The Envelope Please

1947 saw Elia Kazan win his first Best Picture/Director combo for Gentleman's Agreement. The movie also scored four acting nominations, winning in the Supporting Actress category for Celeste Holm. We break down the social themes of this black and white film and its important place in history as one of the first big Hollywood films to address the topic of anti-Semitism in a post WWII America.

One of the greatest post-WWII films ever made, The Best Years of Our Lives rightfully swept the Oscars in 1946; and that's saying quite a bit as this was also the year of Frank Capra's It's A Wonderful Life. Two directing giants, two of their greatest movies. It was quite the showdown. Tune in as we break down this fantastic year in film!

The first year following WWII saw an incredibly dark picture take the top honor, The Lost Weekend. Billy Wilder would go down in history as the first person to win Oscars for directing and screenwriting for this masterpiece, which only seems fitting. Tune in as we discuss this peculiar picture and Joan Crawford's iconic win for Mildred Pierce.

Still heavily involved in WWII, the Academy chose the bright, chirpy musical Going My Way as the Best Picture recipient in 1944. But did the Bing Crosby vehicle deserve the top honor over the likes of such dark film noirs as Gaslight or Double Indemnity? Tune in to hear our take!

Often cited as one of the top five greatest American movies of all time, Casablanca was the big winner of 1943. This movie has everything: a little suspense, some laughs and a tragic love story all set against a backdrop of WWII. Looking back, it's strange to think that stars Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman didn't win Oscars for their now iconic roles, so tune in to hear what we think contribut...

We are now in the thick of WWII, therefore it's only fitting that a war picture should take the top prize. Used as a movie to help raise the spirits of the British forces, Mrs. Miniver became the highest grossing picture of 1942 and was nominated for twelve Academy Awards; five of those were in the acting categories. Tune in as we break down this phenomenal movie and highlight other important film...

One of the first truly controversial years! 1941 became a showdown between How Green Was My Valley and the epic masterpiece that is Citizen Kane. Yet, it was John Ford's quietly beautiful film about a Welsh mining family that came out on top. Tune in to hear our take on both of these movies along with a slew of others.. most importantly Bette Davis's The Little Foxes!

We have reached a new decade and with it we have the only Alfred Hitchcock movie to win Best Picture: Rebecca. It is a gothic tale of betrayal, passion and a mysterious death brought to life by some incredible performances. Do we think this movie deserves its Best Picture win over other classic films like The Grapes of Wrath? Tune in and find out!

It is time for the Grand-Daddy of them all! The big winner of 1939 was Gone With The Wind, which took home eight competitive awards that evening. This movie holds a special place in both of our hearts and is considered to be one of the best films of all time. Tune in to hear some behind the scenes information and listen as we explain what is so special about this movie that makes it an all time cl...

We have come to the "Golden Year" of Hollywood. 1939 includes some of the greatest movies of all time in its Best Picture line-up. This week, we discuss the nine movies that failed to win the top honor, but very likely could have had Gone With The Wind not been nominated. Listen to the end to find out which of the nine films we think is the best!

It is time for a good old fashioned, wholesome movie. 1938 saw Frank Capra win his third Oscar for Best Director and his second for Best Picture. It would be fair to say that Capra pretty much owned the 1930s. Tune in to hear us break down this year with the Academy and our thoughts on some of the other nominated films including the Bette Davis starring vehicle, Jezebel.

We've reached a milestone! The first ten years of the Oscars have been accounted for, so we look back and rank the eleven movies honored with the Best Picture prize. Do our lists match? Do we have the same number one? Tune in and find out!

A new year.. and another sprawling biopic. This time it's The Life of Emile Zola that wins the big prize at the Academy Awards. However, this movie isn't even CLOSE to being our favorite of the year. Tune in to hear our take on this movie and many of the others nominated for Oscars in 1937.

We now have our second MGM musical taking the top award with this 1936 winner, The Great Ziegfeld. This is also MGM's fourth movie to win Best Picture and the second one in a row. We also FINALLY get the Supporting Actor/Actress categories! Tune in to learn all about this landmark year at the Oscars and whether or not we recommend the big winner.

The only movie to date to receive three (count 'em THREE) nominations in the Best Actor race, Mutiny On The Bounty took home the big award for 1935. This movie was a real treat for us to discuss, so tune in as we talk in great detail about how attractive the leading men are.. I mean, how much we loved the film!

Ladies and Gentlemen, the first movie to SWEEP the top 5 categories at the Oscars: It Happened One Night. Not only is this a great movie, it also happens to be one of Rance and Sam's favorite movies of all time. Listen as we practically gush over how amazing this movie is!

The Oscar for Best Picture in 1933 went to the epic production of Cavalcade. A popular film based on a popular stageplay, which would soon become a tradition for numerous other Best Picture winners, too. But the question still remains.. does it hold up today?

The year is 1932 and the Best Picture winner is... Grand Hotel! This is the first and only movie to win the top honor without being nominated in a single other category. Tune in to hear our take on this star-studded, Hollywood production!

The Oscars are on Sunday! The greatest day of the whole year. We give you our 2020 predictions on who we think will win EVERY CATEGORY. Will Best Picture be 1917? Parasite? Or maybe Joker?? Tune in and find out what we think.

Another year.. another first! This time it's the first Western film to win Best Picture. Tune in to hear our take on Cimarron, a big budget, grand scale epic that was one of the most expensive movies made at that time.

The third year of the Academy Awards and already a second war movie wins the top honor! Arguably one of the greatest anti-war films of all time, All Quiet On The Western Front becomes the standard for all war epics to follow.

And the winner is... The Broadway Melody! The first official movie musical to win the top prize happened in only the second year of the Academy Awards. Tune in to see how much has already changed between the first two Oscar ceremonies.

The first year of the Academy Awards features the only year there was a tie for the top prize. Listen as we break down the first two Best Picture winners: Wings and Sunrise.

Welcome to The Envelope Please Podcast! Get to know the two co-hosts, Sam and Rance, as we tell you a little bit about ourselves and what to expect in coming episodes.