CAMERA SHY

Was the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. sending Jessica Lange a message when it didn’t send her even a Golden Globe nomination for “Crimes of the Heart” (while co-star Sissy Spacek won Best Actress)?

No, said an association spokesman. But Lange definitely stirred up some unexpected--and unwelcome--excitement during an association press conference for the movie a few weeks back. Lange showed up--but never made it out of her limo when she learned that she was expected to pose for the traditional pictures.

It’s standard at these publicity gatherings for stars to pose with individual foreign journalists (the chummy photos are then sent overseas to the respective publications). According to President Mark Marzouk, those who’ve obliged include Barbra Streisand, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Robert Redford. Lange even posed in December, 1982, after she made “Frances.”

But this time she said no way. A rep for De Laurentiis Entertainment swears the dictate was relayed beforehand to Marzouk. So also swears a spokeswoman for PMK--the PR agency where Lange is repped by Pat Kingsley--who said Lange’s schedule was too busy for photos.

But, according to witnesses, when Kingsley arrived at the conference room, she nixed pix. So the Foreign Press told Lange, in effect, “then no press conference.”

The day wasn’t entirely lost: Spacek, the next interview subject, willingly posed. She later snared a nomination and, finally, the big award. Lange went un-nominated. Marzouk insisted there was no connection.

As evidence that there’s no bad blood, Marzouk told us that he later called PMK to invite Lange to be a presenter. (She wasn’t available).

“We’d still like to have her at a press conference,” Marzouk stressed. “If she’ll pose for pictures.”