All eyes may be on Hollywood when the stars come out for the Academy Awards, but a number of those honored over the years actually got their start in Gambier.
The history of Kenyon alumni leaving the red carpet with a golden statuette starts with Paul Newman ’49, who won three Oscars — including best actor for his role in “The Color of Money” in 1987.
Other distinguished winners followed: Adam Davidson ’86 won best short live action film in 1991 for “The Lunch Date,” and Allison Janney ’82 was voted best supporting actress for her role in “I, Tonya” in 2018. The short films of two producers — Oorlagh George ’02 (“The Shore”) and Ruby Schiff ’21 (“Period. End of Sentence”) were honored with Oscars in 2012 and 2019, respectively.
And this year, another name could be added to the list. Jay Cocks ’66, previously nominated for his screenplays for “The Age of Innocence” and “Gangs of New York,” is up for best adapted screenplay for the Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown.”
All this is a backstory that Jonathan Tazewell ’84, Thomas S. Turgeon Professor of Drama and Film, knows well. Not only has he met each of Kenyon’s past winners — in some cases establishing lifelong friendships — but he also attended the Oscars three years ago with his brother, Paul, who was nominated for his costume design in Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story.”
As this year’s ceremony approaches on Sunday, March 2, Tazewell once again has been following things closely. Part of that is because his brother is nominated again, this time for his work on costumes in the film version of “Wicked.” (Tazewell accompanied him to the BAFTAs earlier this month and shared a row with stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo.)
But there are many professional reasons, too, as Tazewell and his students continue to discuss exactly what makes certain movies great. Before this year’s winners are announced, Tazewell took some time to talk about Hollywood’s biggest night, this year’s top movies, and past — and possibly future — Oscar winners with ties to the College.
Having been to the Oscars with your brother Paul in 2022, can you tell us what it’s like behind the scenes?
It is crazy. The whole thing is crazy. Once you go to the event, you’re surrounded by all of these incredible celebrities of all types. Will Smith was there (this was the year of the slap heard round the world), and Denzel Washington was there, and Serena Williams was there. Once you were inside, it was pretty normal. I mean, it was a huge party and a big reception and lots of fun. Afterwards, Paul and I went out to the after-parties. The Disney after-party was when we actually had an opportunity to catch up with some of the cast and other people who had worked on “West Side Story.” And there were also, again, crazy celebrities that were there. I was standing in line getting a cocktail next to Megan Thee Stallion.
How do the Oscars come up in class?
This is what we do — we talk about movies and we think about movies. We talk about the movies that have won critical acclaim and, in some cases, are literally scratching our heads going, “Why?” In other cases, we’re recognizing some of the magnificent things that we try to teach them, the cinematography that we’re trying to teach them and design composition and acting.
At the BAFTAs, I met Marianne Jean-Baptiste, a British actress. My colleague Jon Sherman and I had been talking a bit about a film that she’s in — “Hard Truths” — because we are actually trying to experiment with this idea of improvisation. That is sort of a big thing that Mike Leigh, who’s the writer-director of that film, uses. And so it just so happens that I ran into her and we chatted for a while when I was there about how we had been talking about her.
Is there one movie or person who’s nominated this year that you would recommend to students?
I definitely think “Hard Truths” is one because that is an incredible performance. But she didn’t get nominated. I do think the acting performances in “Conclave” are very good. There’s some really interesting cinematic stuff that they’re doing in “Emilia Perez.” Other than that, I have my “Wicked” bias. I think that Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande did an amazing job. It really is a spectacular movie. I think their performances are quite brilliant, and their vocal performances are stunning.
There are a number of Kenyon connections to Oscars over the years. Have you had encounters with any past winners?
Allison Janney ’82 and I went to Kenyon together. We’re friends. When she was here to shoot the Josh Radnor ’96 film “Liberal Arts,” it happened to be at a time when our mentor, Thomas Turgeon, for whom my endowed chair is named, was dying of ALS. And so I invited Josh and Allison to come with me out to see Tom at his house, and they had a chance to say hello and goodbye. He died not long after that.
And the others?
Paul Newman ’49 came back a little bit in the summertime when I was a student, and I had a chance to meet him at that time. And Adam Davidson ’86 and I also went to Kenyon together. We’re good friends, and I show “The Lunch Date” all the time in class. It’s one of the great shorts. I mean, it’s such a marvelously structured short film, and there are so many things to teach about it. Adam’s still in touch. He’s Zoomed in and he’s come to campus for us.
Do you have a prediction for who’s going to win best picture? Are you rooting for anyone?
Well, aside from “Wicked.” … Because Paul is involved in that and because I had met a number of the people, including the stars of that film, I have an emotional investment in “Wicked” winning. But I don’t know that I think that’s what’s going to happen. People don’t tend to pick big musicals to win the Oscars for whatever reason. I’m kind of thinking that “Conclave” is going to win.
What about Jay Cocks ’66, who’s up for a screenplay award for “A Complete Unknown”?
Jay is a good friend. He used to come to campus a lot and talk to our students. He and (actress) Verna Bloom, who was his lovely wife who passed a few years ago, would come and they were just spectacular. They were always very kind and generous with their time. And Jay would wax about all kinds of things, including “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” Do you know that story? Apparently, there was Jay and George Lucas and Steven Spielberg and a bunch of people who were just all out in Hollywood sort of around that same time. And George had this story, but he wasn’t really sure how to start it. And Jay wrote on a napkin: “a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. So, according to Jay … (laughs).
What do you think his chances are?
I really, really would love for him to get that. I think that he’s been at it for a long time and he really deserves that accolade.