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ACADEMY AWARDS POSTPONED TO TONIGHT
''In deference to the tragedy in Washington,'' the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences postponed its annual awards ceremonies, which had been scheduled tonight at the Los Angeles Music Center, for 24 hours this afternoon.
The program, one of television's most widely watched events of the year, is now scheduled for 10 P.M. EST tomorrow. It will be broadcast on the American Broadcasting Company network.
The decision to delay the event was made, four hours before the nationally televised broadcast was scheduled to begin, at a meeting between ABC officials, Fay Kanin, president of the Academy, and Norman Jewison, producer of the telecast. The action threw the event into confusion and sent ripples through the local economy here.
It was the third time that the Academy Awards ceremonies have beenpostponed. Other Postponements
In 1968, they were delayed two days because of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, and in 1938 they were postponed for one week because of a major flood.
Thousands of movie fans had begun assembling outside the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion at the Music Center before midnight this morning in anticipation of the awards ceremony, which attracts scores of celebrities from the film world.
Rumors that the event would be canceled began to circulate among the growing crowd shortly after the shooting of Mr. Reagan and three other people was announced in Washington.
About an hour after the shooting, Academy officials announced that a tape-recorded message from the President would not be broadcast as planned. As reports from Washington indicating that Mr. Reagan was more seriously injured than it appeared initially came in, the 24-hour delay was announced. An audience of more than 50 million viewers in this country, and as many as 300 million in 65 countries that were scheduled to see the telecast, had been expected for the program. 'I'll Be Back Tomorrow'
''I'm depressed; what a bummer; but I'll be back tomorrow,'' said Sharon Houghtaling, a housewife who had arrived at the Music Center at 6 A.M. with two friends wearing yellow and white athletic shirts emblazoned with the words: ''Academy Awards 53rd Annual Awards,'' and in smaller lettering, the names of some of the stars nominated for awards.
John Pavlik, executive administrator of the Academy, who climbed a platform and announced to the crowd that the event had been delayed, said afterward: ''The crowd was upset but I think they understood; the younger people had more trouble understanding than the older ones.''
Besides disappointing movie fans and adding another day to the suspense for performers, directors and others who are nominated for Oscars, the decision affected the local economy.
From florists to tuxedo rental shops, from hair-dressers to the livery business, the Oscar ceremonies are big business here; hundreds of limousines, for example, had been rented for the evening because, by tradition, film celebrities and studio executives regard a limousine as the only essential mode of transportation to the film industry's biggest event of the year. Some Arrangements Canceled
Arrangements were being made to re-schedule the limousines for service for tonight, but there were early indications that some of the vehicles were already committed to other jobs, which raised the possibility that some of the celebrities will have to double-up or go in private cars.
Similarly, many of the hundreds of women who had planned to attend the ceremonies tonight had been at local beauty salons today, and arragements were being made by some for new appointments tomorrow.
About 1,500 of the guests at the Academy Awards ceremonies were scheduled, after it ended, to drive to Beverly Hills for the annual Board of Governor's Ball at the Beverly Hilton Hotel; for $250 a person. They were supposed to dance to two orchestras and dine on avocados stuffed with seafood; tournedos of beef and strawberries dipped in chocolate, among other things.
Tonight, hotel officials were deciding not only what to do with the food -most of it in preparation before the cancelation - but whether the Governor's Ball could go on tomorrow at all because of a scheduling conflict at the Beverly Hilton hotel.
The American Film Market is holding a meeting of film buyers from around the world similar to the Cannes film market in France and it is scheduled to hold a major banquet in the same ballroom tomorrow night. A spokesman for the Film Market said it would not defer to the Academy and cancel its plans, so the fate of the Ball was uncertain. Insurance Is a Question
A source within the Academy administration said that it was insured against possible financial loss in the event that the award ceremonies had to be canceled, but that it was not clear what losses would be covered, if any, because of a one-day postponement.
In the statement that he recorded several weeks ago, Mr. Reagan, who had been on the program of three earlier Academy Awards programs in his former role as an actor, said:
''Good evening to my fellow Americans eagerly awaiting the presentation of the 53d Annual Academy Awards. It's surely no state secret that Nancy and I share your interest in the results of this year's balloting.
''We're not alone. The miracle of American technology links us with millions of moviegoers around the world. It is the motion picture that shows us all not only how we look and sound but - more important - how we feel. When it achieves its most noble intent, film reveals that people everywhere share common dreams and emotions.
''Tonight I applaude all who create, make, distribute, exhibit, and attend movies. I salute the Academy for the influence its work has had on the world's most enduring art form. Film is forever. I've been trapped in some film forever myself - and as a former member of the Academy, I ask you now to join Nancy and me in enjoying this year's ceremonies.''
Academy officials said tonight they were not sure whether the message would be broadcast on the delayed program tonight.
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