Five Worst "Best Actress" Academy Awards

Again working off Ed Copeland marvelous post. And also excluding the "Lifetime achievement" Oscars. The Academy is terrible at giving this award. They constantly give it to the wrong person or to the right person for the wrong role. Page for example, was nominated 4 times but only won in 1984 when the Academy gave her a "Lifetime Achievement" Oscar. Louise Rainier won 2 Oscars while Vanessa Redgrave has never won a "Best Actress".

1. Luise Rainier - THE GOOD EARTH (1938)- Amazingly this was her 2nd Oscar. The first Oscar came for a minor B+ performance in "THE GREAT ZIEGFELD". Her performance as the Chinese peasant O-Lan is unconvincing in every way. She says very little and rarely changes expression. I guess she was going for "Stoic" and succeeded. Up there with Mickey Rooney's Japanese photographer in "BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S" as the worst Caucasian actor playing an Asian.

2. Judy Holiday - BORN YESTERDAY (1950) - One of those crazy situations where the weakest nominee wins because everyone splits their votes. Holiday beat Davis and Baxter in "ALL ABOUT EVE" and Swanson's role of a lifetime in "SUNSET BLVD". To my eyes, Holiday simply repeats her dumb blond persona from "ADAMS RIB". Here she becomes tiresome as she says all her lines in nasal Brooklyn accent. I found the dialog annoying and unfunny. I've never been a Holiday fan although I liked her in small doses. Harry Cohn (who called her a "fat, Jewish Broad") cast her the movie over Monroe and Hagan.

3. Cher - MOONSTRUCK (1987) - What can I say - I mean Cher "Best Actress" - what were they thinking?

4. Elizabeth Taylor BUTTERFIELD 8 (1960)- Liz hated the movie and did it only because of her contract. Everyone agrees she didn't deserve to be nominated let alone win - but she was very ill so she got a sympathy Oscar. Self Styled Siren states:

"Even wronged wife Debbie Reynolds voted for her. To her immense credit, Taylor has always said she knew she didn't deserve the award. Unfortunately, she was right. Granted, Gloria Wandrous is a ludicrous projection of misogyny, possibly unplayable as written. Plus there's the problem of Taylor's leading man, of whom Jane Fonda said, 'Acting with Laurence Harvey is like acting by yourself. Only worse."

5. Kate Hepburn ON GOLDEN POND (1981) - Very old Kate Hepburn plays a very old women who bears an uncanny resemblance to a very old Kate Hepburn. Not much acting required. Like her other Oscar win "GUESS WHOSE COMING TO DINNER" Kate doesn't do much except support the old male star. They should have simply hired Martin Short and saved a lot of money.