1939 Oscars: Winners and Nominees

59 films were recognised at the 1939 Academy Awards, across 19 categories. 16 of them took home at least one award.

The biggest winner of the year was The Adventures of Robin Hood, with 3 awards, ahead of You Can't Take It with You with 2. The categories below run from Art Direction, Cinematography and Music (Original Score) to the smaller prizes, and in every one the winner is listed first, followed by the other nominees.

Each title links to the film's full award history at all four awards, and the links at the bottom step to the previous and next ceremony.

Last updated August 12, 2026

Art Direction

The Adventures of Robin Hood(1938)
Carl J. Weyl
Winner
Alexander's Ragtime Band(1938)
Bernard Herzbrun, Boris Leven
Algiers(1938)
Alexander Toluboff
Carefree(1938)
Van Nest Polglase
Holiday(1938)
Stephen Goosson, Lionel Banks
If I Were King(1938)
Hans Dreier, John Goodman
Mad About Music(1938)
Jack Otterson
Marie Antoinette(1938)
Cedric Gibbons
Merrily We Live(1938)
Charles D. Hall
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer(1938)
Lyle Wheeler
The Goldwyn Follies(1938)
Richard Day

Cinematography

The Great Waltz(1938)
Joseph Ruttenberg
Winner
Algiers(1938)
James Wong Howe
Army Girl(1938)
Ernest Miller, Harry Wild
Jezebel(1938)
Ernest Haller
Mad About Music(1938)
Joseph Valentine
Merrily We Live(1938)
Norbert Brodine
Suez(1938)
Peverell Marley
The Buccaneer(1938)
Victor Milner
The Young in Heart(1938)
Leon Shamroy
Vivacious Lady(1938)
Robert de Grasse
You Can't Take It with You(1938)
Joseph Walker

Music (Original Score)

The Adventures of Robin Hood(1938)
Erich Wolfgang Korngold
Winner
Army Girl(1938)
Victor Young
Block-Heads(1938)
Marvin Hatley
Blockade(1938)
Werner Janssen
Breaking the Ice(1938)
Victor Young
If I Were King(1938)
Richard Hageman
Marie Antoinette(1938)
Herbert Stothart
Pacific Liner(1939)
Russell Bennett
Suez(1938)
Louis Silvers
The Cowboy and the Lady(1938)
Alfred Newman
The Young in Heart(1938)
Franz Waxman

Music (Scoring)

Alexander's Ragtime Band(1938)
Alfred Newman
Winner
Carefree(1938)
Victor Baravalle
Girls' School(1938)
Morris Stoloff, Gregory Stone
Jezebel(1938)
Max Steiner
Mad About Music(1938)
Charles Previn, Frank Skinner
Storm Over Bengal(1938)
Cy Feuer
Sweethearts(1938)
Herbert Stothart
The Goldwyn Follies(1938)
Alfred Newman
The Young in Heart(1938)
Franz Waxman
There Goes My Heart(1938)
Marvin Hatley
Tropic Holiday(1938)
Boris Morros

Best Picture

You Can't Take It with You(1938)
Columbia
Winner
Alexander's Ragtime Band(1938)
20th Century-Fox
Boys Town(1938)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Four Daughters(1938)
Warner Bros.-First National
Grand Illusion(1937)
Realization D'Art Cinematographique
Jezebel(1938)
Warner Bros.
Pygmalion(1938)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Test Pilot(1938)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
The Adventures of Robin Hood(1938)
Warner Bros.-First National
The Citadel(1938)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Music (Song)

The Big Broadcast of 1938(1938)
Thanks For The Memory in "The Big Broadcast of 1938" Music by Ralph Rainger; Lyrics by Leo Robin
Winner
Alexander's Ragtime Band(1938)
Now It Can Be Told in "Alexander's Ragtime Band" Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
Carefree(1938)
Change Partners in "Carefree" Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
Going Places(1938)
Jeepers Creepers in "Going Places" Music by Harry Warren; Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
Mannequin(1938)
Always And Always in "Mannequin" Music by Edward Ward; Lyrics by Chet Forrest and Bob Wright
Merrily We Live(1938)
Merrily We Live in "Merrily We Live" Music by Phil Charig; Lyrics by Arthur Quenzer
That Certain Age(1938)
My Own in "That Certain Age" Music by Jimmy McHugh; Lyrics by Harold Adamson
The Cowboy and the Lady(1938)
The Cowboy And The Lady in "The Cowboy and the Lady" Music by Lionel Newman; Lyrics by Arthur Quenzer
The Lady Objects(1938)
A Mist Over The Moon in "The Lady Objects" Music by Ben Oakland; Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
Under Western Stars(1938)
Dust in "Under Western Stars" Music and Lyrics by Johnny Marvin

