Citizen Kane

Citizen Kane is the first feature film directed by Orson Welles (he had directed two short films previously), and is loosely based on the lives of the newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, the reclusive aerospace and movie mogul Howard Hughes, and the Chicago utilities magnate Samuel Insull. Welles maintained that the character is a composite of several historical individuals. Internally while it was under production, it was referred to as RKO 281. The film premiered on May 1, 1941. Endlessly discussed and dissected by critics and viewers alike, this innovative film is perhaps the most influential ever in film history.

Awards and recognition

The 1941 Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay was shared by Welles and Herman J. Mankiewicz as the only Oscar awarded for the film. It was nominated, however, for another eight awards{{ref|oscars}}:

Related Topics:
Academy Award - Herman J. Mankiewicz

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• Academy Award for Best Picture - Orson Welles, producer
• Best Actor in a Leading Role - Orson Welles
• Academy Award for Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Black-and-White - Perry Ferguson, A. Roland Fields, Van Nest Polglase, and Darrell Silvera
• Best Cinematography, Black-and-White - Gregg Toland
• Best Director - Orson Welles
• Best Film Editing - Robert Wise
• Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic Picture - Bernard Herrmann
• Best Sound, Recording - John Aalberg

It should be noted that boos were heard almost every time "Citizen Kane" was referred to during the Oscars ceremony that year. Most of Hollywood did not want the film to ever see the light of day considering the threats that William Hearst had made if it did.

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Although it was little seen and virtually forgotten until its revival in the 1950s, its critical fortunes have skyrocketed since. Critics world-wide began crediting it as among the best films ever made. For Welles, however, this was too late. Hearst had been successful in blacklisting Welles in Hollywood so that no studio would agree to work with him.

Related Topics:
1950s - Among the best films ever made - Blacklist

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Many critics consider Citizen Kane the best film ever made; the American Film Institute ranked it #1 on its "100 Greatest Movies" list; it has been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry; and the film is consistently in the top 20 on the Internet Movie Database. Beginning in 1962, and every ten years since, it has been voted the best film ever made by the Sight and Sound critics' poll. The quote, "Rosebud," was listed as #17 on the American Film Institute's AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes, a list of top movie quotes.

Related Topics:
American Film Institute - 100 Greatest Movies - National Film Registry - Internet Movie Database - 1962 - Sight and Sound - AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes

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