OSCAR NOMINEES, A TO Z, GET THEIR JUST DESSERTS

Jack Nicholson, Don Ameche and Whoopi Goldberg were all there Thursday. So were Zoltan Etek, B. Tennyson Sebastian II and Cilia Van Dijk. Jon Voight was there alone. Earl and Pamela Wallace showed up as an entry.

The event was the fifth annual Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Nominees Luncheon, a non-competitive gathering of contenders for 1985 Academy Awards. Some of the guests were familiar, most weren’t. But for about two hours, everyone was equal.

There were no “power” tables in the International Ballroom at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

The nominees were seated randomly. They were introduced alphabetically, from sound editor Dick Alexander (“Ladyhawke”) to costume designer Albert Wolsky (“The Journey of Natty Gann”). And when the 100 nominees present had their official picture taken, it was as one, like a class reunion.

“This is my first of these, it is very nice,” said Zoltan Etek, who was nominated along with Michael Westmoreland for their remarkable makeup work on “Mask.” “It makes you feel very special being with all these people.”

The original idea of the nominees luncheon, as academy president Robert Wise told the crowd, was to create an event where all nominees were recognized as winners. The Other Event, the Oscar ceremony, leaves the inevitable impression that 80% of the nominees are losers.

It is also an occasion for the producer of the Oscar show to remind the nominees to be prepared to win, and to be brief when they do.

Last year, the producers made their point all too well. They explained that a flashing red light would be used during the show to let the speakers know when their 45 seconds were up. The show turned out to be the shortest and most efficient in years, and one of the dullest ever.

Thursday, the nominees got a more upbeat lecture from the current producer, film director Stanley Donen (“Singin’ in the Rain”). Donen, promising an evening where entertainment will reign, urged the nominees to prepare speeches that are profound and brief, heartwarming and brief, or entertaining and brief. Above all, brief.

He also announced that the March 24 Oscars will end with the presentation of the best picture Oscar by legendary directors Billy Wilder, Federico Fellini and Akira Kurosawa.

Thursday’s luncheon may have been the most star-studded since the event was started in 1982. Fourteen of the 20 actors nominated were present, along with nominated songwriters Lionel Richie and Marvin Hamlisch.

In one way, the growing attendance by star nominees neutralizes the good intentions of the luncheon. By showing up, they attract photographers and TV cameras in swarms, and as they walk through the press gantlet at the entrance, the unknowns find themselves as ignored as ever.

But once the luncheon begins, and the knowns and unknowns mingle as equals to discuss film as the collaborative art, the stars’ presence merely adds to the luster of an already shining moment.

“There was a wonderful attitude in that room,” said one nominee to another as they rode the elevator to the hotel garage afterward. “I’ve never felt better about what I do.”

By the way, B. Tennyson Sebastian II was nominated for sound editing for “Back to the Future,” Cilia Van Dijk was nominated for the animated short film “Anna & Bella,” and Earl and Pamela Wallace wrote the script for “Witness.”