The Oscars weren’t “invented” by one single person, but two names matter most: Louis B. Mayer , who created the Academy and the awards idea in 1927, and Cedric Gibbons , who designed the famous statuette.

Quick Scoop: Who invented the Oscars?

  • In 1927, MGM studio boss Louis B. Mayer founded the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) and came up with the idea of giving awards to unify and motivate the film industry.
  • Mayer asked MGM art director Cedric Gibbons to design the trophy, which became the now-iconic knight holding a sword standing on a film reel.
  • The first Academy Awards ceremony (later known as the Oscars) took place on May 16, 1929, at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles.

So if you’re wondering “who invented the Oscars,” the concept and institution are mainly credited to Louis B. Mayer, while the physical Oscar statue is credited to Cedric Gibbons.

Why are they called “Oscars”?

The official name is the Academy Award of Merit , and “Oscar” is just the nickname.

There are several stories about where “Oscar” came from:

  • Academy librarian Margaret Herrick supposedly said the statuette looked like her “Uncle Oscar,” and the name stuck among staff.
  • Columnist Sidney Skolsky used the word “Oscar” in a 1934 column and is credited with the first confirmed newspaper reference.
  • Former Academy executive Bruce Davis later argued that a secretary, Eleanore Lilleberg, used “Oscar” after a tall Norwegian acquaintance she knew, and that this may have been the true origin.

Because of these competing stories, no single person is definitively accepted as the one who “invented” the name Oscar , though Herrick, Skolsky, and Lilleberg are the leading candidates.

TL;DR:

  • Louis B. Mayer created the Academy and the idea of the awards.
  • Cedric Gibbons designed the statuette.
  • The nickname “Oscar” has multiple origin stories and no universally agreed single inventor.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.