Gothamites talk up town as alternative Oscar site

By ROBERT SILVERMAN

As the first rain of spring fell on New York, the city's A list crowded into an Academy Awards party at Elaine's, to debate the likely winners and whether or not the Oscars should play New York.

"Wouldn't it be nice to go to the Oscars at a normal hour instead of having to get dressed at 2 and be there by 5? Just look at the Grammys," said Blaine Trump, one of the evening's hostesses.

The fete, thrown by Trump and her husband, Robert, along with Joan Rivers and Bobby Zarem, boasted some of the city's top showbiz and business notables.

Donald and Marla Trump were all for bringing Oscar to New York. "I think it's a good idea," said Donald. "I think the Grammys have proven it can be fantastic."

But not everyone was so supportive of an eastward move.

Richard Chamberlain, Broadway's current Henry Higgins in "My Fair Lady," said , "I think it's probably a terrible idea ... It's such a Hollywood event."

"The Oscars don't belong in New York," said Rivers. "We have our Tonys, it's enough."

The bash, attended by Morley Safer, Walter Cronkite, Billy Baldwin and Mort Zuckerman, was a definite success, though it fell short of its goal to help fill the void left by the late Irving "Swifty" Lazar, whose events at Spago in Los Angeles were legendary.