1st Tony Awards

Infobox Tony Awards
name = 1st


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date = April 6, 1947
venue = Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York City, New York
host = Brock Pemberton
network = WOR (radio), Mutual Network (radio)
last =
next = 2ndThe First Tony Awards were presented by the American Theatre Wing and were held on April 6, 1947 in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. [http://www.tonyawards.com/en_US/archive/ History - The Story of the Tonys, tonyawards.com] ] The ceremony was broadcast on radio station WOR and the Mutual Network. The Master of Ceremonies was Brock Pemberton. The Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Awards, recognize achievement in live American theatre.

Musicals represented were: "Street Scene", "Brigadoon" and "Finian's Rainbow".

"Oklahoma!" and "Carousel" could not be nominated because, while although still playing their original runs at the time of the awards, they had opened too soon to qualify for them ("Oklahoma!" had opened in 1943, and "Carousel" in 1945).

The award itself was a scroll, an initialed sterling silver compact case for the women, and an engraved gold bill clip or cigarette lighter for the men.

Tickets to the first Tony event cost $7.00 each. [ [http://www.tonyawards.com/en_US/archive/dyk/index.html History - Trivia, tonyawards.com] ] More than 1,000 guests attended. The Antoinette Perry Awards got their nick-name, "Tonys", at the this first event, when Brock Pemberton handed out an award and called it a Tony. The name has stuck ever since. (He was referring to Antoinette Perry, whose nickname was Toni.) [ [http://www.tonyawards.com/en_US/news/articles/2003-05-08/200305081052417968171.html Newsroom - How the Tonys Got Their Name, tonyawards.com] ]

Winners

"Note: nominees are not shown"

Performance

*Actors—Play
**José Ferrer in "Cyrano de Bergerac"
**Fredric March in "Years Ago"

*Actresses—Play
**Ingrid Bergman in "Joan of Lorraine"
**Helen Hayes in "Happy Birthday"

*Supporting or Featured Actress—Play
**Patricia Neal in "Another Part of the Forest"

*Supporting or Featured Actor—Musical
**David Wayne in "Finian's Rainbow"

Craft

*Director
**Elia Kazan for "All My Sons"

*Costume Designer
**Lucinda Ballard for "Happy Birthday", "Another Part of the Forest", "Street Scene", "John Loves Mary", "The Chocolate Soldier"

*Choreographers
**Agnes de Mille for "Brigadoon"
**Michael Kidd for "Finian's Rainbow"

*Composer
**Kurt Weill

pecial awards

*Dora Chamberlain
*Mr. and Mrs. Ira Katzenberg
*Jules Leventhal
*P.A. MacDonald
*Burns Mantle
*Arthur Miller
*Vincent Sardi, Sr.

ee also

Tony Award

References

External links

* [http://www.tonyawards.com/en_US/archive/ceremonies/1947.html Tony Awards official site]
* [http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0153397.html 1947 Tony Awards, infoplease.com]