Today we revisit the 50th Academy Awards, which were presented on April 3, 1978, on ABC (click here for previous Flashbacks).

The evening begins with Debbie Reynolds' performance of "Look How Far We've Come", which includes appearances by many past Oscar winners, including Cliff Robertson, Cloris Leachman, Patty Duke Astin, Louise Fletcher, Joel Grey, Anne Baxter, Frank Capra, Ernest Borgnine, Donna Reed, Mickey Rooney, George Chakiris, Rita Moreno, Burl Ives, Gale Sondergaard, Irwin Allen, Red Buttons, Eva Marie Saint, Marvin Hamlisch, Tony Bill, Dorothy Malone, John Green, Haskell Wexler, Teresa Wright, Edward Anhalt, George Kennedy, Edith Head, Edmond O'Brien, Conrad Hall, Beatrice Straight, Henry Mancini, George Cukor, Claire Trevor, John Avildsen, John Williams, Joan Fontaine and Jack Albertson. Howard W. Koch (AMPAS President) then introduces Bette Davis and Gregory Peck, who explain the voting rules, and Bob Hope, who hosts the Oscars for his 14th and final time.



John Travolta presents the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress to Vanessa Redgrave for Julia, and she makes a politically charged acceptance speech.



Mark Hamill, C-3PO and R2-D2 present Special Achievement awards for Best Sound Effects Editing to Frank E. Warner for Close Encounters of the Third Kind and to Benjamin Burtt, Jr. for the creation of the alien, creature and robot voices in Star Wars,



Jodie Foster, Paul Williams and Mickey Mouse present the awards for Best Animated Short to Co Hoedeman for The Sand Castle and Best Live Action Short to Beverly Shaffer and Yuki Yoshida for I'll Find a Way.



William Holden and Barbara Stanwyck present the Oscar for Best Sound to Don MacDougall, Ray West, Bob Minkler and Derek Ball for Star Wars, and Joan Fontaine presents the Oscar for Best Visual Effects to John Stears, John Dykstra, Richard Edlund, Grant McCune and Robert Blalack for Star Wars.



Raquel Welch and Kirk Douglas present the awards for Best Documentary Feature to John Korty, Dan McCann and Warren L. Lockhart for Who Are the Debolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? and for Best Documentary Short to John Joseph and Jan Stussy for Gravity Is My Enemy.



Billy Dee Williams presents a Scientific and Technical Award to Garrett Brown and the Cinema Products Corporation Engineering Staff under the supervision of John Jurgens for the invention and development of Steadicam.



Greer Garson and Henry Winkler present the Oscar for Best Art Direction to John Barry, Norman Reynolds, Leslie Dilley and Roger Christian for Star Wars.



Eva Marie Saint and Jack Valenti (the president of the Motion Picture Association of America) present the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film to France for Madame Rosa, which is accepted by director Moshé Mizrahi and producer Raymond Danon.



Michael Caine and Maggie Smith present (and accept) the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor to Jason Robards for Julia.



Natalie Wood presents the Oscar for Best Costume Design to John Mollo for Star Wars after the nominated costumes are modeled by Cyd Charisse, Stockard Channing, Camilla Sparv, Priscilla Barnes, Eleanor Parker, Deborah Raffin, Michele Lee, Karen Black, Susan George and Kermit Eller.



Henry Mancini, Johnny Green and Olivia Newton-John present the Oscars for Best Original Score to John Williams for Star Wars and Best Original Song or Adaptation Score to Jonathan Tunick for A Little Night Music.




Goldie Hawn and Jon Voight present the Oscar for Best Cinematography to Vilmos Zsigmond for Close Encounters of the Third Kind.



Bette Davis presents the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to Charlton Heston.



Farrah Fawcett and Marcello Mastroianni present the Oscar for Best Film Editing to Paul Hirsch, Marcia Lucas and Richard Chew for Star Wars.



Olivia De Havilland presents an Honorary Oscar to Margaret Booth for her exceptional contribution to the art of film editing in the motion picture industry,



Sammy Davis, Jr. and Marvin Hamlisch perform "Come Light the Candles" as an "In Memoriam" tribute to Zero Mostel, Joan Crawford, Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley, Groucho Marx, Charlie Chaplin and others.



The only nominated song available online is Aretha Franklin's rendition of "Nobody Does It Better" from The Spy Who Loved Me.



Fred Astaire presents the Oscar for Best Original Song to Joseph Brooks for "You Light Up My Life" from You Light Up My Life (which Debby Boone performed earlier in the show).



Director/producer Stanley Kramer presents the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to producer Walter Mirisch.



Cicely Tyson and diiector King Vidor present (and accept) the Oscar for Best Director to Woody Allen for Annie Hall.



Screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky criticizes Vanessa Redgrave's acceptance speech before presenting the Oscars for Best Original Screenplay to Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman for Annie Hall and Best Adapted Screenplay to Alvin Sargent for Julia.



Walter Matthau introduces Janet Gaynor (who was the first Best Actress winner in 1929) to present the Oscar for Best Actress to Diane Keaton for Annie Hall.




Sylvester Stallone presents the Oscar for Best Actor to Richard Dreyfuss for The Goodbye Girl.




Jack Nicholson presents the Oscar for Best Picture to producer Charles H. Joffe for Annie Hall.