Why are the Academy Awards called the Oscars? The fascinating theories Hollywood still debates

Every year, Hollywood stars step on stage and hear the words, "And the Oscar goes to…” The golden trophy handed out at the Academy Awards is one of the most famous prizes in the world. But many fans still wonder how the award got the name “Oscar” in the first place.

Like many stories in Hollywood, the answer is not simple. Over the years, several people have been linked to the nickname. The most common names mentioned are Bette Davis, journalist Sidney Skolsky, and Academy librarian Margaret Herrick. While their stories are widely told, the true origin of the name remains unclear.

Even detailed research could not give a final answer. According to former Academy executive director Bruce Davis, the nickname had already been used before some of these claims appeared. What historians do know is that the Academy officially accepted “Oscar” as the award’s nickname in 1939, making it a permanent part of film history.

One of the most famous stories comes from legendary actress Bette Davis. In her 1962 autobiography The Lonely Life, Davis wrote about the moment she held the trophy after winning Best Actress in 1936 for Dangerous.

She recalled noticing something unusual about the statuette while looking at it closely. Davis explained the moment by writing, “I stared at the little gold-plated man in the palm of my hand. In a kind of madness, his back view was the spit of my husband’s … Oscar, it has been ever since.” She was referring to her husband at the time, Harmon Oscar Nelson Jr.

However, this explanation later faced problems. Reports showed that newspapers had already used the name “Oscar” before Davis made her claim. Because of this, she eventually stepped away from the story. In her 1974 biography Mother Goddam, Davis wrote, “A sillier controversy never existed... I relinquish once and for all any claim.”

Another story involves Hollywood gossip writer Sidney Skolsky. In his memoir Don’t Get Me Wrong—I Love Hollywood, published in 1975, Skolsky said he created the name while covering the sixth Academy Awards in 1934. According to his account, he was writing about Katharine Hepburn winning Best Actress for Morning Glory. While typing his story, he said he struggled with spelling the word "statuette". In that moment, he chose to simply call the trophy Oscar.

Skolsky later described the moment by writing, 'The audience laughed at Oscar. I started hitting the keys.” He also explained that the name was commonly used in vaudeville (very popular form of live stage entertainment) jokes at the time.

But historians later questioned his version as well. Research by Bruce Davis found that the term had already appeared in a column in the Los Angeles Post-Record on December 5, 1933, weeks before Skolsky said he used it.

A third story is often connected to Margaret Herrick, who worked as the Academy’s librarian and later became its executive director. According to the popular tale, when she first saw the trophy, she said it reminded her of her Uncle Oscar. The comment reportedly spread among Academy staff, and people began using the nickname. Over time, it became more widely known.

However, historians later discovered a twist. Herrick did not actually have an uncle named Oscar. Film historian Terry Ramsaye suggested she might have been talking about a distant relative, a Texas wheat farmer named Oscar Pierce. Even Skolsky doubted the story. He once joked, “I’ve yet to see a photograph of Uncle Oscar Pierce.”

Even after decades of research, no single explanation has been proven true. As mentioned earlier, the Academy officially adopted “Oscar” in 1939 and later trademarked the name in 1979. Film historian Leonard Maltin summed up the mystery perfectly, saying, “In a town built on hyperbole and rumour, there is no conclusive answer as to who named the famed Oscar.”

And perhaps that mystery is part of the charm. What matters today is that the small golden statue has become a symbol of success in filmmaking.