Everyone is familiar with the major controversy of the 1969 Oscars, but the real problem may not be that Oliver! was named Best Picture over Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, which wasn’t even nominated in that top category. No, the bigger issue may be with Planet of the Apes receiving a special award for make-up — consider someone associated with that production may have stolen from or attempted to sabotage the ape wardrobe of Kubrick’s film. In a Vulture blog interview with 2001 ape performer and choreographer Dan Richter, the former mime implies something to that affect:

We had stuff stolen. I can’t say it was Planet of the Apes, but they were the only other movie shooting at the same time and same place we were. Stanley and I even had someone steal a mask and some ape hands right out from under our noses on the backlot, where someone had hid in a drainage ditch. We were in lockdown all the time.

However, Richter also mentions that he can see a lot of mistakes in the 2001 costumes, so it’s possible the Academy was right to overlook the film in the Best Costume category. And it’s a bit of a moot point, anyway, since Planet lost the costume Oscar to Romeo and Juliet.

Personally, I think both films’ apes look kind of silly (I know, the Planet apes weren’t meant to necessarily look like real apes), though Hollywood hasn’t really done much better since (see Congo, Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes remake). But Richter is probably right about getting the behavior down better than anyone before or after. Just watch the clip above, and if you’re in NYC Sunday night, check out the special screening of the film at the Tribeca Film Festival.