This year’s Oscars ceremony commemorates 71 years since its inaugural televised broadcast, bringing the allure of Hollywood’s elite directly into the living rooms of viewers. Established in 1929, the Oscars have upheld a formal tradition, complete with a white-tie dress code, synonymous with unabashed glamour.
Sid Grauman, the iconic showman of Hollywood, is often credited with initiating the red carpet tradition. In 1922, for the premiere of “Robin Hood” in Hollywood, he rolled out a crimson pathway in front of his Egyptian theater.
However, the concept of the red carpet traces back to Aeschylus’s “Agamemnon” in 458 BC, depicting the hero’s return home to find a regal purple carpet laid out by his wife, which he refuses to tread upon, deeming himself unworthy of divine paths.
Amy Henderson, a historian, suggests that in more recent times, the red carpet initially found its utility in railroads. In 1902, New York utilized lavish crimson carpets to guide passengers boarding trains.
During Hollywood’s golden era, the red carpet emerged as a rare platform where fans could catch glimpses of their favorite stars and seek autographs beyond the studio confines, devoid of today’s paparazzi and internet frenzy.
Decades later, when the red carpet made its debut at the Oscars in 1961, its vibrant hue remained imperceptible to viewers watching the black-and-white broadcast at home, given the absence of color television technology.
A representative from the Academy’s library contends that the introduction of the red carpet wasn’t solely for glamour but served as a practical means to escort nominees, such as Elizabeth Taylor, Burt Lancaster, and Janet Leigh, from their vehicles to the ceremony’s entrance at the new venue, the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium.
