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I was captivated by last year’s smash hit “Frozen,” not only for its stunning animation and catchy songs, but for its story, which featured female characters in primary, heroic roles. It is a story about women, in fact… the men are almost incidental.

We all make mistakes. From leisure suits in the ‘70s, to “hypercolor” clothing in the ‘80s, to rat tail haircuts anytime, we Americans are notorious for making choices that seemed like good ideas at the time. Despite our less-than-stellar judgment, we tend to demand more of our finest institutions. In particular, we expect our most prestigious award-givers to choose the right winners. Is that too much to ask? Take the Academy Awards (please!). Today, we thought it might be fun to go back through history and point out the most obvious mistakes in the history of the Oscars. Focusing on past recipients of the three major awards (Best Picture, Actor and Actress), we’ll identify the times when Oscar really fell down on the job. And, sad to say, it’s happened more than once.

As you might expect, I watch all genres of movies all the time, and loving the medium as I do, I pretty much enjoy them all. But I hold a particular affection for a good western. I love the fact that conflicts in these films are framed in fundamental terms: cleaning up a lawless town, or reclaiming stolen land. There’s black and white, and very little gray. And though guns will be drawn and blood spilled, it’s all happening so far away — in both time and distance — that you feel at a safe remove.

In the majority of cases where a single film evolves into a highly successful franchise, no one has any clue this might happen at the outset. Surprisingly often, success in Hollywood is the result of happy, fortuitous accidents.

To understand the power of “the cinema” in our past, and the comfort and escape it offered our forebears, we need only think back to the Great Depression, when many people would skip a meal to be able to afford going to the movies.

One way to mitigate the inevitable letdown of fading summer is to look ahead to fall sports. This hit me when I walked into a bar the other night and caught sight of those familiar royal blue Giants jerseys on TV. Yes, pre-season is here, and you can almost feel those cool autumn breezes.