“...and Introducing…” Future Oscar Nominees!

Hello and welcome to Cinema Wellman. I am your host David, and today we’re going to continue our “...and Introducing” series by highlighting seven performers who earned this credit and later went on to earn Academy Award Nominations. Not wins, mind you…I’m saving those for another episode.

Now that two such lists exist from previous episodes, (Tilly Losch’s “...and Introducing…” was a solo show), whenever we do one of these in the future, I’ll make additions to the existing lists as I watch new movies. Since I started keeping track a couple of years ago, I’ve seen 77 performers given this special credit.

If you ever see a movie that has an “...and Introducing…” credit in it, please let me know! cinemawellman@gmail.com And take a picture if you can!

There are a few new additions to the “...and Introducing… A Bunch of People” list. 

Moonrise Kingdom (Jared Gilman & Kara Hayward), Point Blank (John Vernon and Sharon Acker), The Pink Panther (Fran Jeffries and The Pink Panther), and Zero Hour! (Peggy King, Charles Quinlivan, Carole Eden, Steve London, Raymond Ferrell, and John Ashley) have all been added to that list. 

A little extra info regarding these folks:

*Moonrise Kingdom: Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward are still young and will be adding to their filmography, no doubt. 

*Point Blank: John Vernon had a long career as a character actor and is probably best known for playing Dean Wormer in National Lampoon’s Animal House. Sharon Acker had a decent career, most of it in television work. 

*The Pink Panther: Fran Jeffries had only 7 total credits in her brief career (5 films and two television shows). The Pink Panther, on the other hand, appeared in at least five movies, and had a successful television show. He now sells fiberglass. 

*The folks from Zero Hour! Were covered in a previous episode. They really didn’t do much to speak of after Zero Hour!

There is also one new entry to our “...and Introducing…One and Dones” list.  In the documentary The Pez Outlaw, Steve Glew got this special credit as Himself. Hopefully he will remain on this list and not make any more movies. If you see The Pez Outlaw, you’ll know what I mean. 

On to today’s list! The following seven performers were given the “...and Introducing…” credit and later went on to be nominated for Academy Awards!

What foresight by the filmmakers to spot their talents early on! Downright Criswellian! 

Five of the seven are acting nominations, while the other two are for music. 

To recap in case this is your first “...and Introducing…” episode; when I refer to “film credits” I am referring to the total number of theatrical films in which that performer appeared. Uncredited performances, appearances in short films, made for television movies, and television shows are NOT included in that number. 

I listed today’s performers in alphabetical order, and they’re also very close to chronological order as well. 

Let’s get back in the saddle and head to 1942.

Gene Autry in Manhattan Merry Go Round (1937)

95 credited roles - this was his 22nd

1942 Oscar Nomination: Best Original Song:

“Be Honest With Me” from Ridin on a Rainbow

Let me begin by saying that Gene Autry isn’t much of an actor. He was, however, successful and talented at just about everything else he did. 

Autry, known as “The Singing Cowboy,” starred in extremely popular cowboy serials in the 30s and 40s. He enlisted in WWII, and then returned to the movies postwar.

He wrote over 200 songs, one of which “Be Honest With Me” was nominated for an Academy Award.

I honestly can’t recall any of Autry’s films. I’m sure I’ve seen some, but I really don’t have any recommendations, which I hope to have for the rest of the performers on this list.  

Autry retired from acting in the early 60s and became a multi-millionaire from investments in hotels, real estate, radio stations, and the then California Angels baseball team. 

I also read that he was the first artist to ever sell out Madison Square Garden in New York. I would have lost that bet!

Karen Black in You’re a Big Boy Now (1956)

137 credited roles - this was her 2nd

1971 Oscar Nomination: Best Actress in a Supporting Role in Five Easy Pieces

Easy Rider made Karen Black a star in 1969, but it was her performance in Five Easy Pieces that earned Black her one, and only, Oscar nomination. 

