Oakwood-raised actress up for first Oscar

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

What to Do
By Amelia Robinson
March 2, 2018
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Sunday will be a big night for this Hollywood superstar with local roots.

Allison Janney is an Oscar nominee.

On the heels of seizing a Screen Actors Guild best supporting actress win for her role as LaVona Harding, figure skater Tonya Harding's mother, in the dramatic dark comedy "I, Tonya," the Oakwood-raised star has nabbed her first  Academy Award nomination.

>> 2018 Oscar nominations announced

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With wins at the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the Golden Globes for this same role, Janney is considered the front-runner. 

FILE - In this Feb. 5, 2018 file photo, Allison Janney poses for a portrait at the 90th Academy Awards nominees luncheon in Beverly Hills, Calif. Janney is nominated for best supporting actress for her role in "I, Tonya." (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)

Credit: Chris Pizzello

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Credit: Chris Pizzello

The other nominees for best supporting actress are: Mary J. Blige in “Mudbound,” Leslie Manville in “Phantom Thread,” Laurie Metcalf in “Lady Bird” and Octavia Spencer in “The Shape of Water.”

If she wins, she will be the first Daytonian awarded an Academy Award in an acting category. 

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ExploreJanney has been on a roll, when it comes to big awards.

Not only did Janney, the star of CBS’s “Mom,”  win the SAG award for the portrayal of Harding’s mom, but also nabbed the Golden Globe and other major supporting actress awards.

"She is certainly the front-runner," Jonathan McNeal, a film expert and manager of the Neon movies, told us. "The only other person in contention is Laurie Metcalf for 'Lady Bird,' but I think it is really Allison's. She is the best thing about 'I, Tonya'."

“Mom” airs weekly on WHIO-TV.

>> RELATED: Daytonian wins SAG award, is front-runner for an acting Oscar

In September, the former Miami Valley School student and Ashley's Pastry Shop fanatic was inducted into the Dayton Region's Walk of Fame. She told this news organization then she'd place that hometown award next to her major acting statues and recognitions.

In addition to her recent wins for her role in “I, Tonya,” Janney has won Emmy awards for her television roles on “Mom” as well as “The West Wing” and a guest role on “Masters of Sex.”

>> RELATED: These cookies from a local bakery are SO good that Allison Janney gets them specially delivered to set

McNeal said Janney's mom, Macy, who she praised as a role model in last Sunday's edition of "Parade"magazine (an insert in the Dayton Daily News), is a Neon regular.

I, Tonya star and winner for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role Allison Janney hit the red carpet in a mock turtleneck gown covered in silver pailettes by Yanina Couture—which “resembles a suit of armor,” says her stylist Tara Swennen. Janney originally planned to wear this to the Globes, but switched to a mostly black look to support the Time’s Up movement, her stylist says. Janney is just thrilled she got to wear it at all: “It’s a power dress,” the star told PEOPLE. “It feels pretty great. I love it.”

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Community Impact Editor Amelia Robinson is an award-winning columnist, features writer and podcast host. The Ohio University graduates work has appeared in the Dayton Daily News since 2000.