75th Golden Globe Awards

This epic war drama – Golden Globe for Best Picture Drama of the year in 1958 – became the first Golden Globe Award for British director David Lean: he would go on to win for Lawrence of Arabia (1963) and Doctor Zhivago (1965). Sir Alec Guinness won as Best Actor – Drama; many years later he was nominated by the HFPA for the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars (1977), and one last time for Little Dorrit (1987).

This is the year in which the HFPA started announcing the nominations in advance of the awards. Of the contenders, four were comedies and only one a musical.

At the turn of the (last) century, a Victorian Englishman, Phileas Fogg (David Niven), makes a bet with his gentleman's club (the London Reform Club) friends: with steamships and hot-air balloons and railways he can circumnavigate the world in 80 days. He wins the bet of course, but not after many close calls.

Guys and Dolls was the movie no one loved except the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, who gave it its best comedy or musical Golden Globe that year. At the time of its release, the film was deemed a huge disappointment considering its pedigree and all the talent legendary producer Sam Goldwyn had lavished on the production.

East of Eden, one of the first films to be shot in Color Cinemascope, was awarded Best Motion Picture - Drama at the 1956 Golden Globes. Sadly, the Golden Globe for Best Dramatic Actor had to be awarded to James Dean posthumously - the actor died in a car accident, at 25, just a few months before, on that infamous September 30, 1955 (in Cholame, California).

Who can forget Marlon Brando at his method-acting best? “I could have been a contender.

1955 - what a great year for musicals! In those days the Hollywood Foreign Press offered no nominations but they certainly had an impressive list choose from – Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, A Star Is Born, just to name two. And the surprising win? Otto Preminger’s groundbreaking Carmen Jones.

1953 was indeed a peculiar year. On the comedy or musical front, With a Song in My Heart took the Globe from Singin’ in the Rain, later to be celebrated as the best musical of all time and inspire generations of filmmakers (including Damien Chazelle, winner of the same award in 2017 with his La La Land).

Set in ancient Rome, The Robe preceded Ben-Hur and Spartacus as a big sword and sandal epic winning the Golden Globe for Best Picture – Drama in 1954. It was a time in which Hollywood adored Roman Empire Technicolor extravaganzas.

No award for Best Motion Picture Comedy or Musical was given in 1954.   And there were plenty of candidates: Otto Preminger’s.