Oscar 2017: A shout-out to mom that tugged the heartstrings

Kevin O'Connell thanks his late mother Skippy

According Los Angeles Times:Kevin O'Connell had been nominated for an Oscar 20 times before . He'd always gone home without the statuette. When he heard his named called Sunday along with Peter Grace, Robert Mackenzie, and Andy Wright for their sound mixing work on "Hacksaw Ridge." O'Connell had no hesitation on who to thank. In 2002, when was a 14-time nominee without a win, O'Connell told The Times about how he got his start,
His mother, Skippy, worked as a secretary for the head of the sound department at Twentieth Century Fox. O'Connell had previously tried to break into the industry as a projectionist at Twentieth Century Fox Studios. But, only 18, he failed the extensive test to qualify for a union. So he joined the L.A. County Fire Department. From our 2002 piece: One day, he came home from battling a brush fire in Sylmar; his hands and face were burnt, and his arms were chewed up by yucca plants. He'd lost an alarming amount of weight. He was 19. His mother took one look at him and said, "This is killing you; let me get you a job." He said in his short acceptance speech that she told him the only thank you she needed was for him to work hard. "'You can work really hard, and someday you can win yourself an Oscar, and you can stand on the stage, and you can think me in front of the whole world.’" he said. "Mom, I know you’re looking down on me tonight, so thank you.”