For which film did Henry Fonda win an Oscar for Best Actor?

On Golden Pond is a 1981 American drama film directed by Mark Rydell. The screenplay by Ernest Thompson was adapted from his 1979 play of the same name.

Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was a celebrated American film and stage actor with a career spanning more than five decades.

Henry Fonda won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama and the Academy Award for Best Actor in what was his final film role. Co-star Katharine Hepburn won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role and the Academy Award for Best Actress as did Thompson for his script, and there were a further seven Oscar nominations for the film, including Jane Fonda, who played the daughter. The film co-starred Dabney Coleman and Doug McKeon.

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67 Comments

nancywriter

The film, "On Golden Pond," reminded me of my own grandparents who owned summer cabins on a lake in Minnesota when I was a child. I loved all of Henry Fonda's movies, and I loved that Fonda was proud of America and a patriot but in a modest and humble way like his good friend, actor James Stewart. Fonda's favorite movie among those he made throughout his acting career was "Twelve Angry Men," an extraordinary film with an ensemble of truly gifted actors. His son, Peter Fonda, was in a wonderful film, "Ulee's Gold," in which he plays a beekeeper in Florida. It evokes the same impact and emotion as many of the roles his father played in his career. Peter Fonda received a well-deserved Academy Award nomination for his performance in the film.

harmbrust

I can't believe it took so many years for him to win an Oscar. At that point it was more in respect of the actor.

JohnnyRoulette

nancywriter, Stewart and Fonda did both love their country, but they disagreed so much, politically, that they got to a point where they never discussed the subject, in order to preserve their friendship. After serving in combat, Stewart came back refusing to do any military movie that glorified war. His stepson was killed in Vietnam.

JohnnyRoulette

Good question. I missed it. He deserved one for On Golden Pond, but I’m stunned he didn’t win for 12 Angry Men.

snowballs

Most of this film was done right here in N.H .

Tammi Brass

Love that movie so much! <3

lankford smock

It's a shame that he played in so many great movies only to win an Academy Award which was to have been his last movie.

Yevette Allen

Got it

wordster

Couple of comments are necessary. L L Adams: you don't know jack; calling Katharine Hepburn "an evil Communist" is one of the stupidest things I've ever seen on Quora, shows how ignorant you can be. As for you, Toots66, you are a dupe of right-wing propaganda. Opposing an ill-conceived, immoral, unnecessary and illegal war is not treason. If you really want to call someone a traitor, get your facts straight, starting with a look to that house on Pennsylvania Avenue for the Moron-In-Chief.

wordster

He won it more for his body of work than that picture. He should have won for 12 Angry Men but didn't. As for On Golden Pond winning for best screenplay, nuts. That script was junk; it only won because of the Fondas and Kate Hepburn, all of whom gave fine performances. It was also Henry's last picture, as he was dying, and the reunion with his daughter, both onscreen and in real life carried the picture to its wins emotionally. He gave many oscar-worthy performance during his life, and only won at the last moments of his career. Jane accepted for him; I remember listening to her heart-rending speech.