Authoritative doesn’t begin to describe the comprehensive Hollywood history Bruce Davis unfolds in ‘The Academy and the Award’ (Brandeis University Press, $40). Not the usual breezy picture book, this is a meticulously researched and eye-opening account by a veteran member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences which, of course, hands out the Oscars every year. As the Academy nears its first century, surprisingly this is only the first truly in-depth history.