Debra Ann Pawlak

The untold story of the innovative pioneers who helped make movies the preeminent art form of the twentieth century

The founders of the now infamous Academy were a motley crew as individuals, but when they first converged in Hollywood, then just a small town with dirt roads, sparks flew and fueled a common dream: to bring artistic validity to their beloved new medium.

Who were these movers and shakers who would change movies forever? And what about Oscar, their famous son? He is fast approaching his 100th birthday, and is still the undisputed king of Hollywood. Yet with such dynamic parents, what else could we expect?

• Wall Street Journal

  “Bringing Up Oscar sets itself the interesting task of telling the back stories of the men and women who founded the Academy.” 

• Bill Ott, Booklist

  “Pawlak is able to re-create the peculiar form of community that existed among a group of otherwise vicious competitors.” 

• Publishers Weekly

  “Pawlak traces the lives of the key figures in the cinema community who launched the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1927. By skillfully weaving such highlights of Hollywood history throughout this Tinseltown tapestry, Pawlak succeeds in recreating that colorful era.”