Oscar gets its glamour guarantee
Finally, a real Oscar fashion veteran!
Glamour is now guaranteed on the red carpet with Thursday’s announcement that Nicole Kidman -- Oscar-winning actress and fashion world dahhling -- will present at the 78th Academy Awards show on March 5.
Kidman, nominated twice, took home her best actress award in 2003 for portraying Virginia Woolf in “The Hours.”
So what will she wear this year? Oh, please. Like she’s gonna spill those style beans now.
But looking back, a fresh-faced Kidman accompanied Tom Cruise to the Oscars in 1994 wearing a black velvet Valentino design. She did a pale lilac Prada high-waisted frock in 1996, an Asian-inspired chartreuse John Galliano gown in 1997 and a Christian Dior gold lame goddess gown in 1998.
Four years ago, she donned a pink chiffon Chanel design. But in 2003, when she picked up the Oscar, Kidman stepped out in a more dramatic Jean Paul Gaultier draped black dress.
And a year later, the actress was elegant in an ice blue crystal-beaded Chanel couture gown, designed by Karl Lagerfeld and reputed to have taken 400-plus hours to complete.
Kidman is still the highly paid face of Chanel’s No. 5 fragrance. But it’s by no means a lock. As her PMK rep Catherine Olim has repeatedly noted, “Nicole has working relationships with several designers.”
Let’s hope she accessorizes with her hot Grammy date, Aussie musician Keith Urban.
‘Narnia’s’ effects folks do brunch
Visual effects supervisor Dean Wright and the technical Oscar-nominated team that helped create “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” came out of their respective wardrobes Wednesday for Buena Vista Home Entertainment’s DVD preview “bruncheon” on the Imageworks lawn.
Guests were shown segments of the two-disc DVD (due out April 4) with outtakes, extra scenes and an inside look at the animation-puppetry-CG marriage that brought C.S. Lewis’ world to the screen.
For Howard Berger, Oscar-nominated for best achievement in makeup, his challenge was creating fantasy puppet critters that belonged in Narnia, not Middle-earth.
“When Lewis and Tolkien wrote their books at the same time in the mid-’50s, they carefully compared notes and made sure there were no crossovers,” he said. “And as Tolkien’s grandson told me, ‘Goblins do not exist in Narnia and there are no Elves. So I was very careful never to cross the borders between Narnia and Middle-earth.”
There are 23 different species of Narnia-specific critters, including fauns, satyrs, minotaurs, ogres, giants, dwarfs, wolves and bears.
According to Wright, “Aslan is the single most remarkable achievement in CG character animation and technology.” Not only does Aslan deliver a wide range of emotions, but he also looks indistinguishable from a live lion, right down to his matted and always moving fur.
“Narnia’s” creative dudes are flying to London for Sunday’s BAFTA Awards, where they’re also nominated for the same achievements.
“Narnia” director Andrew Adamson has just signed on to direct “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian,” and though no contracts are signed, his creative team will probably regroup. Fast.
“They haven’t announced yet how many films they’ll do,” Wright said. “I think they’d love to do them all. At least six or seven is the goal.”
Dolly Parton is red-carpet ready
The Oscar red carpet just got a lot more fun: Dolly Parton’s gosh-durn gown is ready to go!
Parton, whose tune “Travelin’ Thru” from “Transamerica” is nominated for best original song, got her first Oscar nomination in 1981 for the “Nine to Five” theme song. But she’s not the slightest bit nervous about attending the awards show.
Her gown has been designed by Robert Behar, who’s “been doing my stage stuff for years,” Parton said on the phone from her Tennessee home. “This has been his lifelong dream to design a gown for the Oscars.”
Behar has designed two gowns for Parton -- one for walking the red carpet and another for when she performs onstage.
And the colors? “Probably pastel,” Parton said. “Maybe in the pink or lavender family. And Robert said that I had to wear real diamonds. I’m just a hillbilly going to the city. I was just gonna wear my costume jewelry.”
And her date? That would be “Transamerica” director Duncan Tucker. “He’s gonna walk down the red carpet with me ... I’m just gonna point to Duncan and say, ‘Talk to him! He’s the real talent.’ ”
Living Legend for Elton’s Oscar bash
All the Hollywood buzz about a “living legend” performing at Elton John’s famous post-Oscar party turned out to be true.
Triple Grammy-winner John Legend will be the entertainer for the 14th annual Oscar night bash to benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation, on March 5 at the Pacific Design Center.
So get ready to “Get Lifted” at the event, cohosted by Elton and his partner, David Furnish, and sponsored by Audi, Chopard and VH1. The best new artist Grammy winner is set to perform songs from his platinum album, “Get Lifted,” a blend of hip-hop and smooth classical soul.
“I have been a huge fan of John’s since I first heard his album,” Elton said of Legend in a statement first released to The Envelope. “I am so thrilled that he won three Grammys last week and even more thrilled that he will be playing at our Oscar party.”
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Snead writes “Styles & Scenes” as a blog for TheEnvelope.com, a Times website devoted to Hollywood’s awards season.
