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AFI Life Achievement Award

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AFI Life Achievement Award
Logo of AFI
Awarded forHonoring an individual whose lifetime contribution in motion pictures and television has enriched American culture.
LocationLos Angeles
Presented byAmerican Film Institute
Reward(s)Trophy
First awarded1973; 51 years ago (1973)[1]
Currently held byNicole Kidman
Websiteafi.com
Television/radio coverage
NetworkTNT

The AFI Life Achievement Award was established by the board of directors of the American Film Institute on February 26, 1973, to honor a single individual for their lifetime contribution to enriching American culture through motion pictures and television.[2] The recipient is selected and honored at an annual ceremony, with the award presented by a master of ceremonies and, recently, the prior year's recipient.

The AFI's trustees initially specified that "The recipient must be one who fundamentally advanced the art of film and whose achievements had been acknowledge by film scholars, critics, their individual peers and the general public". The trustees also specified "That the work of the recipient must have withstood the test of time".

History of the award

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Director John Ford was the unanimous choice of the board of trustees for the first award as he "clearly stands preeminent in the history of motion pictures."

President Richard Nixon attended the gala dinner at which Ford was presented the award on March 31, 1973.[2]

The board of trustees later amended the "test of time" requirement to enable the AFI Life Achievement Award to be presented to individuals with active careers, such as Steven Spielberg.[2]

Trivia and firsts

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Lillian Gish was awarded the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1984, aged 90, becoming the oldest recipient of the prize; Mel Brooks was the oldest male recipient, awarded at age 86 in 2013. Tom Hanks was awarded the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2002, becoming the youngest recipient of the prize at age 46 and Meryl Streep was the youngest female, awarded at age 54 in 2004.

Of the 49 honorees eleven have been women: Bette Davis (the first female recipient), Lillian Gish, Barbara Stanwyck, Elizabeth Taylor, Barbra Streisand, Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine, Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton, Julie Andrews, and Nicole Kidman.

Composer John Williams was the first recipient of the award to not be an actor or director.

Three sets of family members have received the award: father and son Kirk and Michael Douglas, father and daughter Henry and Jane Fonda, and siblings Warren Beatty and Shirley MacLaine.

Julie Andrews' award event was originally scheduled for April 25, 2020, with a broadcast on May 7 on TNT, but the event was postponed to 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This marks the first time an AFI Life Achievement Award event was delayed.[3][4] The event was rescheduled for November 11, 2021, before it was postponed a second time on October 4, 2021.[5]

Nicole Kidman’s ceremony was originally scheduled for June 10, 2023, but was postponed due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike.[6][7] Kidman is also the first Australian actress to receive the award, and the third non-American actress to be honored after British stars Elizabeth Taylor and Julie Andrews.[8]

Televised broadcast

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All Life Achievement Award ceremonies have been televised on major TV networks and cable channels: CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, USA, TV Land, TNT and TBS. Agreeing to appear at the televised ceremony apparently is part of the AFI's criteria for selecting the award. The televised ceremony generates income for the AFI, which is no longer funded by the US government.

Recipients

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The American Film Institute has awarded the AFI Life Achievement Award to one person each year since 1973. The 50th Award will be presented to Francis Ford Coppola in Los Angeles on April 26th, 2025. [9]