I’m not saying Black was typecast, but many of her memorable roles have her portraying waitresses, sex workers, or ditzy girlfriends. And she played them all quite well.

My favorites of hers are The Great Gatsby, Alfred Hitchcock’s final film Family Plot, and the made for TV movie Trilogy of Terror, which was featured in our 11th episode this season. That’s the one with the little Zuni warrior god terrorizing her in her house. 

Ms. Black passed away in 2013 at the age of 74.

Kris Kristofferson in Cisco Pike (1971)

75 credited roles - this was his 2nd

1985 Oscar Nomination:

Best Original Song Score for Songwriter

Kris Kristofferson sounds like a very interesting guy. I could listen to him talk all day with that gravelly voice. He’s an accomplished singer/songwriter/musician, and a licensed helicopter pilot. 

He once landed his helicopter on Johnny Cash’s lawn to drop off some tapes for Cash to listen to. 

Kristofferson’s Oscar nomination came in a film that made a worst list here, but that doesn’t mean he’s without talent. 

My favorite films of his are A Star is Born, Semi Tough, and, believe it or not, Convoy. 

Guess who else was in Convoy!

Ali MacGraw in Goodbye, Columbus (1969)

9 credited roles - this was her very 1st

1971 Oscar Nomination:

Best Actress in a Leading Role in  Love Story

Ali MacGraw was a model before she was an actress. A beautiful woman, no doubt, her acting career was quite brief. She was more well known for her relationship with Steve McQueen than her film performances. 

My favorite films of Ali MacGraw are The Getaway with McQueen, and Convoy with Kris Kristofferson. Certainly not that drivel Love Story. That was dreadful. 

Don Murray in Bus Stop (1956)

34 credited roles - this was his very 1st

 

1957 Oscar Nomination:

Best Actor in a Supporting Role in Bus Stop

Don Murray’s mother was a member of the Ziegfeld Follies troupe for over 20 years and his father was a dance director and stage manager. No wonder he went into acting. 

Murray is the only person on this list who was nominated for an Academy Award for their very first performance! Kudos!

My favorite movie featuring him is Conquest of the Planet of the Apes. I never watched Knot’s Landing. 

His last film was in 2021. 

Rosie Perez in Do the Right Thing (1989)

37 credited roles - this was her very 1st

1994 Oscar Nomination:

Best Actress in a Supporting Role in Fearless

I mentioned Rosie Perez briefly in the “City Spotlight: New York” episode while talking about Do the Right Thing. 

Her boxing in front of a variety of backgrounds to Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power” is still one of my favorite opening credit sequences. 

My favorite film of hers besides Do the Right Thing and Fearless is The Dead Don’t Die. 

I need to watch that again this month. 

Ms. Perez’s last film was in 2021, and she’s been doing a lot of TV work lately. 

And our last performer to be granted the coveted “...and Introducing…” credit and later be Oscar nominated is…

Jonathan Pryce in Voyage of the Damned (1976)

77 credited roles - this was his very 1st

2020 Oscar Nomination:

Best Actor in a Leading Role in The Two Popes

Jonathan Pryce is an accomplished Welsh actor whose acting career is now in its fifth decade. He’s still going strong and made a film this year. 

I enjoyed The Two Popes, for which he earned his Oscar nomination, but I prefer both Brazil and Ronin. 

And, of course, his portrayal of Mr. Dark in Something Wicked This Way Comes. 

That’s delicious. 

Well, that’s a wrap from Cinema Wellman as we honor some Oscar nominees in which early directors saw some promise. Our follow up episode featuring Oscar Winners who were given the “...and Introducing…” credit is scheduled for next May.

You will not have to wait as long for our next episode, though. That will be available on our usual Friday launch day, and we hope you’ll join us when we take a look at 1o of our favorite documentaries.

Truth is stranger than fiction, after all.

Until then, take care.