The Oscars is the world's preeminent awards show, the gold standard against which all others are judged.

Also known as the Academy Awards, the event honors excellence in cinematic achievements each year as voted upon by the 10,000-plus members of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. There are 23 "Awards of Merit," or competitive categories, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Actor and Best Screenplay (both Original and Adapted).

The nominations have historically been announced in January, with the ceremony revealing the big winners held in February or March.

The Academy itself was born in 1927, when a handful of studio titans dreamed up the group at MGM boss Louis B. Mayer's home. At first, there were no awards. Then, the Academy Awards were inaugurated in 1929 as a private dinner function in the Blossom Room of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Only one radio station covered the event that year.

Walt Disney is the person who has won the most competitive Oscars, with 22. Three films have taken home 11 Oscars in one year. They are: Ben-Hur, Titanic and The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. In the acting categories, Katherine Hepburn as won the most, with four statuettes to her name. The actor with the largest haul of Oscars is Daniel Day Lewis. He has three.

Since their debut, the Oscars have been staged at a number of venues including the Dolby Theatre, where they have been held since 2002.