Two literary geniuses who won both the Nobel Prize and the Oscar

It is tough to win a globally reckoned prestigious award, right? Imagine winning two of the world’s most prestigious awards! Yes, there are two people who have won both an Oscar and a Nobel Prize. Wondering who are we talking about? One is a distinguished Irish author George Bernard Shaw, while the other is Bob Dylan, the revered American songwriter. 

George Bernard Shaw  
George Bernard Shaw was the first person to receive both a Nobel Prize and an Oscar. Shaw, one of the most celebrated authors to emerge from Ireland, was born in 1856 in Dublin.  

He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1925 for his play ‘Pygmalion’. Later, in 1939, he won an Oscar in the category  ‘Best Writing/ Screenplay’ for his adaptation of the same play (Pygmalion) for the screen.  

For those unaware, Shaw based the play on the Greek mythological character named Pygmalion who fell in love with one of his own sculptures, which, in turn, was endowed with life. In Shaw’s comedy, on the other hand, an English phonetician named Henry Higgins gets involved in a challenge with his colleague Colonel Pickering (a linguist) that he can pass a cockney flower seller named Eliza Doolittle as a duchess, in only a matter of six months, that too by simply sophisticating her speech and language skills. Needless to say, Shaw’s comic, which takes on love and English class system, was indeed a success, thus showering him with two of the most honourable accolades of the world. 

Bob Dylan  
The only other person besides GB Shaw to have received both the coveted awards was Bob Dylan. Born in 1941, Dylan is an American musician and composer. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, he has sold tens of millions of albums, written more than 500 songs recorded by more than 2,000 artists, performed all over the world. He set the standard for lyric writing all through his career, spanning more than six decades. 

In 2001, Dylan won the Oscar in the category ‘Best Original Song’, for his song Things have Changed. It’s a folk or country rock song from the album Wonder Boys: Music from the Motion Picture that was released in 2000 and featured in the film Wonder Boys. It revolves around two themes: Change is the only constant and Carpediem (seize the moment). 

Fast forward to 2016, Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for “having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.” In fact, with this feat, Dylan became the first ever musician to have won the Nobel Prize. 

But you would be surprised to know that these are not the only prizes he won. In fact, Bob Dylan is the only person in the world to have an Oscar, a Grammy, a Golden Globe, a Pulitzer and a Nobel.  He won a Pulitzer in 2008 and his first of the 10 Grammys in 1973. Wow! That’s an incredible career indeed!