: 1987

Table of Contents

In-Depth Details and Trivia

New Venue: After years at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, the Oscars moved to the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
One-Man Show: Unlike previous years featuring multiple hosts, Chevy Chase held the reins alone, bringing his comedic chops to the stage.
The Last Emperor Reigns: The film The Last Emperor cleaned house, winning nine Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director for Bernardo Bertolucci.
Michael Douglas’ Moment: Michael Douglas took home Best Actor for his role in Wall Street, while Sally Kirkland was a strong contender for Best Actress but ultimately lost to Kathy Bates for Moonstruck.
Unexpected Music Wins: Dirty Dancing surprised many by winning Best Original Song for “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life,” beating out favorites from La Bamba.
Sean Connery’s First: The iconic actor won his first and only Oscar for his role in The Untouchables as Best Supporting Actor.
Historic Animation: This year marked the debut of the Best Animated Short category, a significant milestone for the world of animation.
Foreign Film Winner: Denmark’s Babette’s Feast took home the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, an adaptation of a story by Isak Dinesen.

1988 Oscar Nominees and Winners

Best Picture:
The Last Emperor – Jeremy Thomas, producer (WINNER)
Broadcast News – James L. Brooks, producer
Fatal Attraction – Stanley R. Jaffe and Sherry Lansing, producers
Hope and Glory – John Boorman, producer
Moonstruck – Norman Jewison and Patrick Palmer, producers

Best Director:
Bernardo Bertolucci – The Last Emperor (WINNER)
Adrian Lyne – Fatal Attraction
John Boorman – Hope and Glory
Norman Jewison – Moonstruck
Lasse Hallström – My Life as a Dog

Best Actor:
Michael Douglas – Wall Street as Gordon Gekko (WINNER)
William Hurt – Broadcast News as Tom Grunick
Marcello Mastroianni – Dark Eyes as Romano
Jack Nicholson – Ironweed as Francis Phelan
Robin Williams – Good Morning, Vietnam as Adrian Cronauer

Best Actress:
Cher – Moonstruck as Loretta Castorini (WINNER)
Glenn Close – Fatal Attraction as Alex Forrest
Holly Hunter – Broadcast News as Jane Craig
Sally Kirkland – Anna as Anna
Meryl Streep – Ironweed as Helen Archer

Best Supporting Actor:
Sean Connery – The Untouchables as Jim Malone (WINNER)
Albert Brooks – Broadcast News as Aaron Altman
Morgan Freeman – Street Smart as Leo “Fast Black” Smalls Jr.
Vincent Gardenia – Moonstruck as Cosmo Castorini
Denzel Washington – Cry Freedom as Steve Biko

Best Supporting Actress:
Olympia Dukakis – Moonstruck as Rose Castorini (WINNER)
Norma Aleandro – Gaby: A True Story as Florencia Sánchez Morales
Anne Archer – Fatal Attraction as Beth Gallagher
Anne Ramsey – Throw Momma from the Train as Mrs. Lift
Ann Sothern – The Whales of August as Tisha Doughty

Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen:
Moonstruck – John Patrick Shanley (WINNER)
Au revoir les enfants – Louis Malle
Broadcast News – James L. Brooks
Hope and Glory – John Boorman
Radio Days – Woody Allen

Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium:
The Last Emperor – Mark Peploe and Bernardo Bertolucci based on the autobiography From Emperor to Citizen: The Autobiography of Aisin-Gioro Pu Yi by Henry Pu Yi (WINNER)
The Dead – Tony Huston based on the short story by James Joyce
Fatal Attraction – James Dearden based on the teleplay Diversion by James Dearden
Full Metal Jacket – Stanley Kubrick, Michael Herr, and Gustav Hasford based on the novel The Short-Timers by Gustav Hasford
My Life as a Dog – Lasse Hallström, Reidar Jonsson, Brasse Brännström, and Per Berglund based on the novel Mitt liv som hund by Reidar Jönsson

Best Foreign Language Film:
Babette’s Feast (Denmark) in Danish and French – Gabriel Axel (WINNER)
Au revoir les enfants (France) in French – Louis Malle
Course Completed (Spain) in Spanish – José Luis Garci
The Family (Italy) in Italian – Ettore Scola
Pathfinder (Norway) in Sami – Nils Gaup

