Steve was selected to host the 2001 Academy Awards. This was his first time, and it was the subject of a lot of early speculation about his first time hosting.

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BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) -- A wild and crazy guy will be host of next year's Oscar awards.

Steve Martin will succeed Billy Crystal at the 73rd Academy Awards on March 25, it was announced Monday.

''If you can't win 'em, join 'em,'' said Martin, who has made eight Oscar show appearances but has never been nominated for an award.

Crystal, the seven-time host of the show, declined this time, citing a scheduling conflict. He is working on the comedy ''America's Sweethearts'' with Julia Roberts and Catherine Zeta-Jones.

The Oscar nominations will be announced Feb. 13.
 

Add another job title to the résumé of multihyphenate funny guy Steve Martin: Oscar host.

The actor-director-writer and erstwhile Jerk was named host of the 73rd annual Academy Awards Monday, ending much speculation about who would take over for Billy Crystal.

Gil Cates, producer of the Oscar telecast, made the surprise announcement, saying Martin's many talents make him a perfect fit for the high-profile gig. "He's everything!" Cates said in a statement. "He's a movie star, he's funny, he's classy, he's literate--he'll be a wonderful host."

Martin, who has never been nominated for an Oscar, saw it another way.

"If you can't win 'em, join 'em," he said.

The 55-year-old Wild and Crazy Guy has appeared on the Oscar telecast eight times, but never as host. In 1997, he introduced one of the clips for Best Picture, and he also showed up in a gag sequence during the 1995 telecast.

The decision puts to rest the building speculation about who would fill the shoes of Crystal, who's hosted the show seven times over the last 10 years, but bowed out this year because of commitments to upcoming film projects, including the romantic comedy America's Sweethearts and 61*, a baseball movie he wrote and directed for HBO.

Crystal--a consistent favorite among Oscar viewers for his ability to add lighthearted humor and movie parodies to the gut-wrenchingly long ceremony--had even suggested a few of his own picks for host, including Jim Carrey, Jay Leno or, yes, David Letterman.

Instead, it turns out Crystal's shoes will be filled with happy feet. Martin's film credits include Father of the Bride, Roxanne and The Jerk, and he's found success on stage and in the literary world, as well. His latest novella, Shopgirl, is on the New York Times and Los Angeles Times bestseller lists, and is in its seventh printing.

Martin also recently completed filming the black comedy, Novocaine, with Helena Bonham Carter and Laura Dern. The film is due in 2001.

The Oscars will be handed out March 25 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles and will be televised live on ABC.
 

It's sure to be one wild and crazy Oscar ceremony next year - with Steve Martin playing host with the most jokes. The wacky, white-haired comic yesterday copped the coveted spot of master of ceremonies for the mega-watched March 25 awards extravaganza, ending weeks of speculation over the top job.

"If you can't win 'em, join 'em," an obviously pleased Martin quipped after the announcement was made.

The comedy legend beat out other hot contenders such as Rosie O'Donnell, Chris Rock, Jay Leno and Dennis Miller.

And while he has tough shoes to fill - this year's hilarious host, Billy Crystal, said he was too busy to do it again - Martin is up for the task, show organizers say.

"He's everything," Oscar producer Gil Cates said. "He's a movie star, he's funny, he's classy, he's literate - he'll be a wonderful host."

The show's presenter is responsible for keeping the show - and the laughs - rolling amid the award presentations, sometimes painfully bad entertainment and overly smarmy tributes.

Martin was a safe bet with his popular droll yet goofy humor, industry observers say.

He's known for creating outlandish characters, ranging from dancing fool "King Tut" to the "wild and crazy guy," to coining the phrase, "Well, excuuuuse me!"

He should appeal to both TV and movie audiences, since he's no stranger to either, observers say.

Martin was wildly popular in frequent appearances on "Saturday Night Live," then went on to star in such flicks as "All of Me," "The Jerk" and "Planes, Trains & Automobiles."

He has never been nominated for an Academy Award.

But Oscar audiences know and love him for parts in ceremonies past - he's been on six shows as an award presenter and once during a sketch.

Yesterday's announcement ended hand-wringing from worried producers over who would host the show, given Crystal's stellar performance this year and in six previous turns.

He stunned organizers by announcing this month he wouldn't be at the helm for the next ceremony, saying he was too busy filming a new movie.

