Presidential drama "Lincoln" goes into Sunday's ceremony with seven nominations, followed by Iran hostage movie "Argo" and Quentin Tarantino's slavery-era "Django Unchained" with five apiece.

Following are some key facts about the Golden Globes, one of the biggest ceremonies in the Hollywood awards season leading to the Oscars in February.

* The HFPA was formed in 1943 as a way for international journalists to band together and gain access to Hollywood stars.

* At the first awards ceremony in 1944, Jennifer Jones won best actress for "The Song of Bernadette," which took best film honors. Best actor went to Paul Lukas for "Watch on the Rhine." Winners got scrolls.

* In conjunction with the Golden Globes presentation, the HFPA held its first gala social event in 1945 with a banquet at the Beverly Hills Hotel. "Going My Way" won best picture and Ingrid Bergman and Alexander Knox won best actress and best actor.

* The actual Golden Globe Award came about in 1946, when the association president, Marina Cisternas, came up with the idea of using a statuette of a "golden globe" with a filmstrip circling it.

* In 1952, the HFPA created the Cecil B. DeMille Award to recognize "outstanding contribution to the entertainment field." The award's first recipient was DeMille himself.

* The Golden Globes started handing out awards for television in 1955. TV shows honored that year included "Lucy & Desi" and "Davy Crockett." In 2007, The Golden Globes initiated the category "Best Animated Feature Film." The awards now recognize achievements in 25 categories; 14 in motion pictures and 11 in television.

* "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" is the only film to win the Globe in all five major categories (Best Motion Picture, Actor, Actress, Director, Screenplay).

* Meryl Streep has won the most with eight, followed by six for Jack Nicholson, who also won a special award. Marlon Brando refused his best actor Globe for "The Godfather" in 1973 to protest U.S. "imperialism and racism." He similarly did not accept his Oscar statuette.

Sources: Reuters/www.goldenglobes.org

(Reporting By David Cutler, London Editorial Reference Unit; Editing by Jill Serjeant and Peter Cooney)

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