Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1956: Results

5. Elisha Cook, Jr in The Killing -  Cook plays his usual role of the weak willed criminal, but this is particularly good example of it.

 Best Scene: George returns home after the shootout.

4. Ward Bond in The Searchers - Bond does some very fine work here delivery the best comic moments of the film as well as being one of the few supporting players who can stand their ground with John Wayne's searing performance.

Best Scene: Ethan finishes the job.

3. Edward G. Robinson in The Ten Commandments - Robinson gives an entertaining and appropriately devious portrayal of every phase of his character's ever changing form of villainy.

Best Scene: Dathan gives the deliverer to Rameses.

2. Yul Brynner in The Ten Commandments - Brynner gives a very effective performance by bringing both the needed command and ego fitting for a villain such as Rameses.

Best Scene: "Moses Moses Moses"

1. Eli Wallach in Baby Doll - Good Predictions Luke, mcofra7, Michael Patison, and RatedRStar. Eli Wallach gives a wonderful performance creating striking up some truly fiery chemistry with his female co-star, as well as being impeccable delivering both the dramatic and comedic moments in the material. It is my favorite of these five performances, but this really is a leading performance.

Best Scene: Silva and Baby Doll on the swing.

Overall Rank:

1. Ed Wynn in The Great Man
2. Yul Brynner in The Ten Commandments
3. Anthony Quinn in Lust For Life
4. James Dean in Giant
5. Edward G. Robinson in The Ten Commandments
6. Ward Bond in The Searchers
7. Lee Marvin in Attack
8. Everett Sloane in Patterns 
9. Elisha Cook, Jr. in The Killing
10. Ed Begley in Patterns
11. Stephen Boyd in The Man Who Never Was
12. James Donald in Lust for Life 
13. Dennis Hopper in Giant
14. James Mason in Forever, Darling 
15. Walter Brennan in Good-Bye, My Lady
16. Anthony Perkins in Friendly Persuasion
17. Vincent Price in The Ten Commandments 
18. Timothy Carey in The Killing
19. Henry Jones in The Girl Can't Help It
20. Rod Steiger in The Harder They Fall
21. Keenan Wynn in The Great Man
22. Leo Genn in Moby Dick
23. Cedric Hardwicke in The Ten Commandments
24. Edmond O'Brien in The Girl Can't Help It
25. Henry Jones in The Bad Seed
26. Anthony Quayle in The Wrong Man
27. Walter Matthau in Bigger Than Life
28. Terry-Thomas in The Green Man
29. Fredric March in The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit
30. Sidney Poitier in Good-bye, My Lady
31. Robert Strauss in Attack
32. Ted de Corsia in The Killing
33. Richard Basehart in Moby Dick
34. Bernard Miles in The Man Who Knew Too Much
35. Jay C. Flippen in The Killing
36. Arthur O'Connell in Bus Stop
37. Orson Welles in Moby Dick
38. Lee J. Cobb in The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit
39. Louis Calhern in Forever, Darling
40. Cameron Prud'Homme in The Rainmaker
41. Keenan Wynn in The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit
42. Richard Jaeckel in Attack
43. Russ Morgan in The Great Man
44. Henry Brandon in The Searchers
45. Sal Mineo in Somebody Up There Likes Me
46. Minoru Chiaki in Samurai III: Duel At Ganryu Island
47. Leo McKern in X: The Unknown
48. Mickey Rooney in The Bold and the Brave
49. Dean Jagger in The Great Man
50. Joseph Sweeney in The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit
51. Robert Stack in Written on the Wind
52. James Edwards in The Killing
53. Everett Sloan in Somebody Up There Likes Me
54. John Carradine in The Ten Commandments
55. Robert Bray in Bus Stop
56. HB Warner The Ten Commandments
57. Robert Newton in Around the World in 80 Days
58. Louis Calhern in High Society
59. Trevor Howard in Around the World in 80 Days  
60. Raymond Huntley in The Green Man
61. Arthur O'Connell in The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit
62. Wendell Corey in The Rainmaker
63. Takashi Shimura in Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island
64. Akim Tamiroff in Anastasia
65. Louis Armstrong in High Society
66. Lloyd Bridges in The Rainmaker
67. Eddie Albert in Attack
68. Vince Edwards in The Killing
69. John Qualen in The Searchers
70. Felix Aylmer in Anastasia
71. John Derek in The Ten Commandments
72. Edward Chapman in X: The Unknown
73. Robert F. Simon in Bigger Than Life
74. Robert Keith in Written on the Wind
75. Paul Fix in The Bad Seed
76. Anthony Newley in X: The Unknown
77. Earl Holliman in The Rainmaker
78. Pedro Armendariz in The Conqueror
79. Friedrich von Ledebur in Moby Dick
80. John Hoyt in Forever, Darling
81. John Lund in High Society 
82. Richard Eyer in Friendly Persuasion
83. Lonny Chapman in Baby Doll
84. Harry Carey, Jr. in The Searchers
85. Martin Benson in The King and I
86. Ken Curtis in The Searchers
87. Thomas Gomez in The Conqueror 
88. Patrick Adiarte in The King and I
89. Ted de Corsia in The Conqueror 
90. Christopher Olsen in The Man Who Knew Too Much
91. Hank Worden in The Searchers
92. Christopher Olsen in Bigger Than Life

