A red carpet is traditionally used to mark the route taken by heads of state on ceremonial and formal occasions, and has in recent decades been extended to use by VIPs and celebrity at formal events.
Agamemnon, knowing that only Greek mythology walk on such luxury, responds with trepidation:
Renaissance paintings often show rugs and carpets in oriental patterns, with red often the main background colour, laid on the steps to a throne, or on a dais where rulers or sacred figures are placed.
A red carpet was rolled out to welcome the arrival of United States president James Monroe in South Carolina in 1821. In 1902, the New York Central Railroad began using plush crimson carpets to direct people as they boarded their 20th Century Limited passenger train. This is believed to be the origin of the phrase "red-carpet treatment".
By the late 1920s the red carpet had become synonymous with Hollywood and film Premiere. A crimson-hued carpet was used for the first ever Hollywood premiere, the 1922 premiere of Robin Hood, starring Douglas Fairbanks, in front of the Egyptian Theatre. For the following decades, the red carpet was one of the few places the public could catch a glimpse of stars like Clark Gable, Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelly.
In 1961, the red carpet was introduced at the Academy Awards at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. In 1964, the broadcasters of the ceremony opted to film outside the venue, showing the arrival of guests as they stepped out of their limousines. From this point forward, the red carpet became a globally acknowledged focal point for actors and actresses to make a grand entrance and showcase themselves at the Oscars.
In 2019, the premiere of the film Detective Pikachu (2019) used a yellow carpet to match the color of its title character Pikachu. The premiere of Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) used a blue carpet to match its namesake character.
At the 95th Academy Awards in 2023, the organizers chose a different champagne color for the first time since the red carpet was introduced, as part of an attempt to better reflect a "day event into the night".
The Jeopardy! Honors event, which was held annually since Season 39 on the eve of the Tournament of Champions, featured a blue carpet, in order to match the color of its background used during clues and dollar amounts shown on the clue board, from inside the Alex Trebek Stage at Sony Pictures Studios.
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