Academy of Country Music Awards

The Academy of Country Music Awards, also known as the ACM Awards, were first held in 1966, honoring the industry's accomplishments during the previous year. It was the first country music awards program held by a major organization. The Academy's signature "hat" trophy was created in 1968. The awards were first televised in 1972 on ABC. In 1979, the Academy joined with Dick Clark Productions to produce the show. Dick Clark and Al Schwartz served as producers while Gene Weed served as director. Under their guidance, the show moved to NBC and finally to CBS, where it remains today.

In 2003, the awards show left Los Angeles and moved to Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay Events Center through 2005. The Academy also adopted a sleeker, modern version of the "hat" trophy in 2003, which is now made by the New York City firm Society Awards. In 2004, the organization implemented online awards voting for its professional members, becoming the first televised awards show to do so.

Academy of Country Music

The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among those involved in the founding was Eddie Miller and Tommy Wiggins, who joined Mickey Christensen and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country music in the western 13 states with the support of artist based on the West Coast. Artist such as Johnny Bond, Glen Campbell, Merle Haggard, Roger Miller, and many more influenced them. The ball finally started rolling in 1965 when a board of directors was formed to govern the Academy.

History

The Country Music Association was founded in 1958 based in Nashville, while the Academy sought to promote country/western music in the western states. During the early 1970s, the organization changed its name to the Academy of Country and Western Music and finally to the Academy of Country Music to avoid confusion about whether the organization was a music school. As such, its early membership was largely composed of those country performers based in the west. This is evidenced by the early awards shows being dominated by Bakersfield artists Buck and Bonnie Owens, and Merle Haggard. Due to the convergence of country and western music into one genre in the late 20th century, the Academy and the Association no longer have a significant distinction in the artists each organization promotes and recognizes.