On May 16, 1929, 270 people sat in attendance at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel as awards for movies were dealt out during a brisk 15-minute ceremony, to little fanfare. The event quietly wrapped up ...

Now that the final round of Oscar voting is over, it is a good time for a refresher course in how the winner will be decided. Don't worry, it is nowhere near as complicated as the nominations ...

In 2009 -- when the academy went to 10 Best Picture nominees for the first time since 1943 -- the preferential system of voting, which had been used from 1934 to 1945, was reintroduced. The academy ...