56th Academy Awards

The 56th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 1983 and took place on April 9, 1984, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, beginning at 6:00 p.m. PST / 9:00 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, AMPAS presented Academy Awards (commonly referred to as Oscars) in 22 categories. The ceremony, televised in the United States by ABC, was produced by Jack Haley Jr. and directed by Marty Pasetta. Comedian and talk show emcee Johnny Carson hosted the show for the fifth time. He first presided over the 51st ceremony held in 1979 and last hosted the 54th ceremony held in 1982. Nine days earlier, in a ceremony held at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, on March 31, the Academy Scientific and Technical Awards were presented by hosts Joan Collins and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Terms of Endearment won five awards, including Best Picture. Other winners included Fanny and Alexander and The Right Stuff with four awards, Tender Mercies with two awards, and Return of the Jedi, Boys and Girls, Flamenco at 5:15, Flashdance, He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin', Sundae in New York, The Year of Living Dangerously, and Yentl with one. The telecast garnered 42.1 million viewers in the United States.

The nominees for the 56th Academy Awards were announced on February 16, 1984, by Academy president Gene Allen and actor Mickey Rooney. Terms of Endearment earned the most nominations with eleven; The Right Stuff came in second with eight. The winners were announced at the awards ceremony on April 9. James L. Brooks was the third writer-director-producer to win three Oscars for the same film. With four wins, Fanny and Alexander became the most awarded foreign language film in Academy Award history at the time. Linda Hunt is the only person to win an Oscar for playing a character of the opposite sex. Best Original Song co-winner Irene Cara became the first black woman to win an Oscar in a non-acting category.

Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface and indicated with a double dagger (‡).

The award recognizes individuals whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the motion picture industry.

The following individuals, listed in order of appearance, presented awards or performed musical numbers:

In September 1983, the Academy hired film producer Jack Haley Jr. to produce the telecast for the third time. "We are excited to have Jack Haley Jr. back on the Academy Awards program this year," said AMPAS President Gene Allen in a press release announcing the selection. "We know that his outstanding talents will ensure an innovative and entertaining approach to the presentation of the Oscar." That same month, it was announced that comedian and The Tonight Show Starring host Johnny Carson would preside over emceeing duties for the 1984 ceremony. Allen explained the decision to hire Carson, saying, "In past years, Johnny has been a vital element in the ever-increasing success and popularity of the Oscar presentations. We are extremely pleased that we will be able to draw once again on his wit and charisma to host this special entertainment event."

Several other people were involved with the production of the ceremony. Musician Quincy Jones served as musical director for the ceremony, where he conducted an overture performed by the orchestra at the beginning of the show. Former child actress Shirley Temple made a special appearance at the beginning of the telecast to discuss her memories of the 7th ceremony in 1935, where she received the Academy Juvenile Award. Singers Sammy Davis Jr. and Liza Minnelli performed "There's No Business Like Show Business" at the conclusion of the telecast. Marty Pasetta served as director for the telecast. Notably, this was the first Oscars ceremony where the voting rules were announced at the end of the telecast as opposed to the beginning.