Actor: Ernest Borgnine

Ernest Borgnine won Best Actor for Marty, playing a lonely Bronx butcher, which is startling given that his previous notable role was the sadistic sergeant in From Here to Eternity.

That range defined the career. The Wild Bunch, The Dirty Dozen and Emperor of the North use the brutality; The Poseidon Adventure and McHale’s Navy use the warmth.

He worked constantly until his death at ninety-five, including a long late run in voice work as Mermaid Man in SpongeBob SquarePants, which introduced him to an entirely new audience.

Marty cost almost nothing and beat considerably larger films to Best Picture, which remains one of the more unlikely Academy results.