Sound Recording

The Cowboy and the Lady(1938)
United Artists Studio Sound Department, Thomas T. Moulton, Sound Director
Winner
Army Girl(1938)
Republic Studio Sound Department, Charles L. Lootens, Sound Director
Four Daughters(1938)
Warner Bros. Studio Sound Department, Nathan Levinson, Sound Director
If I Were King(1938)
Paramount Studio Sound Department, Loren L. Ryder, Sound Director
Merrily We Live(1938)
Hal Roach Studio Sound Department, Elmer A. Raguse, Sound Director
Suez(1938)
20th Century-Fox Studio Sound Department, Edmund H. Hansen, Sound Director
Sweethearts(1938)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio Sound Department, Douglas Shearer, Sound Director
That Certain Age(1938)
Universal Studio Sound Department, Bernard B. Brown, Sound Director
Vivacious Lady(1938)
RKO Radio Studio Sound Department, John Aalberg, Sound Director
You Can't Take It with You(1938)
Columbia Studio Sound Department, John Livadary, Sound Director

Writing (Original Story)

Boys Town(1938)
Dore Schary, Eleanore Griffin
Winner
Alexander's Ragtime Band(1938)
Irving Berlin
Angels with Dirty Faces(1938)
Rowland Brown
Blockade(1938)
John Howard Lawson
Mad About Music(1938)
Marcella Burke, Frederick Kohner
Test Pilot(1938)
Frank Wead

Actor

Boys Town(1938)
Spencer Tracy
Winner
Algiers(1938)
Charles Boyer
Angels with Dirty Faces(1938)
James Cagney
Pygmalion(1938)
Leslie Howard
The Citadel(1938)
Robert Donat

Actor in a Supporting Role

Kentucky(1938)
Walter Brennan
Winner
Algiers(1938)
Gene Lockhart
Four Daughters(1938)
John Garfield
If I Were King(1938)
Basil Rathbone
Marie Antoinette(1938)
Robert Morley

Actress

Jezebel(1938)
Bette Davis
Winner
Marie Antoinette(1938)
Norma Shearer
Pygmalion(1938)
Wendy Hiller
Three Comrades(1938)
Margaret Sullavan
White Banners(1938)
Fay Bainter

Actress in a Supporting Role

Jezebel(1938)
Fay Bainter
Winner
Merrily We Live(1938)
Billie Burke
Of Human Hearts(1938)
Beulah Bondi
The Great Waltz(1938)
Miliza Korjus
You Can't Take It with You(1938)
Spring Byington

Directing

You Can't Take It with You(1938)
Frank Capra
Winner
Angels with Dirty Faces(1938)
Michael Curtiz
Boys Town(1938)
Norman Taurog
Four Daughters(1938)
Michael Curtiz
The Citadel(1938)
King Vidor

Film Editing

The Adventures of Robin Hood(1938)
Ralph Dawson
Winner
Alexander's Ragtime Band(1938)
Barbara McLean
Test Pilot(1938)
Tom Held
The Great Waltz(1938)
Tom Held
You Can't Take It with You(1938)
Gene Havlick

Short Subject (Cartoon)

Ferdinand the Bull(1938)
Walt Disney, Producer
Winner
Brave Little Tailor(1938)
Walt Disney, Producer
Good Scouts(1938)
Walt Disney, Producer
Hunky and Spunky(1938)
Paramount
Mother Goose Goes Hollywood(1938)
Walt Disney, Producer

Writing (Screenplay)

Pygmalion(1938)
Screenplay and Dialogue by George Bernard Shaw; Adaptation by W. P. Lipscomb, Cecil Lewis, Ian Dalrymple
Winner
Boys Town(1938)
John Meehan, Dore Schary
Four Daughters(1938)
Julius J. Epstein, Lenore Coffee
The Citadel(1938)
Ian Dalrymple, Frank Wead, Elizabeth Hill
You Can't Take It with You(1938)
Robert Riskin

Short Subject (One-reel)

That Mothers Might Live(1938)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Winner
The Great Heart(1938)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Timber Toppers(1938)
20th Century-Fox

Short Subject (Two-reel)

The Declaration of Independence(1938)
Warner Bros.
Winner
Swingtime in the Movies(1938)
Warner Bros.
They're Always Caught(1938)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Special Award

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs(1937)
Special Award
Winner
Spawn of the North(1938)
Special Award
Winner
Sweethearts(1938)
Special Award
Winner