As one of Hollywood’s A-list actors who spent decades at the top, Robert Redford has been recognized for his contributions to Hollywood, from his on-screen roles to his work behind the camera as a director and producer.
Reford died on September 16, at the age of 89, at his home in the mountains outside of Provo, Utah. Looking back at his legacy, Redford has a long list of accolades, with his first Oscar win not for Best Actor.
Robert Redford Won an Academy Award in 1980
Redford’s acting career began in the late 50s in New York City, appearing on Broadway and in TV series. His first small role was in Tall Story in 1959, which would later become his big screen debut in the 1960 movie of the same name. In 162, he starred in his second film role in War Hunt and was later cast in Situation Hopeless….But Not Serious. By the late 1970s, Redford had achieved Hollywood stardom and turned to directing in the 1980s.
While Redford got his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor in 1973 for his role as Johnny Hooker in The Sting, he didn’t win. In actuality, the actor’s first-ever Oscar win was in the Best Director category in 1980 at the 52nd Academy Awards. He won for his directorial debut film, Ordinary People. He was also nominated for Best Director that same year at the Golden Globes for Ordinary People and took home the win.
His Oscar acceptance speech is notorious for being extremely short and to the point.
“Well, I guess that proves that if you stay around long enough, anything can happen. Thank you,” said Redford in his speech.
Backstage, he admitted that he kept his on-stage speech short because he didn’t expect to win, and didn’t want to sound over-rehearsed and sentimental. He called the movie a deeply personal project and applauded Mary Tyler Moore’s performance. Redford explained that his transition from actor to director was about wanting to tell stories behind the camera, rather than chasing awards.
Ordinary People focuses on an alienated teen named Conrad Jarrett (Timothy Hutton) after the death of his older brother. Spending some time in a psychiatric hospital for attempted suicide, he goes home to try and reconnect with his cold and angry mother, and emotionally wounded father, with the help of a psychiatrist.
In his career, Redford has only won for Best Leading Actor at the BAFTAs in 1970 for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here, and Downhill Racer. He was given an Honorary Award at the Oscars in 2002.
