FACTBOX: Facts about the Oscars

(Reuters) - The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presents its 81st annual Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.

The world's top film honours are given out annually by the Beverly Hills-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Here are some facts about the Oscars:

* EARLY DAYS:

-- When the first Academy Awards were handed out on May 16, 1929, movies had just begun to talk. The first ceremony took place in the Blossom Room of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.

-- The best actress and actor awards went to Janet Gaynor for "Seventh Heaven" and Emil Jannings for "The Last Command."

-- The Warner Bros. film "The Jazz Singer" was honoured with a special award as the "pioneering outstanding talking picture, which has revolutionized the industry." The Academy had ruled that it was ineligible for competition for best picture because it was thought it would be unfair to let sound films compete with silents.

* 1939 AND "GONE WITH THE WIND":

-- 1939 was one of the most celebrated years in American film history, encompassing such classics as "The Wizard of Oz," "Stagecoach," "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," "Ninotchka," "Wuthering Heights" and "Goodbye, Mr. Chips."

-- "Gone with the Wind," director Victor Fleming's almost four-hour blockbuster film, was the longest feature released up to that time, and it was the major Oscar winner of the year. It was also the first colour film to win for best picture.