Music Center May Get ’99 Oscars

After months of discussion, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is close to signing a one-year deal with the Music Center that would take the Oscar ceremony to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in 1999.

The talks heated up after reports in May that the Academy was considering the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa and the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center as alternative venues because of a space crunch and insufficient time to set up and rehearse.

According to Sandra Kimberling, president of the Music Center Operating Co., the contract will go out in a week or so. “We’re crossing the T’s and dotting the I’s,” she said. “We’re agreeing to agree. There was a miscommunication about the available dates in 1999. The Philharmonic gave up more dates to make it possible for the Academy to have the rehearsal time it needs. Not only would it be a shame for Los Angeles to lose the Oscars, but it’s critical that the Music Center maintain an active tie with the film community.”

Bruce Davis, executive director of the Academy, said talks with Long Beach and Costa Mesa are on “the back burner.” “We have to take a look at the terms [of the Music Center contract], but we’ve obviously made some gratifying progress,” he said. “Contact with the Shrine Auditorium--site of the 1997 and 1998 Oscars--is ongoing, however, since we hope to alternate it with the Music Center down the road.”

The Oscars last appeared at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in 1996.