The high-pressure, high-profile post before thousands of Hollywood peers can make or, if not break, at least damage the careers of those who accept the challenge.

Oscar honcho Richard Zanuck has called finding the right host "perhaps the single most important decision that can be made on a show of this kind."
 

...And whatta coup for the Oscars' Gil Cates to have set Steve Martin to host the 73rd awards. "Steve was enthusiastic," said Cates who asked him last week. Martin is a longtime friend of the Cates family; he'd spoken at the memorial for Joe Cates. Steve will obviously be one of the writers of the show, along with Bruce Vilanch and Hal Kant.
 

After seven stints as an Oscar presenter, Steve Martin has nabbed the big job --- emceeing the 73rd annual Academy Awards.

Gil Cates, who was named last week as producer of the kudocast, made the Martin announcement Monday.

"If you can't win 'em, join 'em," Martin joked. The actor-writer has never been nominated as a performer or writer for Oscar gold.

However, he wrote and starred in the 1977 Oscar-nominated short "The Absent-Minded Waiter," and Oscar noms in various categories have gone to other pics in which he appeared, such as "Little Shop of Horrors" and "Parenthood."

"He's everything," said Cates, who will be in the producer's seat for the 10th time. "He's a movie star, he's funny, he's classy, he's literate --- he'll be a wonderful host."

Acad prexy Robert Rehme added: "Steve is a man of great style. I am simply elated to have him on board. He was at the top of our list, we offered and he accepted; it was as simple as that."

Last year, Richard and Lili Fini Zanuck produced the Oscarcast, which was hosted by Billy Crystal. The previous year, Cates produced, and Whoopi Goldberg hosted. Crystal and Goldberg had previously stated that they would not be hosting the Oscars this year.

Either Crystal or Goldberg has hosted every ceremony for the past decade, with the exception of one critically assailed turn by David Letterman.

TV ratings have ebbed a bit in the past two outings, which is as much a function of the wide-open awards competish as the show's production values. This year's free-for-all hasn't yielded a front-runner, often a key ingredient for ratings success.

Martin, whose novella "Shopgirl" is a bestseller on the New York Times and Los Angeles Times lists, will next appear onscreen with Helena Bonham Carter and Laura Dern in Artisan's "Novocaine."

The frosh host has served as a presenter on six shows and introduced a best pic clip in 1997. He also participated in a gag film sequence in 1995.

The 73rd annual Academy Awards ceremony will be held March 25 at L.A.'s Shrine Auditorium.
 

Which films will be chosen for this year's Academy Awards is anybody's guess, but at least one Oscar question has been answered: Steve Martin was chosen Monday to host the 73rd annual Academy Awards on March 25--the first time the comic actor, director and author has handled that duty.

The 55-year-old Martin is best known to film audiences for his roles in such films as "Parenthood" and "Roxanne." But he began his career as a stand-up comic, famous for his zany performances on television and stage.

When Billy Crystal opted not to host the show this year for an eighth time, producer Gil Cates and academy President Bob Rehme drew up a short list of names to replace him. Rehme said Martin was very high on the list--though he would not say who else was on it. Last week, Cates and Martin met for lunch, and the actor agreed to do the show. Rehme said Martin will bring his own brand of conceptual and cerebral humor to the show.

"Steve is a major movie star, a writer, a producer, a director, an author and a playwright," Rehme said Monday.

Martin, though, has never been nominated for an Oscar. "If you can't win 'em, join 'em," Martin said in a statement released by the academy.

Though Martin was catapulted into stardom by his comedic flair, he has lately opted to do more serious fare such as starring in David Mamet's 1998 "The Spanish Prisoner" and even writing a novel, "Shopgirl." Still, Martin's persona was shaped by his classic performances on "Saturday Night Live" in the late 1970s as a "wild and crazy guy" and as King Tut.

Rehme noted, however, that it's the films, not the show, that take center stage on Oscar night. "The key for the Oscars is recognizing the achievement of these artists. . . . Hopefully the show will be somewhat entertaining."
 

Mercifully, the producer of this year's Academy Awards broadcast did not take Billy Crystal's advice and offer the hosting gig to Jim Carrey, sparing us the possibility of seeing Carrey again in a fig leaf--his ensemble for the 1997 VH1 Fashion awards--or talking to the audience through his heinie--his approach as a presenter at the 69th Academy Awards show.

