Oscars, Golden Globes: How Much in Sync?

The Golden Globes have come up in the world since the Pia Zadora fiasco of 1981, when the sex kitten was awarded “new female star of the year” for her performance in that celluloid turkey “Butterfly.”

The Golden Globes, which are chosen by journalists from the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn., have become a popular TV attraction and a good indicator of likely Oscar nominees, which are announced a few weeks later. (Unlike the Oscars, the Golden Globes, currently in their 56th year, hand out film awards in both dramatic and comedy/musical categories as well as awards for TV.)

In its early years, the Globe ceremonies were a modest affair, usually taking place at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel or the Coconut Grove with just a few hundred people in attendance. But over the decades, the Globes have become truly global. After being telecast on cable for several years, the Golden Globes celebrate their fourth straight year on NBC Sunday. Last year, the NBC telecast had an estimated audience of 275 million in more than 125 countries.

Unlike the Oscars, the Golden Globes exude a freewheeling, party atmosphere with the nominees and guests partaking of dinner and generous libations in the Beverly Hilton Ballroom in Beverly Hills. Viewers have come to expect the unexpected during the ceremony. Last year, Christine Lahti was in the bathroom when her name was announced as best actress winner for the CBS series “Chicago Hope.” Robin Williams jumped up on stage and ad-libbed until Lahti ran to the podium.

Ving Rhames topped the Lahti incident when he called fellow nominee Jack Lemmon to the stage and gave the veteran performer the Golden Globe he had just won for best actor in a TV movie for “Don King: Only in America.” And Jack Nicholson gave a colorful--to put it delicately--acceptance speech after winning an award for “As Good as It Gets.”

So will the winners Sunday go on to win the Oscars? Here’s a look at how the Oscars and the Golden Globes have matched up over the past five decades.

And the Winner Is . . .

Over the past decade, the academy and the Golden Globes have agreed on six best picture winners: “Driving Miss Daisy,” “Dances With Wolves,” “Schindler’s List,” “Forrest Gump,” “The English Patient” and “Titanic.”

Seven years ago, the Globes gave best picture honors to the gangster drama “Bugsy.” The academy, however, chose the horror thriller “The Silence of the Lambs.” The following year, the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. bestowed its top honor on the drama “Scent of a Woman.” Though “Scent” did receive a best picture Oscar nomination, the drama lost to Clint Eastwood’s allegorical western, “Unforgiven.” Three years ago, the Globes named the Jane Austen romance “Sense and Sensibility” as best picture. The academy’s choice? The violent historical drama “Braveheart.”

No Joking Around

Golden Globe best comedy/musical winners are rarely even nominated for a best picture Oscar. Among the winners that failed to get a best picture Oscar nomination are “Evita,” “Mrs. Doubtfire,” “The Player,” “Green Card,” “Romancing the Stone,” “Yentl,” “A Star Is Born,” “The Longest Yard” and “The Secret of Santa Vittoria.”

Robin Williams Factor

What can you say, the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. just loves Robin Williams, who is nominated again this year for best actor in a musical/comedy for “Patch Adams.” He previously won in that category for 1987’s “Good Morning, Vietnam,” 1991’s “The Fisher King” and 1993’s “Mrs. Doubtfire.” Though Williams won the best supporting actor Oscar last year for “Good Will Hunting,” he lost the Golden Globe for his performance to Burt Reynolds in “Boogie Nights.”

They Made His Day

As a director, Clint Eastwood has had a good track record with the Globes. He won a Golden Globe and an Oscar for directing 1992’s “Unforgiven.” He won a Globe for best director for 1988’s “Bird,” but the academy that year ignored Eastwood and gave the best director statuette to Barry Levinson for “Rain Man.”

In fact, the Globes and the Academy Awards have often differed on best director choices. Frank Capra won for best director for 1946’s “It’s a Wonderful Life,” but the Oscar ended up going to William Wyler for “The Best Years of Our Lives.”

Two years ago, Milos Forman won the Golden Globe for “The People vs. Larry Flynt.” Anthony Minghella, though, went home with the Oscar for “The English Patient.”

Legendary director John Huston won for 1985’s “Prizzi’s Honor,” but he lost the Oscar to Sydney Pollack for “Out of Africa.” Though no American woman has been nominated for a best director Oscar, Barbra Streisand won a Golden Globe in this category for 1982’s “Yentl.” And Francis Ford Coppola took home a Golden Globe for 1979’s “Apocalypse Now.” Robert Benton, though, was the academy’s choice for “Kramer vs. Kramer.”

Set in Stone

Another Globe favorite is Sharon Stone, who is nominated this year for best supporting actress for “The Mighty.” She won best actress in a drama three years ago for “Casino,” but lost the Oscar to Susan Sarandon for “Dead Man Walking.” She raised a few eyebrows when she was nominated in the category for 1992’s “Basic Instinct.” She lost out to Emma Thompson for “Howards End,” who also went on to win the Oscar.

Popular Choices

The critics’ choices for the top honors often don’t jibe with the Hollywood Foreign Press or the academy. Last year, the critics’ darling was “L.A. Confidential” and its director, Curtis Hanson. The Globes and the academy, though, chose box-office giant “Titanic” as best film and James Cameron as the year’s best director.

Though Tom Hanks failed to win over the critics as best actor for 1993’s “Philadelphia” and 1994’s “Forrest Gump,” he won both the Golden Globe and Oscar for those performances. Ditto Al Pacino. After being shut out by the critics for 1992’s “Scent of a Woman,” he wound up winning the Golden Globe and the Oscar.

Golden Globe Trivia

Jack Nicholson is set to receive this year’s Cecil B. DeMille Award. And just who was the first recipient of the achievement award back in 1952? None other than Cecil B. DeMille himself.

Over the years, the Golden Globes have given out awards in numerous offbeat categories. In 1945, they instituted the “best film for promoting international goodwill” award. Among the winners in this category were “Love Is a Many Splendored Thing” and “The Hasty Heart.”

Harold Russell won for “best nonprofessional acting” for “The Best Years of Our Lives” in 1946. Esther Williams was given the “Hollywood citizenship award” at the 1956 ceremony. The following year, Elizabeth Taylor was given the “most consistent performance” honor. And even Zsa Zsa Gabor won a Golden Globe for “most glamorous performance” of 1957.

BE THERE

The 56th Golden Globe Awards take place Sunday at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills. NBC will broadcast the awards at 8 p.m.