Nothing But the Best: "Oliver!" (1968)

Mark Lester in Oliver!

Welcome to the series Nothing But the Best in which I chronicle all of the Academy Award Best Picture winners as they celebrate their anniversaries. Instead of going in chronological order, this series will be presented on each film's anniversary and will feature personal opinions as well as facts regarding its legacy and behind the scenes information. The goal is to create an in depth essay for each film while looking not only how the medium progressed, but how the film is integral to pop culture. In some cases, it will be easy. Others not so much. Without further ado, let's start the show.

R.I.P. Ron Moody (1924-2015)

Ron Moody

On June 11, actor Ron Moody passed away in a London Hospital. He was born Ronald Moodnick in 1924 and legally changed his name to Ron Moody in 1930. He was related to director Laurence Moody and Clare Lawrence. He has also said of himself to be 100% Jewish. Having had a career in the Royal Air Force, his initial dreams of being a technician were sidetracked when he found his new love: theater. While he was a versatile actor who participated in various genres, he will always be remembered as the character Fagin in the stage and film adaptation of Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist." In both cases, he received award nominations and considered it fate that he would play the character on and off between 1960 and 1984.