Getting A Peace of The Oscar Action
John Anderson
03/02/2003

With security at the March 23 Academy Awards guaranteed to be tighter than Salma Hayek's dress, anti-war protests won't get any closer to the Kodak Theatre here in Hollywood than the parking lot of the In-n-Out Burger on Sunset Boulevard. So peace activists have decided to aim at Oscar night's Achilles' heel: fashion. An 18-karat gold Peace Pin - inspired by Pablo Picasso's "Dove of Peace" and designed by jeweler Henry Dunay (in white or yellow gold, your choice) -has been commissioned by the umbrella activist organization Global Vision for Peace, to be worn on Oscar night by presenters and recipients.

One hundred fifty are being donated by Dunay and will be sold on eBay after the awards, each accompanied by a certificate of authenticity as to which star wore it. "Everybody is figuring out what they're doing, so we have more people on the honorary committee than have committed to wearing the pin," says Cliff Rothman, journalist and co-founder of Global Vision. "Leonardo DiCaprio is on the committee, but he's not sure if he's going. But Meryl Streep is definitely wearing it." An cademyspokeswoman says that what goes on outside the perimeter of the event is beyond the academy's control, but it has gotten all the street and sidewalk closures it's requested. But Oscar can't control fashion coverage. "To us, the pin is just a symbol of peace," Rothman says. "But the fashion part seems to be the first wave of interest. People magazine is doing an exclusive; 'Entertainment Tonight' is on it. And the stylists are all excited."