When a new year rolls around, a few of us immediately think of award shows, in which artist of different platforms and genres are honored for their hard work and dedication to the platform of their choosing. But what others might think at this time of the year is the milestone events of a specific sporting event. What set these events apart is the former is actually the platform of appreciation for the best of the best, while the other is about the competition and sporting spirit. In this month alone, there are currently two crown jewel events from two different worlds in a span of three weeks. One is for honoring the best of the filming industry, the other is the greatest American motor race ever held.
Last month we witnessed the Grammy Awards Ceremony by The Recording Academy, honoring the best artists of the music industry (but to be honest, with today’s music standards, I don’t think there is any to be proud of). Tonight, by the time of writing, we are just hours away for the most prestigious award shows ever witnessed, the Academy Award Ceremony, also known as the Oscars. This particular ceremony specifically presented for the filming industry, organized by the Academy of Motion Arts and Sciences. The history of the Oscars can be traced back to 1929, where the first ever award took place at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles, California. At the time, the ceremony took place at a private dinner, honoring the best of the industry of 1927 and 1928. Emil Jannings and Janet Gaynor were the first recipient of Best Actor and Best Actress Award respectively, and the silent war movie Wings directed by William A. Wellman won Best Picture Award (Outstanding Picture Award at the time). At last year’s awards, Egyptian-American actor Rami Malek snatched the Best Actor Honors with his role as the ever-flamboyant Queen vocalist Freddie Mercury from the movie Bohemian Rhapsody (the movie shares the title with the 1976 hit single from the album A Night at The Opera by the band). On the women’s side of the spectrum, Olivia Coleman was the 2018 winner for Best Actress on the movie The Favourite as Queen Anne of England, Scotland and Ireland. Best Picture went to the comedy-drama movie Green Book, starring Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali. On this year’s edition, method actor Joaquin Phoenix is predicted to win the award for his brilliant acting as the sadist clown Joker from the namesake movie, directed by Todd Phillips. For the Best Actress, the field is pretty much competitive, with names like Cynthia Erivo, Scarlett Johansson, and Saoirse Ronan currently aiming for the honor. On the Best Picture field, there is a prediction that the award is coming to either the aforementioned Joker, Ford V Ferrari, or the Korean comedy/thriller Parasite.
Another aspect of events this caliber is to establish a legacy and put their names in the history book as the fastest from the rest. In the world of motorsport, the Daytona 500 mile race is arguably one of the most prestigious racing events in history, alongside events organized by National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) like the Brickyard 400 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway or the Southern 500 in Darlington, South Carolina and similar events on the global scale like the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix or the 24 hours of Le Mans. Referenced by the name, this race event is held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, which covers 500 miles (800 km) and lasted for 200 laps. On the first edition of the race (dated 1959), Lee Petty (father of 7-time NASCAR Cup champion Richard and grandfather of Kyle) won the race driving an Oldsmobile. Richard would go on to win the event on a record total seven times, his final win happened in 1981. The race can be also considered as a curse for one Dale Earnhardt. His first and only win came in 1998, after what racing commentator Mike Joy described as “20 years of trying, 20 years of frustration” after a late race caution flag. Three years later, he succumbed to his injuries as a result of a horror last-lap wreck involving him and Elliot Sadler. At the time, beside competing as the driver of the #3 Goodwrench Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing, he was also competing as Team Owner, fielding three Chevrolets for Dale Earnhardt, Inc. with Steve Park driving the #1 car, Michael Waltrip (who went on to win the race) with the #15 team, and his son Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the #8 car. The famed #3 Chevrolet returned to Daytona 500 victory lane in the hands of Austin Dillon, Childress’ grandson in 2018. For this year’s event, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin will start the race as the defending winner of the Harley J. Earl Trophy. His teammate Kyle Busch is the defending Cup Series champion and two-time Cup Series winner; but has yet to win the 500-mile race. Kyle’s brother Kurt won the race in 2017.
It’s safe to say that whenever an event is called a “crown jewel” one, there is going to be something of a prestige and glamour, yet competitive. Whether you are honoring the best the entertainment business has to offer, or to be recorded in history as the fastest race driver of them all, these two events are setting the tone of what has been a great year of entertainment or as the teaser of what we are going to experience during the course of one year. What we are witnessing is history, and will be forever be remembered.
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