1934 in film
The following is an overview of 1934 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
January 26 – (formerly of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) purchases the film rights to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz from the L. Frank Baum estate for $40,000.
Samuel Goldwyn
April 19 – releases Stand Up and Cheer!, with five-year-old Shirley Temple in a relatively minor role. Shirley steals the film and Fox, which had been near bankruptcy, finds itself owning a goldmine.
Fox Studios
May 18 – Paramount releases , with Shirley Temple, on loan from Fox, in the title role.
Little Miss Marker
June 13 – An amendment to the establishes the Production Code Administration, and requires all films to obtain a certificate of approval before being released.
Production Code
July 28 – Canadian-born actress , best known for starring in films such as Min and Bill and Emma, dies from cancer in Santa Barbara, California at the age of 65. For her performance in Min and Bill, Dressler received the Academy Award for Best Actress.
Marie Dressler
October 19 – wham audiences again with their first joint starring roles in The Gay Divorcee, grossing $1.8 million[5] to add to the $1.5 million[5] earned by Flying Down to Rio released at the end of 1933.
Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
November 12 – The musical debuts, starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy as comic relief.
Babes in Toyland
December 11 – Fox releases the production of Bright Eyes, starring their hot new property, Shirley Temple. Shirley sings "On the Good Ship Lollipop", and wins the first Academy Award ever given to a child, for her endearing portrayal of Shirley Blake.
Sol M. Wurtzel
The 7th Academy Awards was held on February 27, 1935, at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles. They were hosted by Irvin S. Cobb. For the first time, the Academy standardized the practice – still in effect, notwithstanding changes to the 93rd and 94th Academy Awards as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic – that the award eligibility period for a film would be the preceding calendar year.
Most nominations: One Night of Love (Columbia Pictures) – 6
Major Awards
Most Awards: It Happened One Night – 5
It Happened One Night became the first film to perform a "clean sweep" of the top five award categories: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay. This feat would later be duplicated by One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest in 1976 and The Silence of the Lambs in 1992. It also was the first romantic comedy to be named Best Picture.
The Big Shakedown
All of Me
David Harum
(released June 16) (12-chapter Mascot Pictures action), starring Frankie Darro and (as Barnes) Jack Mulhall
Burn 'Em Up Barnes
The Lost Jungle
Pirate Treasure
(released October 29) (12-chapter Universal Pictures action), starring Maurice Murphy
Tailspin Tommy
The Vanishing Shadow
Young Eagles
The Cat's-Paw
Krazy Kat
Oswald the Lucky Rabbit
Mickey Mouse
Silly Symphonies
Screen Songs
Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies
Betty Boop
(1934)
Amos 'n' Andy
- , English actress
Priscilla Morgan
January 20 – , British actor
Tom Baker
Audrey Dalton
February 11 – , American actress
Tina Louise
Annette Crosbie
Alan Bates
James Sikking
Del Close
March 12 - , Polish actor (d. 1997)
Henryk Bista
March 22 – , Swedish actress
May Britt
Alan Arkin
March 27 – , German director (d. 2011)
Peter Schamoni
March 30 - , British actor and musician (d. 2018)
Count Prince Miller
Richard Chamberlain
April 2 – , Canadian actress (d. 2020)
Shirley Douglas
April 4 - , American actress (d. 2013)
Helen Hanft
April 7 – , Scottish actor (d. 2007)
Ian Richardson
April 14 – , Czech actor (d. 2022)
Josef Somr
April 16 – , Australian-born British producer (d. 2016)
Robert Stigwood
April 24 – , American actress
Shirley MacLaine
April 25 – , American actor (d. 2014)
Denny Miller
May 1 – , Australian character actor (d. 1989)
John Meillon
May 3 – , Bulgarian film director (d. 2011)
Ivan Andonov
May 11 – , French-born American director, writer and actor
André Gregory
May 18 – , American actor, producer and director (d. 2022)
Dwayne Hickman
May 22 – , American film producer (d. 2024)
Fred Roos
May 24 – , Bulgarian actor (d. 2003)
Kiril Gospodinov
May 29 – , Italian producer (d. 2023)
Marina Cicogna
Pat Boone
June 8 – , English actress, singer and comedian
Millicent Martin
Eileen Atkins
Bill Cobbs
Terrence Evans
June 26 – , German-American actor
Josef Sommer
Jamie Farr
July 5 – , Bulgarian actor (d. 2003)
Nikolay Binev
July 8 – , English comedian and actor (d. 1982)
Marty Feldman
July 10 – , American puppeteer (d. 2012)
Jerry Nelson
July 15 – , Slovak actress (d. 2020)
Eva Krížiková
Eric Del Castillo
July 23 – , Italian actress (d. 2020)
Silvana Bosi
July 26 – , Canadian actor (d. 2015)
Ken Pogue
July 29 – , Italian actor and voice actor (d. 2014)
Sergio Fiorentini
August 5 – , South African-American actor (d. 2009)
Zakes Mokae
August 7 – , Croatian actress (d. 2018)
Marija Kohn
August 14 – , British actor
Vernon Dobtcheff
August 24 – , English-born actor (d. 2016)
Kenny Baker
September 2 - , American actor, comedian, puppeteer and television host (d. 2018)
Chuck McCann
September 5 - , American actor (d. 2008)
Dennis Letts
September 11 – , English-American actor and comedian (d. 2012)
Ian Abercrombie
Sophia Loren
September 24 - , English actor (d. 2004)
Robert Lang
Wilford Brimley
September 28 – , French actress
Brigitte Bardot
September 29 – , Australian actor (d. 2022)
Alan Hopgood
October 13 – , Russian-American actor (d. 1995)
Savely Kramarov
October 15 – , American actor (d. 2010)
Peter Haskell
October 19 – , Brazilian actress
Glória Menezes
October 20 – , English actor
Timothy West
October 28 - , Italian-American actor
Charles A. Gargano
October 31 - , American actress (d. 2023)
Suzanne Shepherd
November 5 – , Russian director (d. 2018)
Kira Muratova
Richard Bradford
Suzanne Lloyd
November 13 – , American director, actor, producer, writer and voice artist (d. 2016)
Garry Marshall
November 15 – , American actress (d. 2022)
Joanna Barnes
Jack Kehoe
November 23 – , American producer and actor (d. 2003)
Michael Wayne
November 25 – , English actress (d. 2022)
Ann Davies
November 28 – , Finnish film director and screenwriter (d. 2018)
Jaakko Pakkasvirta
December 9 – , English actress
Judi Dench
December 16 – , American actor (d. 2003)
Pete Schrum
December 26 – , Canadian actor (d. 2022)
Matt Zimmerman
December 28 – , English actress
Maggie Smith
December 29 – , Iranian poet and film director (d. 1967)
Forugh Farrokhzad
December 30 – , American actor
Russ Tamblyn
March 21 – , 34, American actress (cancer)
Lilyan Tashman
May 31 – , 50, American actor
Lew Cody
June 8 – , 19, American actress (road accident)
Dorothy Dell
July 6 – , 55, American actor & director