The Oscars, or Academy Awards, dates back to 1929, when the first ceremony honoring excellence in film was held at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.
The awards ceremony wasn’t televised until 1953, with winners previously announced by radio broadcast. The 87th Oscars will be telecast live on Sunday, February 22, 2015.
Below is a gallery that features some Oscar highlights from our photo archive.
Click on any image to launch the Oscars’ Memorable Moments gallery.
Actress Norma Shearer poses with her Oscar at the Academy Awards banquet in the Fiesta Room, Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, Ca., Nov. 5, 1930. Shearer won for the best performance given by an actress for the movie “The Divorce.” (AP Photo)
Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, right, react to winning the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for “Good Will Hunting” at the 70th Academy Awards in Los Angeles Monday, March 23, 1998. (AP Photo/Susan Sterner)
Actor Adrien Brody surprises presenter Halle Berry with a kiss after he won the Oscar for best actor for his work in “The Pianist” at the 75th annual Academy Awards Sunday, March 23, 2003, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)
Hattie McDaniel, left, was given the Motion Picture Academy award for the best performance of an actress in a supporting role in 1939 for her work as “Mammy” in the film version of “Gone With the Wind” on Feb. 29, 1940 in Los Angeles, Calif. The presentation of the award was given by actress Fay Bainter, right. (AP Photo)
Actress Sally Field accepts her Academy Award for best actress in the film “Places in the Heart” at the Oscar ceremonies in Los Angeles March 26, 1985. “I can’t deny the fact you like me, ” she said in her acceptance speech, “Right now, you like me.” (AP Photo)
Heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali, left, makes a surprise appearance on the Academy Awards show, staging a sparring with Sylvester Stallone, actor and screenwriter of the boxing drama “Rocky,” on March 28, 1977, in Los Angeles, California. (AP Photo)
Jennifer Lawrence stumbles as she walks on stage to accept the award for best actress in a leading role for “Silver Linings Playbook” during the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday Feb. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
Best actress Halle Berry and best actor Denzel Washington pose for photographers with their Oscar trophies during the 74th annual Academy Awards on Sunday, March 24, 2002 in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Doug Mills)
Madonna performs “Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)” from the film “Dick Tracy” during the 63rd Annual Academy Awards show at the Shrine Auditorium at night on Monday, March 25, 1991 in Los Angeles. The song won an Oscar for best song. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)
Grace Kelly accepts the Oscar for Best Actress for her role in “The Country Girl,” at the Academy Awards, March 30, 1955. (AP Photo)
Director and actor Roberto Benigni jumps on the back of some chairs in excitement after winning the Oscar for best foreign language film for “Life is Beautiful,” during the 71st Annual Academy Awards at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion of the Los Angeles Music Center, Sunday, March 21, 1999. (AP Photo/Eric Draper)
David Niven isn’t quite sure what’s happening behind him as a streaker crosses the stage near the end of the Academy Awards show in Los Angeles, Feb. 4, 1974. He later identified himself as Robert Opel. (AP Photo)
Actor Warren Beatty, right, and his sister, actress Shirley MacLaine, arrive for the Academy Awards in Santa Monica, Calif., April 18, 1966. (AP Photo)
This image released by Ellen DeGeneres shows actors, front row from left, Jared Leto, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Ellen DeGeneres, Bradley Cooper, Peter Nyong’o Jr. and, second row, from left, Channing Tatum, Julia Roberts, Kevin Spacey, Brad Pitt, Lupita Nyong’o and Angelina Jolie as they pose for a "selfie" portrait on a cell phone during the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday, March 2, 2014, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ellen DeGeneres)
Singer Bjork, wearing a Marjan Pejoski swan gown, performs during the 73rd annual Academy Awards Sunday March 25, 2001 in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)
Tatum O’Neal holds her Oscar statuette at the 46th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, on April 2, 1974. The 10-year-old won as Best Supporting Actress for her role in the movie “Paper Moon.” (AP Photo)
Actor Marlon Brando defends his statuette in a mock tussle with comedian Bob Hope, during the 27th annual Academy Awards show at Pantages Theater in Hollywood, Calif., March 30, 1955. Brando won best actor for his performance in “On the Waterfront.” (AP Photo)
Actress Angelina Jolie arrives before the 84th Academy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012, in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)
Oscar-winning actress Joanne Woodward is embraced by her husband, actor Paul Newman, backstage at the 30th Academy Award presentations in Hollywood, Calif., March 26, 1958. Woodward won best actress for her role in the motion picture “The Three Faces of Eve.” (AP Photo)
A woman in Native American Indian dress, who indentified herself as Sacheen Littlefeather, tells the audience at the Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles March 27, 1973, that Marlon Brando was declining to accept his Oscar as best actor for his role in “The Godfather.” Littlefeather said Brando was protesting “the treatment of the American Indian in motion pictures and on televison, and because of the recent events at Wounded Knee.” (AP Photo)
Cher shows off both her Oscar and Bob Mackie black-sequined gown after winning the award for best actress for her role as the superstitious young widow of “Moonstruck” at the 60th Annual Academy Awards, April 12, 1988 in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Lennox McLendon)
Lupita Nyong’o receives a standing ovation as she accepts the award for best actress in a supporting role for “12 Years a Slave” during the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday, March 2, 2014, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Matt Sayles/Invision/AP)
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AP Images is the world’s largest collection of historical andcontemporary photos. AP Images provides instant access to AP's iconic photos and adds new content every minute of every day from every corner of the world, making it an essential source of photos and graphics for professional imagebuyers and commercial customers. Whether your needs are for editorial, commercial, or personal use, AP Images has the content and the expert sales team to fulfill your image requirements. Visit apimages.com to learn more.
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