Coppola, Godard to receive honorary Oscars

[August 26, 2010]  BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) -- Directors Francis Ford Coppola and Jean-Luc Godard, actor Eli Wallach and historian Kevin Brownlow are this year's recipients of the Governor's Awards from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Coppola will receive the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award, the academy said Wednesday, with Godard, Wallach and Brownlow receiving honorary Oscars. The prizes will be given at a dinner Nov. 13.

Coppola, the 71-year-old director of the "Godfather" trilogy, is already a five-time Oscar winner. Through his American Zoetrope studio, which he established in 1969, he has produced more than 30 films, including "The Black Stallion," "The Outsiders" and "Lost in Translation," which earned his daughter Sofia an Academy Award nomination for best director.

Godard, 79, is a key figure in the French New Wave who wrote about films before making shorts of his own. His 1960 feature debut, the crime drama "Breathless," is a hugely influential example of the movement.

He's credited with helping shape contemporary directors such as Martin Scorsese, Steven Soderbergh and Quentin Tarantino.

Wallach, 94, is a longtime character actor who has appeared in "The Magnificent Seven," "The Misfits" and "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly." He's also in Oliver Stone's upcoming "Wall Street" sequel, "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps."

Brownlow, 72, an author and documentarian, is considered the pre-eminent historian of the silent film era and a preservationist.

The Thalberg award, which is a bust of the film executive, goes to "a creative producer whose body of work reflects a consistently high quality of motion picture production," according to the academy.

Honorary Oscars are given for "extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the academy."

[Associated Press]

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