98-year-old former NASA mathematician gets her moment at Oscars

NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson (C) and director Ezra Edelman (R) and producer Caroline Waterlow (L), winners of Best Documentary Feature for 'O.J.: Made in America' pose in the press room during the 89th Oscars in Hollywood, California, on Sunday. (AFP / FREDERIC J. BROWN)

LOS ANGELES: She said only “thank you,” but it was one of the more moving moments of Sunday’s Oscars ceremony.
Katherine Johnson, 98, the former NASA mathematician played by Taraji P. Henson in the movie “Hidden Figures,” was brought on stage to thunderous applause. She was introduced by Henson, Janelle Monae and Octavia Spencer, who all star in the film as female black mathematicians who helped put NASA ahead in the space race against the Soviet Union. “Hidden Figures” was nominated for best picture.
The 98-year-old Johnson wore a blue dress and was brought out in a wheelchair during Sunday’s ceremony.