More notes on missing Oscar envelope

GOOD MORNING: Was there ever an envelope for the winner "achievement in music (original dramatic score)"? You recall Sharon Stone and Quincy Jones, after first making the presentation to the winners of the musical or comedy score (Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz for "'Pocahontas"), then read off the nominees for dramatic score. But there was no envelope to announce the winner. Stone tried to get "psychic" help and Quincy whisked into the wings, came back, whispered the winner "The Postman" to Sharon, who announced it -- and Luis Enrique Bacalov made his way to the podium. It was the first time something like this had ever occurred, said Frank Johnson, managing partner of Price, Waterhouse, who has been in charge of this phase of the Oscar voting for 20 years. He said there had indeed been an envelope. What happened to it? The Acad's managing director Bruce Davis looked at a replay Tuesday morning and claimed the envelope had been taken offstage by winner Stephen Schwartz. But, Johnson insists that only one category's winning envelope is ever on the podium at a time; while the cameras were on the arriving Schwartz and Menken, Johnson came on stage, picked up the old envelope and gave Stone the second category's envelope. "I deliberately don't put it on the podium. I placed it in Sharon Stone's hand," Johnson said. "She (Stone) must have given it by mistake to Schwartz along with the Oscar," said Johnson. How did Johnson know which winner to whisper to Quincy Jones? "I memorize all the winners," said Johnson. All the winners? "Yes," he insisted, "all the winning pictures of the 24 categories -- not all the names of the people. It's the picture that's announced, then followed by the names." Johnson and another Price, Waterhouse rep memorize the winners and each is stationed on either wing of the stage with a complete set of winning envelopes -- just in case something like this happens. "It's a fail-safe system," added Johnson. Whoopi Goldberg was set to come on stage with the other envelope from the other side of the stage but, at the last second, decided it wasn't necessary. As of yesterday afternoon, the Academy hadn't heard from anyone having the missing envelope. C'mon now, 'fess up.

WHILE MOST WINNERS were milling in the many post-Oscar parties, the six Douglases -- Kirk, Anne, Michael, Joel, Peter and Eric -- returned to Kirk's BevHills house for a quiet toasting en famille, although Michael did show up at Vanity Fair's Morton's party, hosted by Graydon Carter. None of them knew what Kirk was going to say in acceptance. He proved again a "Champion" and there wasn't a dry eye in the house. In a couple of months, Kirk is determined his speech will be perfect; he's made enormous progress since I first spoke to him a month ago. And he's determined to make that movie "Son of David" with son Michael. At the theater, Eastman Kodak delivered to Anne and the Douglas sons an 8-by-10 picture of Kirk, on stage, holding his Oscar -- five minutes after he received his award. It's Kodak's new, immediate technology ... Mike Shapiro, who produced the Douglas film tribute, notes, "Being asked to create a film tribute of 2 1/2 minutes for a man who made over 80 starring-role films is intimidating enough -- and when it happens to be for an actor I really admire, it compounded the task. Steven Spielberg's speech was just right and helped a great deal"... When last seen, Mel Gibson was puffing away on a big cigar in the Canon Drive private smoke club at 3:30 ayem with wife Robyn. Gibson delighted the fans lining Robertson Blvd. outside Morton's by hanging out with them and then continued on to Par's celebration at Chasen's, where Along Came Mary had taken over the kitchen, catering the bash, which also included a smoke room for the cigar-lovers.

PLAYING MUSICAL CARS, celebs made their way from the Governors Ball to Morton's to Spago to Drai's (site of Columbia's party, where the BBC went live with celeb interviews during Oscar commercials) to Chasen's and Maple Drive (where $250,000 was raised for Elton John's AIDS Foundation). Among winners also playing to the fans in the streets outside Morton's was Nicolas Cage ... Pierce Brosnan arrived at Miramax's party at Spago from the Governors Ball in the helicopter with Wolfgang Puck. They landed at the Pacific Design Center. Mira Sorvino and Quentin Tarantino closed Spago at 4:30. I asked her father, Paul, when he and Mira will do a movie together. He thought a possibility could be "Lear"... Christopher Reeve made it to the Governors Ball for a bit and Tuesday ayem took off for N.Y. He was exhilarated by the outpouring of good wishes ... Whoopi Goldberg was cheered for her femceeing when she arrived at Planet Hollywood, joining restaurant partners Arnold Schwarzenegger, Demi Moore, Keith Barish and Robert Earl ... Quincy Jones went to Georgia ... Previous Thalberg and Academy winner Pandro S. Berman celebrates his 91st birthday Thursday. His list of credits include "National Velvet," "Father of the Bride," etc.