For That Hollywood Flair, Invite Oscar to Your Bash

Do you want to make that Academy Award night bash special for your friends? Remember last year, when those faux Oscar statuettes you carved out of Muenster cheese went over like . . . Muenster cheese?

Impress your guests this time with an “Oscaresque,” a 7-foot-tall gold statue that bears an uncanny likeness to the real thing and will “create an authentic Hollywood ambience” (but not too authentic--it’s officially called “a statuesque representation of the most famous film industry award ever created.” The real Oscar statue is copyrighted.).

Oscaresque will look fabulous on any lawn, and your guests are sure to feel a shiver of excitement when they see it--just like the celebs do on Oscar night.

Why, you may even wind up with a few confused paparazzi at your door.

Pasadena-based Bravo Productions is donating a portion of the proceeds from sales of the Oscaresque to the Serra Project, which offers long-term residential care for people with AIDS or symptomatic HIV disease.

The statues are $950 each. Heck, get a pair.

A Vest for All: Here’s a press release we had to keep reading: “Bulletproof vests are not ‘just’ for police and law enforcement anymore.

The truth is personal protection garments or bulletproof vests are and always have been legal for use by the general public. . . .”

Whew, that’s a relief. Here we were thinking you had to have some special permit or something to strap one of those babies on. Uh-uh.

Protek, a Wisconsin-based distributor of vests, goes on to say, “(We) no longer regard the protection against gun violence a luxury that only police and law enforcement should have.”

Can’t argue there. The only dilemma we see is whether to get one now, or wait for Bijan to come out with a designer version.

Cue on This: It was a tough fight, but we finally have a winner: The unofficial blue collar-turned-hip sport of the ‘90s is . . . pocket billiards.

Bowling, the unofficial blue collar-turned-hip sport of the ‘80s, has taken a back seat to pool. Witness the proliferation of upscale pool halls like the Westside Billiards Cafe and the Hollywood Athletic Club.

To satisfy all those yuppie pool sharks out there, the HAC is building a second club at Universal CityWalk.

It’s celebrating the grand opening with a charity tournament and cocktail reception to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation on March 9.

Tickets are $50 per person (add $40 if you want to play, and that’s on a first-come, first-served basis. Call (310) 477-1150).

Special guests include top-rated players on the Women’s Professional Billiards Assn. 1995 tour.

And if you think you’re a hotshot yourself, it’s definitely BYOC (bring your own cue).

COMPILED BY THE SOCIAL CLIMES STAFF