Instead, Steve Martin has been picked to host the 73rd annual Academy Awards on March 25--the first time the actor, director, author and funnyman has emceed the show, broadcast on ABC.

"He's everything," gushed Oscar telecast producer Gil Cates in making the announcement yesterday. "He's a movie star, he's funny, he's classy, he's literate."

"He'll be a wonderful host," Cates promised. Of course, they promised that last year's Oscar show would be shorter.

That notwithstanding, Martin is probably a great choice. Back in October, he stole the show when Carl Reiner received the Mark Twain Prize at the Kennedy Center when he deadpanned, "I could stand up here for the next 10 minutes or so and honor Carl, but somehow this seems neither the time nor the place."

And, like Crystal--and unlike Carrey--Martin is a grown-up comedian who expects his audience to be grown-up, too, which somehow seems more appropriate for the tony Oscars.

In addition, he looks really good in a tux. Which David Letterman, who bombed when he hosted the show a few years back, does not. Nor does Whoopi Goldberg, who did a yeoman job on two occasions but said she was unavailable for a return engagement.

Speculation as to the host revved up two weeks ago when Crystal, who practically owns the job after emceeing seven times, announced he was too busy wrapping up his flick "America's Sweetheart."

The 2001 presentation will mark Martin's eighth appearance on an Oscars telecast, though his first as master of ceremonies.

The silver-haired star was a presenter six times, introduced a best-picture clip in 1997 and participated in Crystal's trademark gag film sequence in 1995.

Martin comes to the hosting duties with the right pedigree: Like Crystal, he's never even been nominated for an Oscar.

"If you can't win 'em--join 'em," he said in a news release yesterday.

The 55-year-old Martin, whose talents include the record for most "Tonight Show" appearances (40), is best known to audiences for his roles in such films as "Parenthood" and "Father of the Bride.

" He got his start writing for comedy-variety TV shows in the '60s and achieved fame with such catch-phrases as "Well, excuuuuse me!" and "I am a wild and crazy guy!" in several appearances on "Saturday Night Live." His next movie, the black comedy "Novocaine," is due out next year.
 

Comic, actor and writer Steve Martin was named yesterday as host of the upcoming 73rd Academy Awards. "He's everything," Oscars telecast producer Gil Cates said. "He's a movie star, he's funny, he's classy, he's literate - he'll be a wonderful host."

The March 25 awards presentation on ABC will mark Martin's eighth appearance on an Oscars telecast and his first as master of ceremonies. The silver-haired funnyman and film star has served as a presenter on six shows, introduced a clip on the 1997 show and took part in a gag film for the 1995 telecast.

He has appeared in more than two dozen movies but has never been nominated for an Oscar. "If you can't win 'em, join 'em," Martin said in the statement announcing his selection as Academy Awards emcee.

Speculation about who would host the upcoming Oscars has mounted since Billy Crystal took himself out of the running two weeks ago, saying he would be too busy with other projects.

Martin is currently enjoying success as an author with his first novella, "Shopgirl," appearing on bestseller lists. His next movie, the black comedy "Novocaine" with Helena Bonham Carter and Laura Dern, is due out next year.

The Herald happened to be interviewing Massachusetts' own David Mamet about his new film, "State and Main," when the news came out. Mamet, who directed Martin in "The Spanish Prisoner," didn't seem worried about jinxing his film's Oscar chances.

"I hadn't heard that," Mamet cracked. "Did anybody ask him or was that a unilateral announcement on his part? . . . Actually, Steve Martin is a pussycat, and I've forgotten all about the 200 bucks he borrowed from me."
 

HOLLYWOOD insiders are giving the thumbs up to funnyman Steve Martin as the host of nextyear's Oscars.

The wacky, white-haired comic accepted the job earlier this week - but may have a tough time filling the shoes of Billy Crystal, who has done six successful turns as emcee of the star-studded event.

Crystal turned down the job this time because he will be filming a movie when the show airs.

"My recommendations were Bill Clinton or Chris Rock," film critic Roger Ebert wrote to The Post yesterday via e-mail.

"But Steve Martin should do fine," he wrote. "He's an insider, known to everyone in the room, and so [he] will be playing to a home crowd."

Martin beat out hot contenders Rosie O'Donnell, Chris Rock, Jay Leno and Dennis Miller.

