The late Heath Ledger is on everyone's mind for Oscar

It's Oscar day, and there's one nominee on everyone's lips: Heath Ledger, the talented young actor who died of an accidental drug overdose a little over a year ago. With a brilliantly unhinged performance as the Joker in "The Dark Knight," he likely would have been a favorite to win the category in any case. Now, knowing that this will be Ledger's final screen performance, the Academy may be feeling even more inclined to celebrate him one last time.

Should he win as best supporting actor, Ledger would not be the first actor to win a posthumous Oscar. Several have been nominated after their deaths (including James Dean, twice), but only one has won: Peter Finch, for "Network" in 1976. The British actor, who was 64, died two months before the Academy Awards ceremony, suffering a fatal heart attack while in the midst of a "Network" promotional tour.

Though the Academy for several decades has not allowed winners to designate someone else to accept their award (the presenters accept the award on the winner's behalf), that policy is sympathetically waived in the case of a deceased winner. Composer Howard Ashman's partner, Bill Lauch, accepted Ashman's award for best song ("Beauty and the Beast") in 1992; cinematographer Conrad L. Hall's son Conrad W. Hall accepted his late father's Oscar in 2003. In a touching, quiet gesture, he held the Oscar heavenward and smiled.

If Ledger were to win, ownership of the Oscar would go to his 3-year-old daughter, Matilda Rose Ledger, held in trust by her mother, Michelle Williams, until she is 18. Bruce Davis, executive director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, said that at that time Matilda would be asked to sign the standard winner's contract, which specifies that statuettes may not be sold without first being offered back to the Academy for $1.

Matilda, however, is unlikely to accept her father's award at the podium. "The Dark Knight" director Christopher Nolan (who accepted Ledger's Golden Globe Award last month) has said that Ledger's family would accept the Oscar if he wins; Davis said only that tradition calls for it to be accepted by a family member or an artist close to the nominee. In any case, it could well be the most emotional Oscar moment in a long time — a reminder of a mercurial, exciting talent gone from us too soon.

Moira Macdonald: 206-464-2725 or mmacdonald@seattletimes.com