The Beginnings of the Tony Awards

Since 1947, the Tony Awards - formally known as the Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre - have been presented each year at a ceremony held in New York City. Named in honor of the late Antoinette Perry - actress, director, producer, and American Theatre Wing co-founder who had passed away only recently before the first Tony Awards ceremony was held - the aim of the Tony Awards is the celebration of honorees associated with Broadway performances and productions, and the recognition of excellence in live American theatre.

In 1939, the American Theatre Wing, the co-presenters of the Tony Awards, had been established in Manhattan as a non-profit organization whose mission was to support excellence in theatre, and in 1947 held the first Tony Awards ceremony to recognize achievements specific to Broadway theatre. While about 5000 guests attend the celebratory theatre gala today, and millions more join in spirit as they watch the television broadcast of the awards show, about 1000 attendants made an appearance at the inaugural Tony Awards ceremony, which took place in the Grand Ballroom of New York City's Waldorf Astoria hotel. After a night of dinner, dancing, and other organized entertainment, the first Tony Awards were presented at the midnight hour. During this and the next year's awards ceremony, winners received a scroll, cigarette lighter, and money clip (for male winners) or compact (for female winners). There were only eleven awards announced that year, but today the Tonys offer awards in about 27 categories honoring plays and their actors, creators, directors, and technicians.

It was not until the third ceremony, in 1949, that the first Award medallions were presented to the winning nominees in Antoinette Perry's name, and in honor of her commitment to perfection and the absolute highest standards of quality when it came to the theatre.

The medallions awarded to honorees are designed with the masks of comedy and tragedy on one side, and the profile of Antoinette Perry on the other side. The medallion is composed of a nickel-plated brass and bronze mix and suspended on a nickel-plated pewter swivel above a black acrylic glass base - an addition that was not made until 1967. After each ceremony, each awarded medallion is number for tracking purposes and engraved with its winner's name. Other unique crystal awards can be found online for companies looking for that special recognition for its highest performers.

In 1965, Helen Menken, president of the American Theatre Wing, announced that she would retire. Worried that her retirement could bring an end to the Tony Awards, the League of New York Theatres began a partnership with the American Theatre Wing and convinced her to remain on board. However, when Menken died the following year, the 1966 awards ceremony was held at the Rainbow Room without entertainment or public audience, for the one and only time in Tony Award history.

The next year, in 1967, the American Theatre Wing's new president, Isabelle Stevenson, invited The Broadway League as co-presenters of the awards ceremony, which was held in a Broadway theatre rather than its traditional hotel ballroom setting. This marked the first time that the awards would be televised nationwide, at that time for an hour long compared to today's three hour long Tony Awards broadcast.

The author of this article is 10 year veteran in the crystal awards and recognition gifts industry.

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Televising the Tony Awards

Originally, the Tony Awards ceremony was broadcast over WOR radio and The Mutual Network. 1956 was the first year the awards ceremony was televised, but only locally on the DuMont Television Network. Since 1967, the ceremony has been broadcast nationally, in a live program including songs, video clips, and presentations associated with the nominees. With the exception of the 1999 ceremony held at the Gershwin Theatre, since 1997, the ceremony has been broadcast live on CBS from New York's Radio City Music Hall, usually during the first week of June.

Until 1978, the broadcast had aired on various television networks from year to year, but beginning then, the Tonys made CBS their home network. For the first six years, however, CBS partnered with PBS for the latter station to broadcast the first ten awards during the first hour of the ceremony, with the remaining two hour broadcast taking place on CBS. The partnership continued until 2003, when CBS finally allocated an entire 3 hour time slot to the ceremony, allowing for an uninterrupted presentation.

In 1997, the awards ceremony shifted away from its Broadway locale, and was broadcast from the 6000-seat Radio City Music Hall for the first time, which not only enabled the ceremony to welcome cast and crew for each nominated show, but also to invite members of the general public as attendants, The Tonys have been held there ever since, with the exception of 2009, when the hall was closed for renovations.

Generally, the number of viewers for the Tony Awards do not match the viewership of the comparable ceremonies for film, television, or music, despite being considered the highest honor rewarded in American theatre. Nevertheless, CBS treasures its position as home of the telecast, as the wealthy, intelligent, affluent audience that the Tony Awards show does draw is highly valued by the premium advertisers who appreciate the upscale viewers, thus dominating the expensive advertising slots offered throughout the broadcast. Corresponding to this upscale audience, the glamorous mask trophies are a step above the standard crystal award.

There are several notable Tony Award record breakers.

• The record-holder for the most Tony Awards won is Harold Prince, with 21 honors during the course of his theatre career: eight for Best Direction, eight for Best Production, two for Best Musical, and three special Tony Awards.

• Stephen Sondheim holds the record for the most Tony Awards won of any composer, with eight to his name.

• Bob Fosse holds the record for the most Tony Awards won of any choreographer, with eight.

• Angela Lansbury is the only actress in the history of the Tony Awards to be nominated in all four performance awards: Best Actress in a Musical (for Mame in 1966, Dear World in1969, Gypsy in 1975, and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in 1979), Best Actress in a Play (for Deuce in 2007), Best Featured Actress in a Play (for Blithe Spirit in 2009), and Best Featured Actress in a Musical (for A Little Night Music in 2010). She is also tied with Julie Harris for the most total wins for performance Tony Awards, of which they both have five.

• Thus far, in Tony Awards history, the musical to receive the most Tony Awards has been The Producers, winning twelve awards out of its fifteen nominations in the 2001 ceremony, the prized Best Musical award among them. The Producers is also tied with Billy Elliot The Musical for the most nominations for a single musical, which also had fifteen nominations in 2009.

• The record for the greatest number of awards received by a single non-musical play goes to The Coast of Utopia, winning seven awards, Best Play among them, in 2007.

• So far in the history of the Awards show, three musicals have won all six of the most coveted honors, (Best Musical, Best Score, Best Book, Best Leading Actor, Best Actress, and Best Direction): Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, in 1979; South Pacific, in 2008; and Hairspray, in 2002.

• As of 2010, the first show to win the Tony for Best Production three times is La Cage aux Folles, with its original staging winning in 1984, as well as its later versions winning in 2005 and 2010.

The author of this article is 10 year veteran in the crystal awards and recognition gifts industry.

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