List of awards and nominations received by Elaine May

The following is a list of awards and nominations received by American comedian and filmmaker Elaine May.

May is an American comedian, writer, director, producer, and actor who is known for her work on film, television and theatre. She started her career as a improvisational comedian with Mike Nichols during the 1960s. Together they performed onstage from clubs in Greenwich Village to the Broadway stage. They released multiple comedy albums receiving four Grammy Award nominations winning in 1962 for Best Comedy Album for An Evening with Mike Nichols and Elaine May. For her work on film she has received two Academy Award nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay for her work on Warren Beatty's Heaven Can Wait (1978), and Mike Nichols' Primary Colors (1998). She received her Honorary Academy Award in 2021. For her work on the Broadway stage she received a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play in Kenneth Lonergan's revival of The Waverly Gallery in 2019.

Major associations[]

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1978	Best Adapted Screenplay	Heaven Can Wait	Nominated	^[1]
1998	Best Adapted Screenplay	Primary Colors	Nominated	^[2]
2021	Honorary Academy Award		Won	^[3]

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1959	Best Performance, Documentary or Spoken Word	Improvisations to Music	Nominated	^[4]
1959	Best Comedy Album	Improvisations to Music	Nominated
1962		An Evening with Mike Nichols and Elaine May	Won
1963		Mike Nichols & Elaine May Examine Doctors	Nominated

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2019	Best Actress in a Play	The Waverly Gallery	Won	^[5]

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1999	Best Adapted Screenplay	Primary Colors	Won

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1971	Best Actress – Comedy or Musical	A New Leaf	Nominated	^[6]

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1971	Best Adapted Comedy	A New Leaf	Nominated
1978	Best Adapted Comedy	Heaven Can Wait	Won
1996	Best Adapted Screenplay	The Birdcage	Nominated
1998	Best Adapted Screenplay	Primary Colors	Nominated
2016	Laurel Screenwriting Award	N/A	Won	^[7]

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2000	Best Supporting Actress	Small Time Crooks	Won

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2019	Career Achievement Award	N/A	Won	^[8]

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1969	Most Promising Playwright	Adaptation	Won	^[9]
2019	Outstanding Actress in a Play	The Waverly Gallery	Won	^[9]

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2019	Distinguished Performance	The Waverly Gallery	Nominated

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1969	Special Theatrical Award	Adaptation / Next	Won	^[10]
1969	Outstanding Direction of a Play	Adaptation / Next	Won
2019	Outstanding Actress in a Play	The Waverly Gallery	Won

^ "51st Academy Awards". Oscars.org. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
^ "71st Academy Awards". Oscars.org. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
^ "Oscars to honor Elaine May, Danny Glover, Samuel L. Jackson". ABC News. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
^ "Artist Elaine May". Grammy.com. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
^ "Elaine May, a comedy great with Chicago roots, wins first Tony Award at 87". Chicago Sun-Times. 10 June 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
^ "Elaine May - Awards". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
^ "Elaine May Honored by Writers Guild of America". Variety. 19 January 2016. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
^ "LAFCA To Honor Elaine May With Career Achievement Award". Deadline. 31 October 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Elaine May". Playbill.com. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
^ "Elaine May - Awards". Playbill.com. Retrieved June 25, 2021.