Next Year: 1972 Lead

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1956: Ward Bond in The Searchers

Ward Bond did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Reverend Captain Samuel Johnson Clayton in The Searchers.

Well let's go from the chief character actor for losers Elisha Cook Jr. to chief character actor for buddies of the main character Ward Bond, hey and they were both in The Maltese Falcon playing the roles they apparently fit best. Bond seemed to specialize playing supportive characters in the films either directed by John Ford, or starring John Wayne. Bond often would just be the guy there to offer a few kind words, but he sometimes would get more substantial roles. One of those examples is in The Searchers, I mean right for starters he plays both a Reverend and a Captain in the Texas rangers. Bond also this time is not really there to be particularly kind to John Wayne's Ethan Edwards. In fact, although Bond greets the Edwards family in his usually warm fashion, Bond brings a incisive coldness in the Reverend Captain's attitude towards Ethan. Bond suggests a history between the men, and it is obviously not been a good one. There is no kind greeting towards Ethan, or much of any pleasantness in fact Bond expresses a distaste in Clayton as he informs Ethan that he fits some criminal descriptions.

Their differences though are put to the side as Ethan offers a valuable gun when it becomes obvious that the Comanche tribe is making a move. Before they leave though Bond does have a great moment where he drinks coffee while watching the interactions between Ethan and Ethan's sister in-law. Bond is also terrific in creating the affair of the past simply through the knowing reactions he brings to Clayton's face as he watches the two's rather unique chemistry with one another. After that point the Search basically begins which is lead at first by Clayton. Bond is really the only actor who is on Wayne's level in these scenes, as he to manages to convey the gravity and danger of the Comanche through his reactions to them. Bond's performance though wisely departs from Wayne's portrayal of the hate filled Ethan. When Ethan shoots them there's a certain pleasure in it, Bond though kinda let's the Reverend shone through as Bond portrays a determination in the fight, but also a certain disgust in the act of killing. He acts well as a moral foil for Ethan, and one of my favorite scenes is when Ethan shoots out the eyes of the dead Comanche as a representation of his revenge that goes even beyond their current world. Bond stands toe to toe with Wayne's intensity in portraying Clayton's revulsion of Ethan's behavior with his blunt delivery of "What good did that do ya?".

Bond disappears for a long period of time as the film focuses instead on Ethan and his adopted nephew Marty (Jeffrey Hunter)'s search for Ethan's niece that was kidnapped by the Comanche. This is unfortunate as Hunter is not on the same level as Wayne, unlike Bond, and if the Reverend Captain had a larger role, with more interactions with Ethan in particular, the film would probably have only benefited. Bond eventually returns mostly for some hijinks involving the fighting caused by the wedding involving a love triangle, and later a young cavalry officer who is a little who uses his sword in a little too excited of a fashion. Much of the attempts at comedy don't work all that well except for what Bond does in these scenes. In the fight around the wedding Bond is actually rather entertaining in his sardonic reactions to the whole affair particularly his dead pan delivery about celebrating a successful wedding since no one got married. He even attempts to make the most out of the Reverend's constant berating of the overly enthusiastic naive officer shtick, and does succeed in making the whole bit fairly entertaining, which is important since it keeps going even while the film is suppose to be building towards the final dramatic showdown with Comanche. Bond is given a few minor moments against Wayne though. Again Bond does well to brings the need intensity to stand against Wayne, as Clayton is basically the only person who truly questions Ethan's morality. These moments are only brief and the film never gives the two a final face off exactly, just like how the film cheats a final face off between Scar and Ethan. Instead Bond gets to end just on a gag involving an embarrassing wound suffered by Clayton during the final raid. Bond gives a good performance though I would say underused considering he's the only major supporting player who manages to make the film's attempts at comedy work at all, as well as is basically the only performer who is able to be a match for John Wayne's searing work.

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1956

And the Nominees Were Not:

Eli Wallach in Baby Doll

Elisha Cook, Jr. in The Killing

Ward Bond in The Searchers

Yul Brynner in The Ten Commandments

Edward G. Robinson in The Ten Commandments