War Could Delay Oscar Telecast
 

http://tv.zap2it.com/news/tvnewsdaily.html?30527

Tue, Mar 11, 2003 08:22 PM PDT

by Vanessa Sibbald
Zap2it, TV News


LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - While officials running the show say that the 75th Annual Academy Awards will go on come rain or shine, peace or wartime, the question remains whether ABC will televise the show should war on Iraq be declared in the next couple of weeks.

"Who knows?" says Gil Cates, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. "We're going to do the show, if [ABC] writes things under the screen indicating what's going on in the world, that's fine. If something happens and they have to go away, they'll go away and they'll come back. It's nothing that the network hasn't done over years."

While ABC hasn't made any sort of announcement about what they will do in the event that American declares war, they have made it clear that they have considered the possibility of pre-empting the Oscars should U.S. troops be engaged with Iraq.

"As is always the case, if there are world events that warrant coverage on the night of the Academy Awards, ABC News will bring them to the American audience with the full support of the Academy," ABC's head of publicity, Kevin Brockman tells Zap2it.com.

All this seems to indicate that there is a possibility that ABC will tape the program instead of airing it live and air it at a later date.

This would not be the first time the award show has been delayed due to breaking news coverage. The Oscars were postponed 24 hours in 1981 when President Ronald Reagan was shot earlier and a two-day delay occurred after the 1968 assassination of civil-rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

The 7th Annual Academy Awards are scheduled to air live on ABC at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 23.


I'm sure I've seen more than 6 Oscar broadcasts, but please correct me if I'm wrong ;)

Chris

Oh, thats a shame.

Even if they delayed the airing, wouldn't the ceremony still be going by the time the war is over?

Re: War Could Delay Oscar Telecast
 

This is so GREAT! We'll get to see It Happened One Night win best Picture and Clarke Gable win best actor! Woohoo!

Doesn't matter to me, I'm not going to watch it anyway because of all the anti-war speeches during what is supposed to be an award show.

Oscar night sucks. There is never anything else on that is good. That will be a good night to catch up on recorded programs from my Replay-TV, PS2, or DVD viewing.

-ohbfrank-

I sincerely hope they don't delay the broadcast.....i want to watch it live and have some mystery at least. I think they'd find their ratings would be fantastic if every other channell is showing the same damn thing over and over and over and over and over and over and over.........