# Year Honoree Image Profession Age Date of Ceremony Network Award Presenter/Host
1 1973 John Ford Director 79 March 31, 1973 CBS Danny Kaye (host)
2 1974 James Cagney Actor 74 March 31, 1974 CBS Frank Sinatra (host)
3 1975 Orson Welles Actor, director, screenwriter 59 February 9, 1975 CBS Frank Sinatra (host)
4 1976 William Wyler Director 73 March 9, 1976 CBS Gregory Peck (host)
5 1977 Bette Davis Actress 68 March 1, 1977 CBS Jane Fonda (host)
6 1978 Henry Fonda Actor 72 March 15, 1978 CBS —
7 1979 Alfred Hitchcock Director 79 March 7, 1979 CBS Ingrid Bergman (host)
8 1980 James Stewart Actor 71 March 16, 1980 CBS Henry Fonda (host)
9 1981 Fred Astaire Actor 81 April 10, 1981 CBS David Niven (host)
10 1982 Frank Capra Director 84 March 4, 1982 CBS James Stewart (host)
11 1983 John Huston Actor, director, screenwriter 76 March 3, 1983 CBS Lauren Bacall (host)
12 1984 Lillian Gish Actress 90 March 1, 1984 CBS Douglas Fairbanks Jr. (host)
13 1985 Gene Kelly Actor, director 72 March 7, 1985 CBS Shirley MacLaine (host)
14 1986 Billy Wilder Director, screenwriter 79 March 6, 1986 NBC Jack Lemmon (host)
15 1987 Barbara Stanwyck Actress 79 April 9, 1987 ABC Jane Fonda (host)
16 1988 Jack Lemmon Actor 63 March 10, 1988 CBS Julie Andrews (host)
17 1989 Gregory Peck Actor 72 March 9, 1989 NBC Audrey Hepburn (host)
18 1990 David Lean Director, screenwriter 82 March 8, 1990 ABC Gregory Peck (host)
19 1991 Kirk Douglas Actor 74 March 7, 1991 CBS Michael Douglas (host)
20 1992 Sidney Poitier Actor, director 65 March 12, 1992 NBC Harry Belafonte (host)
21 1993 Elizabeth Taylor Actress 61 March 11, 1993 ABC Carol Burnett (host)
22 1994 Jack Nicholson Actor 56 March 3, 1994 CBS Mike Nichols
23 1995 Steven Spielberg Director 48 March 2, 1995 NBC Sidney Sheinberg
24 1996 Clint Eastwood Actor, director 65 February 29, 1996 ABC Steven Spielberg
25 1997 Martin Scorsese Director, screenwriter 54 February 20, 1997 CBS Gregory Peck
26 1998 Robert Wise Director 83 February 19, 1998 NBC Julie Andrews
27 1999 Dustin Hoffman Actor 61 February 18, 1999 ABC Jack Nicholson
28 2000 Harrison Ford Actor 57 February 17, 2000 CBS George Lucas & Steven Spielberg
29 2001 Barbra Streisand Actress, director 58 February 22, 2001[10] Fox Sidney Poitier
30 2002 Tom Hanks Actor 46 June 24, 2002 USA Network Steven Spielberg
31 2003 Robert De Niro Actor 59 June 12, 2003 USA Network Martin Scorsese
32 2004 Meryl Streep Actress 54 June 21, 2004 USA Network Mike Nichols
33 2005 George Lucas Director, screenwriter 61 June 9, 2005 USA Network Steven Spielberg
34 2006 Sean Connery Actor 75 June 8, 2006 USA Network Harrison Ford
35 2007 Al Pacino Actor 67 June 7, 2007 USA Network Sean Penn
36 2008 Warren Beatty Actor, director, screenwriter 71 June 12, 2008 USA Network Al Pacino
37 2009 Michael Douglas Actor 64 June 11, 2009 TV Land Jack Nicholson
38 2010 Mike Nichols Director 78 June 10, 2010 TV Land Meryl Streep
39 2011 Morgan Freeman Actor 74 June 9, 2011 TV Land Clint Eastwood
40 2012 Shirley MacLaine Actress 78 June 7, 2012 TV Land Meryl Streep
41 2013 Mel Brooks Actor, director, screenwriter 86 June 15, 2013 TNT Martin Scorsese
42 2014 Jane Fonda Actress 76 June 13, 2014 TNT Michael Douglas
43 2015 Steve Martin Actor, screenwriter 69 June 4, 2015 TBS Mel Brooks
44 2016 John Williams Composer 84 June 9, 2016 TNT Steven Spielberg
45 2017 Diane Keaton Actress 71 June 8, 2017 TNT Woody Allen
46 2018 George Clooney Actor, director, screenwriter 57 June 7, 2018 TNT Shirley MacLaine
47 2019 Denzel Washington Actor 64 June 6, 2019 TNT Spike Lee
2020 NOT AWARDED
2021 NOT AWARDED
48 2022 Julie Andrews Actress 86 June 9, 2022 TNT Carol Burnett
2023 NOT AWARDED
49 2024 Nicole Kidman Actress 56 April 27, 2024 TNT Meryl Streep
50 2025 Francis Ford Coppola Director, screenwriter 86 April 26, 2025 TBD TBD

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ "History of AFI". AFI.com. American Film Institute. Archived from the original on April 30, 2011. Retrieved May 5, 2011.
  2. ^ a b c "The AFI Life Achievement Awards". American Film Institute. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
  3. ^ "Julie Andrews to Receive 48th AFI Life Achievement Award". American Film Institute. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  4. ^ "AFI Tribute to Julie Andrews Postponed". American Film Institute. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
  5. ^ "The 48th AFI Life Achievement Award Tribute to Julie Andrews Rescheduled". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  6. ^ Gardner, Chris (November 22, 2022). "Nicole Kidman to Receive AFI Life Achievement Award". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on November 25, 2022. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
  7. ^ Tangcay, Jazz; Wu, Valerie (November 13, 2023). "AFI Gala Honoring Nicole Kidman Rescheduled for 2024 – Film News in Brief". Archived from the original on November 19, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  8. ^ Kreeps, Daniel (April 28, 2024). "Nicole Kidman Becomes First Australian to Earn AFI Life Achievement Award". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 28, 2024. Retrieved April 28, 2024.
  9. ^ "Francis Ford Coppola Named as the 50th AFI Life Achievement Award Honoree". American Film Institute. October 29, 2024. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  10. ^ "AFI Achievement". Archived from the original on November 25, 2012. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
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