"Our general reaction was yi-pee!" said Maggie Murphy, an assistant managing editor at Entertainment Weekly, who oversees the magazine's annual Power List of the 101 most influential people in entertainment.

"It's a new Oscar Millennium," said Murphy. "It's great to have a new face brought in to see if he can bring some zip and flash to what can be an unwieldy three-and-a-half-hours," she said.

"I think Martin is smooth and stylish, very much of Hollywood and fast on his feet - which you need to be," Murphy said. "The decision brings a lot of energy and possibility to the telecast."

Murphy said Martin's stint as host is likely to be reminiscent of when "Tonight Show" host Johnny Carson emceed the show about 20 years ago.

"Carson used to host and there was just this ease to that," she said. "I think that's what people see this as a possible return to." 

Martin is perhaps one of the few comics to successfully transform himself from a zany standup comedian to a Hollywood leading man. 

He who rose to fame in the early '70s during frequent appearances on "Saturday Night Live."

Since making his mark on late-night TV, Martin has gone on to star in almost 40 films including "The Jerk," "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" and "Bowfinger."

He's also a playwright, an author and a frequent contributor to The New Yorker
 

"Billy Crystal was great -- this guy's going to be great in his way," said Reiner, "because Steve Martin has never failed."

Reiner should know. The comedy legend directed Martin in several films, including The Jerk and Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid.

"Steve is a comedian, he's a writer, now No. 1 on the bestseller list in Los Angeles (for his new novel Shopgirl)," said Reiner. "He even looks like an emcee. Actually, he looks like a member of Price- Waterhouse. But what comes out of his mouth is always funny."

The Academy Awards are set for March 25 in Los Angeles.
 

Steve Martin was producer Gil Cates' first choice to host this year' s Academy Awards show March 25.

Cates had known since last fall that Billy Crystal wouldn't be available, and Billy is always everyone's first call. ''Steve is cool, modern, I also think he's going to be elegant, in the tradition of Johnny Carson. I think the audience is ready for that this year,'' Cates says, chatting from his production office in L.A.

This will be Cates' record 10th Oscars production; Martin is a first- timer, but Cates had tried to get him for a previous show. If Crystal, as reported, recommended Jim Carrey to host, he didn't tell Cates.

''I considered a bunch of people. There aren't many who can do the show. You need to be funny, fast on your feet, and someone who's got room experience as an emcee or comic. This is the biggest room in the country,'' with a global audience of several hundred million.

Put Cates on the list of those rooting for Julia Roberts to get a nomination for Erin Brockovich. He knows that the bigger the names, and the bigger the box office of nominated movies, the more viewers will watch the show. He recalls what a boost the blockbuster Titanic gave Oscar.

The 73rd awards presentation will be the last at L.A.'s Shrine auditorium, and the alternative L.A. Music Center, with the academy's Kodak Theatre now being completed at Hollywood and Highland. Cates' show won't get into that; any tip of the hat to the Shrine will be left for 2002. But as for the look of the show, ''I love it when it looks like no other show on television. It's always the most expensive, the grandest.' ' He won't reveal the budget: ''It's enough.''

There'll be a half-hour Oscar pre-show for the third year. ''The first year, it was a controlled environment, with Geena Davis, very dignified, the Academy way. Then they felt more interaction was better, so we'll probably continue with people on the red carpet, the sawdust flavor.' '

He's laid back about the show's three-hour-plus length, which he thinks chiefly concerns the East Coast, when it stretches past midnight. ''I've always viewed it like a Super Bowl or World Series game. It ends when it's over. That's part of the fun -- when is it going to be over?'' He watched the 1955 show on kinescope with Bob Hope as host: ''It was 2 hours, 20 minutes, amazing! But they showed none of the nominees. That could save a lot of time, but they'd have to pick me up after at the Westwood Mortuary!''

Cates' day job is running the Geffen Playhouse in Westwood, and this year he directed A Death in the Family, a two-hour PBS show due next fall.

He finds the Oscars ''tremendous fun. People return my phone calls, and that's kind of neat. And unlike any other form of show business, you don't have contracts or negotiations. If you want to invite George Clooney on the show, you just call his agent, or call him if you know him. My entire legal file on an Oscar show is a 10th of one for a movie of the week.''
 

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