In 1974, 10-year-old Tatum O’Neal made history as the youngest Oscar winner for her performance in the film "Paper Moon," which had been filmed two years earlier. The film had received three other nominations, but her father, Ryan O’Neal, who acted alongside her, was not nominated. According to Tatum's memoir, this omission caused him to resent her, contributing to years of turmoil in their relationship. He told reporters that his daughter was "lazy by nature," had "taken over the picture," and didn't accompany her to the ceremony.

Tatum competed against Linda Blair, who was 15 at the time and appeared in "The Exorcist." Although Jackie Cooper was also nominated for the award when he was nine years old for his role in "Skippy" in 1931, O'Neal was the only child actor to win. Tatum had parts in other movies such as "The Bad News Bears" in 1976 and "Little Darlings" in 1980. However, her career never reached the level of success it did with Paper Moon.

In 2011, father and daughter starred in the OWN Network series "Ryan and Tatum: The O'Neals," which followed their emotional reunion after 25 years of estrangement.