When authorities arrested the man who shot and nearly killed Ronald Reagan in March of 1981, he asked them a question. He wanted to know whether the Academy Awards, which were scheduled to take place that same evening, would be delayed.
Ultimately, the answer was yes: The Academy Awards were postponed for 24 hours. Gregory Peck said the assassination attempt “brought to mind” the murders of the Kennedys, John Lennon and Martin Luther King. The producer of the awards called the shooting a “tragedy.” Meanwhile, at the NCAA championship basketball game,18,000 fans in Philadelphia held a moment of silence.
.png)
.png)
