And the Oscar might have gone to ...

The Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling didn't exist during hairstylist Larry Germain's lifetime, though he did capture an Emmy for his work in 1980.

There was no Academy Award for hairstyling during Larry Germain's nearly 40 years in motion pictures and TV. The Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling was first presented in 1981, the year of Mr. Germain's death.

But given that Oscars often cluster around a few films, it's possible Germain might have won one – had there been one. The Worcester, Mass., native worked on a bouquet of Oscar-nominated and Oscar-winning films during his career at Universal and MGM, including "A Farewell to Arms" (1957), "Inherit the Wind"(1960), "Spartacus"(1960),and "To Kill a Mockingbird" (1963). He amassed 275 film and TV credits, all but 63 of them in film.

He did win an Emmy for hairstyling in the made-for-TV remake of "The Miracle Worker" in 1980, and was nominated four times for his work on "Little House on the Prairie." (One look at "Little House" star Michael Landon's flowing '70s-style locks, and you'll understand why.)