Fw: Oscar Diary

It's Thursday morning on Wilshire Boulevard and the Academy of Motion Pictu=es Arts and Sciences has just opened it's doors for ticket pick-up for the=85th Oscar telecast.

Forty voting members, the distinguished director Norman Jewison and I are o= a long single file line that snakes thru the lobby patiently waiting to g= upstairs to pick up our tickets. My seats were awarded via a lottery syst=m. We clutch our photo I.D.

Suddenly, a messenger slips in wearing a smart khaki windbreaker and cuts t=rough the line. He announces to the uniformed guard in a stage whisper, "D=eamworks", and as if Steven Spielberg himself had just delivered the Getty=burg address, is ushered upstairs.

That is the final act of social justice of the "Lincoln" campaign.

I am sleep deprived and jet lagged having just spent six hours on a flight =itting next Paula Wagner who is Tom Cruise's ex-agent turned Broadway prod=cer for Jessica Chastain's "The Heiress". We discuss Jessica's not so gre=t chances to beat Jennifer Lawrence for Best Actress. I mention Harvey Wei=stein's concern about Emmanuel Riva's last minute surge. The French phenom=na doesn't speak English, has never been to L.A. and it's like voting for = ghost, even on her 86th birthday.

This is the year I got phone calls in September from top studio executives =nnouncing each are winning the Oscar. Their euphoric giddiness is due to =he quality of the films resulting in the priciest oscar campaigns on recor= and astounding audience support at the theaters.

Seven of the nine best picture nominees have taken in well over $100 millio= at the domestic box office to date, but it's the worldwide numbers in the=millions that are staggering.

Twentieth Century Fox's "Life of Pi" caused a tsunami at $595, Universal's "Les Miserables" scored $412, the Weinstein Cos.' "Django Uncha=ned" whipped up $395, DreamWorks' "Lincoln" delivered at $254, Warner's "A=go" captured $219, Weinstein's "Silver Lining Playbook" danced to $187 and=Sony's "Zero Dark Thirty" killed at $107 million.

In comparison, Sony Classics' "Amour" received $19 and Fox Searchlights' "B=ast of the Southern Wild" worked up $19 million.

Hugh audiences having actually seen the films this year have an ear for the=nuances of the Oscar race and everyone including Ben Affleck follow the bl=ggers religiously.

So by Thursday morning on line at the Academy the informed buzz was as foll=ws: "Argo" takes best picture because is was most entertaining. The direc=or snub to Ben Affleck was a Godsend as George Clooney's advice came from =ar away Berlin where he was in pre-production on "The Monuments Men". Warn=r's president Sue Kroll kept the campaign clean and calm on the home front=

"Lincoln's" victory is Daniel Day Lewis from day one of shooting, no pun in=ended. The suggestion that Obama is our answer to Lincoln was interesting= Voters knew Obama secretly hosted three screenings in the White House, bu= they weren't invited. The Hollywood Foreign press were the biggest winner= with Bill Clinton's surprise appearance on their broadcast. DreamWorks' r=n an impeccable patriotic campaign that the media ate up.

The best director race had the most drama. Hollywood dreaded Spielberg loo=ing to Ang Lee. (Eventually everyone was thrilled Steven was anointed pres=dent of the Cannes Jury for 2013 the day after the awards show.)

The voters knew beloved Ang Lee's three year boat ride was the technical mi=acle. Fox's $595 million international box office blew in the win.

Harvey Weinstein having three horses running is always the most talked abou=. His loquacious Quentin Tarentino was a lock for screenplay. Best suppo=ting actor was a total toss up with a sentimental edge to Robert DeNiro. W= even applauded Bob putting his handprints in cement in front of Grauman's=Chinese Theater.

The conversations continued about how our government put the cabasch on "Ze=o Dark Thirty" with their arrogant denial of enhanced interrogation. Even =PAA President Chris Dodd could not help Mark Boal, Katherine Bigalow and A=y Pascal.

Additional chatter was the renewed last minute love for "Les Miserables". =learly the most polarizing film in the race, this 27 year old theatrical=musical seen by 60 million fans is now the talk of the Oscar weekend.

Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe, Amanda Segfried, Eddie Redmayne= Sasha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham Carter and Samanthe Barks are making an =istoric one time live performance as part of Sunday's television broadcast= Producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron's will attempt to razzel dazzel us w=th an homage to movie musicals for three plus hours at the Dolby theater.=20

Barbra Streisand, Adele and Shirley Basse's appearances also create high an=iety and a blood bath for tickets...hence the hysteria created by DreamWor=s' messenger cutting the line.

After checking into the iconic Beverly Hills Hotel, my home away from home =or 30 years of Oscar weekends and meticulously laying out all the ensemble= sent from Valentino and Ralph Rucci, I hit the party circuit overdressed=for life.

Daisy... I can do this...fairly easily now...but I have a lunch at 12:30pm =nd important meetings. I am so distraught
about all this pressure. I am=calling you now. Peggy

I am struggling thru this. It is so late already. I am so stressed out. =ill finishe is in a day or two.. I can not write about the Katzenberg par=y. Maybe can just mention is happened in my hotel. But the reason to go =as to support Katzenberg and network. More to come. Peg