Best Documentary Feature:
The Ten-Year Lunch: The Wit and Legend of the Algonquin Round Table – Aviva Slesin (WINNER)
Eyes on the Prize: America’s Civil Rights Years/Bridge to Freedom 1965 – Callie Crossley and James A. DeVinney
Hellfire: A Journey from Hiroshima – John Junkerman and John W. Dower
Radio Bikini – Robert Stone
A Stitch for Time – Barbara Herbich and Cyril Christo

Best Documentary Short Subject:
Young at Heart – Sue Marx and Pamela Conn (WINNER)
Frances Steloff: Memoirs of a Bookseller – Deborah Dickson
In the Wee Wee Hours… – Frank Daniel and Izak Ben-Meir
Language Says It All – Megan Williams
Silver into Gold – Lynn Mueller

Best Live Action Short Film:
Ray’s Male Heterosexual Dance Hall – Jonathan Sanger and Jana Sue Memel (WINNER)
Making Waves – Ann Wingate
Shoeshine – Robert A. Katz

Best Animated Short Film:
The Man Who Planted Trees – Frédéric Back (WINNER)
George and Rosemary – Eunice Macaulay
Your Face – Bill Plympton

Best Original Score:
The Last Emperor – David Byrne, Cong Su, and Ryuichi Sakamoto (WINNER)
Cry Freedom – George Fenton and Jonas Gwangwa
Empire of the Sun – John Williams
The Untouchables – Ennio Morricone
The Witches of Eastwick – John Williams

Best Original Song:
“(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” from Dirty Dancing – Music by Franke Previte, John DeNicola, and Donald Markowitz; Lyrics by Franke Previte (WINNER)
“Cry Freedom” from Cry Freedom – Music and Lyrics by George Fenton and Jonas Gwangwa
“Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” from Mannequin – Music and Lyrics by Albert Hammond and Diane Warren
“Shakedown” from Beverly Hills Cop II – Music by Harold Faltermeyer and Keith Forsey; Lyrics by Harold Faltermeyer, Keith Forsey, and Bob Seger
“Storybook Love” from The Princess Bride – Music and Lyrics by Willy DeVille

Best Sound:
The Last Emperor – Bill Rowe and Ivan Sharrock (WINNER)
Empire of the Sun – Robert Knudson, Don Digirolamo, John Boyd, and Tony Dawe
Lethal Weapon – Les Fresholtz, Dick Alexander, Vern Poore, and Bill Nelson
RoboCop – Michael J. Kohut, Carlos Delarios, Aaron Rochin, and Robert Wald
The Witches of Eastwick – Wayne Artman, Tom Beckert, Tom E. Dahl, and Art Rochester

Best Art Direction:
The Last Emperor – Art Direction: Ferdinando Scarfiotti; Set Decoration: Bruno Cesari and Osvaldo Desideri (WINNER)
Empire of the Sun – Art Direction: Norman Reynolds; Set Decoration: Harry Cordwell
Hope and Glory – Art Direction: Anthony D. G. Pratt; Set Decoration: Joanne Woollard
Radio Days – Art Direction: Santo Loquasto; Set Decoration: Carol Joffe, Leslie Bloom, and George DeTitta Jr.
The Untouchables – Art Direction: Patrizia von Brandenstein and William A. Elliott; Set Decoration: Hal Gausman

Best Cinematography:
The Last Emperor – Vittorio Storaro (WINNER)
Broadcast News – Michael Ballhaus
Empire of the Sun – Allen Daviau
Hope and Glory – Philippe Rousselot
Matewan – Haskell Wexler

Best Makeup:
Harry and the Hendersons – Rick Baker (WINNER)
Happy New Year – Bob Laden

Best Costume Design:
The Last Emperor – James Acheson (WINNER)
The Dead – Dorothy Jeakins
Empire of the Sun – Bob Ringwood
Maurice – Jenny Beavan and John Bright
The Untouchables – Marilyn Vance-Straker

Best Film Editing:
The Last Emperor – Gabriella Cristiani (WINNER)
Broadcast News – Richard Marks
Empire of the Sun – Michael Kahn
Fatal Attraction – Michael Kahn and Peter E. Berger
RoboCop – Frank J. Urioste

Best Visual Effects:
Innerspace – Dennis Muren, Bill George, Harley Jessup, and Kenneth F. Smith (WINNER)
Predator – Joel Hynek, Robert M. Greenberg, Richard Greenberg, and Stan Winston

Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award:
The award honors “creative producers whose bodies of work reflect a consistently high quality of motion picture production”.
Billy Wilder

Special Achievement Award:
Stephen Hunter Flick and John Pospisil, for the sound effects editing of RoboCop