The
Academy Honorary Award, instituted in 1948 for the
21st Academy Awards (previously called the
Special Award), is given by the discretion of the Board of Governors of the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to celebrate motion picture achievements that are not covered by existing
Academy Awards, although prior winners of competitive Academy Awards are not excluded from receiving the Honorary Award. Unless otherwise specified,
Honorary Award recipients receive the same gold Oscar statuettes received by winners of the competitive Academy Awards. Unlike the
Special Achievement Award instituted in
1972, those on whom the Academy confers its Honorary Award do not have to meet "the Academy's eligibility year and deadline requirements." Like the Special Achievement Award, the
Special Award and
Honorary Award have been used to reward significant achievements of the year that did not fit in existing categories, subsequently leading the Academy to establish several new categories, and to honor exceptional career achievements, contributions to the motion picture industry, and service to the Academy. The Academy Honorary Award is often awarded in preference to those with noted achievements in motion pictures who have nevertheless never won an Academy Award. Thus, many of its recipients are
Classic Hollywood stars, such as
Lillian Gish,
Barbara Stanwyck, and
Lauren Bacall.