"It was just after 8:00 p.m. on May 16, 1929, in the Blossom Room of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, and the first were being handed out. There was no red carpet, little press, and even less suspense, the winners having been announced three months earlier. The ceremony wasn't even broadcast over radio. After just fifteen minutes, the awards had been handed out, and the guests turned their attention back to their desserts. "Nobody felt there was any historical significance," recalled. Gaynor was there to receive her Merit Award for Best Actress, as it was called there, but she was more excited about meeting and ."