Margaret Herrick

Who was Margaret Herrick?

Margaret Herrick, was the librarian and director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Herrick is generally credited with naming the Academy Award an "Oscar", declaring the statuettes "looked just like my Uncle Oscar". However, others, including Academy President Bette Davis and Hollywood gossip columnist Sidney Skolsky, have claimed they invented the name.

She was born in Spokane, Washington, United States. Her maiden name was Margaret Buck. Margaret graduated from the University of Washington. She was librarian of Yakima, Washington. After marrying Donald Gledhill, an assistant to the executive secretary of the Academy, she moved to Hollywood, California in 1931 and ultimately became the Academy's first librarian. She served in that capacity until 1943, when she became the interim executive director of the Academy, replacing her husband. She and Gledhill divorced in 1945. In 1946 she was offered the Executive Director position permanently, and she held it until her retirement in January 1971. She married Philip A. Herrick in 1946, and continued to use his name professionally following their divorce in 1951.

The Academy's extensive library in Beverly Hills, California, of material on films is named in her honor.