Stage, Screen & the Big Awards
Who was the first Black performer to win an Oscar — and who has won the most Grammys ever?
Why this month matters
Lights, camera, history. Behind every golden statue here is a barrier broken on the way to it.
The story
In 1940, Hattie McDaniel became the first Black performer to win an Academy Award. Sidney Poitier became the first Black man to win the Best Actor Oscar in 1964 and pushed Hollywood's doors open. In 2002, Halle Berry became the first Black woman to win Best Actress. Gordon Parks broke barriers as a great photographer and the first Black director of a major Hollywood film. On the music stage, Beyoncé became the most awarded artist in Grammy history. Across the Oscars, Emmys, Tonys, and Grammys — the rare "EGOT" — and the ESPY Awards in sport, Black artists have collected the highest honors and reshaped what the whole world watches and loves.
Fall down the rabbit hole
The throughline
The statues are wonderful — but the real prize is how many young performers now believe the stage belongs to them, too.