HOLLYWOOD: J.K. Simmons won the best supporting actor Oscar on Sunday for playing a bullying jazz teacher in "Whiplash," which powerfully explores the limits of sadism and abuse.
He bested rivals Robert Duvall ("The Judge"), Ethan Hawke ("Boyhood"), Edward Norton ("Birdman") and Mark Ruffalo ("Foxcatcher").
Simmons, who has been the odds-on favorite in the category after sweeping up trophies throughout Hollywood's awards season, gave a warm speech thanking his wife, children and parents.
"If you are lucky enough to have a parent or two alive on this planet, call them. Don't text, don't e-mail. Call them on the phone," he told the Oscars audience at the Dolby Theatre.
In "Whiplash," Simmons plays Fletcher, a feared top teacher at an elite music conservatory not unlike the famed Julliard School in New York.
He notices Andrew, a promising young drummer who has just enrolled at the school, and selects him for a school jazz band entered in a nationwide competition.
At first, Fletcher treats his new recruits with kid gloves, gaining their confidence and earning their admiration.
But then, playing on rivalry between students, he turns on them, abusing them mentally and physically -- he justifies throwing a cymbal at Andrew (played by Miles Teller) by noting that that's how Charlie Parker became a legend.
Simmons -- who himself studied music before turning to acting -- won both the Golden Globe and the Screen Actors Guild award for his role in the film, only the second feature from director Damien Chazelle.
The Oscar crowns a more than 30-year career on television and the big screen. While a familiar face at the cinema, he has rarely headlined a film.
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