The inaugural recipient, Aussie actor Oliver Ackland 29, was the winner of a scholarship created in Actor Heath Ledger's name was introduced Thursday night while Ledger's family, including his father Kim and mother Sally, looked on.There were five judges, including actress Rachel Griffiths, deciding on the $10,000 scholarship, whose goal is to assist one emerging Australian actor to pursue a career in the United States. Also included: Round-trip airfare to and from Australia. The event was held at one of Ledger's favorite haunts, Chateau Marmont on Sunset Blvd., and was attended by several members of his family (12 of them have travelled to Los Angeles for the Academy Awards on Sunday, as Ledger is nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for his role as the Joker in Dark Knight.)
"When I first got here, I stayed in a youth hostel down on Melrose [Avenue] and caught a bus to my auditions," House's Jesse Spencer, 30, told WHO. "It was ridiculous. So with this scholarship and airfare it will make a huge difference. He won't be staying on the hostel on Melrose - which has pretty clean rooms by the way - but it's great and hopefully it helps him."
Ackland, who was flown from his native Sydney and told he was only one finalist among several, was shocked to learn he was actually the winner. "When I got to my Beverly Hills hotel I was thinking, who are the other guys and where are they?. "It was a genuine shock. I'm still getting my head around what it means."
He also has a special appreciation for Ledger's work. "We were a similar age. He was someone I looked up to. He was someone who was doing it, and doing it his own way. He definitely inspired me."
Benefactors of the scholarship, which honours the memory of the late Dark Knight actor, include Hugh Jackman and his wife Deborra Lee Furness, Naomi Watts and Michelle Williams.
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