The Oscar for Best Party . . .

(By Michael Temchine For The Washington Post)

No Oscar party is complete, it seems, without a ballot. Always, always, always. Everyone must vote and -- borrowed pencil in hand -- revisit that eternal quandary: Do I vote for the one I think is going to win or the one I want to win? Hwa, no sports fan, says she started her Oscar party tradition in 1998 as a reaction to March Madness ballots, back when the Oscars were held the same month. After she began her own office pool for the Oscars, it morphed into a party. And an obsession. How much of one? When a blizzard hit Washington last year, right around Oscar time, the power went out at her house. Hwa booked a hotel room so the show could go on. The power came back just as she had her party food and toothbrush packed. So she stayed home, fired up the TV and the Hwa-fest returned to its regular programming.

Everyone has their game plan. On the morning of the awards, before he rolls out the red walkway, Seth Hurwitz drives from his Bethesda home to Philadelphia. Why? To buy a mess of hoagies for his party. He also picks up Italian pastries, he says, and "the odd Stromboli." For the subs, he goes religiously to the same place, Primo Hoagies, every year. Washington can't make subs like the City of Brotherly Love does, he explains. When his guests hear about his long-distance drive, he says, "they look at you like you're nuts. And then they bite into one."

And speaking of red carpets, Andrews has hers, albeit a little downscale.

"It started out as a red cloth that I bought cheap at a linen store. I'm not good with scissors. So it was pretty jagged on the sides. Not very polished." After her move last year from Charlottesville to Richmond, the cloth got lost. But that didn't stop her. "I had this solid pink wrapping paper. So I rolled that out on the floor. Then the cat got on. Started rolling around on it." And never got off.

So, for prospective hosts who want to rustle something together, maybe even this weekend, if not next year, do these veterans have tips to offer?

Of course they do.

-- Don't think Oscar night is just for single adults. Klisch has a party with two dinner shifts: for parents and their kids, and for the late-nighters. She serves mac and cheese or fish sticks for the kids and their parents right away. If they go home early, they can always find out if they're winners in the morning.

-- Don't be the ballot counter, Seth Hurwitz says. "Get a good accountant or banker-type to keep track of the pool, or you'll spend the whole evening buried in paperwork. I had to learn that one the hard way."

-- Don't be afraid to ask people to dress up, Andrews says. That makes it more fun. But if you do, remind everyone to bring a casual change of clothes, so they don't feel trussed up the whole night.

-- If you're new in the neighborhood, an Oscar party is a great way to meet the neighbors, says Klisch, who lived for a few years in Denver. The Oscar bash resulted in some great new pals.

-- A little planning goes a long way. Klisch, who has as many as 40 people over, meets with her guests on the morning of her party. They spend the day cooking and hanging out. It's a nice way to be ready for the event and do it together.

-- Above all, make it fun. "We try to be as inclusive as possible," Caroline Hurwitz says. "We send an Evite to everyone we know. The more, the merrier. And we try to make more people dress up, darn it. Watching Oscars takes the pressure off people. Some of them don't know one another -- they may only see each other at the party -- but everyone can sit around and watch TV and not feel this social awkwardness."

Oscar parties allow everyone to share -- as one -- in what Hurwitz calls "the granddaddy of the big time. The only awards show I'd love to go to."

Presenting . . . Oscar

If you're hosting your own Oscar party, remember that the awards show to end all awards shows starts at 8:30 Sunday on ABC. But have guests arrive early so they don't miss the glitz and the glam that is the red-carpet spectacle starting at 8. If you really have Oscar fever, get the party started even earlier: Red-carpet coverage on the cable network E! begins at 6. When will the Oscars end? Long after many of our bedtimes!

If you can't pull off a party of your own, let other people do the work:

The Washington D.C. Film Society's 16th annual party. Film critics Joe Barber and Bill Henry act as hosts as you watch the 80th Academy Awards on the big screen at the Arlington Cinema 'N' Drafthouse, 2903 Columbia Pike, Arlington. Food and drinks will be sold. The night includes trivia contests, a silent auction and door prizes. $20; order online at http://www.dcfilmsociety.org or at the door beginning at 6. Doors open at 6:30.

Oscar Night DC. This fundraiser for the American Red Cross is the area's only Academy-approved Oscar party. Break out the tux for this black-tie affair featuring open bar and hors d'oeuvres at Posh Restaurant and Supper Club, 730 11th St. NW. $115-$170. From 7 to midnight. For reservations, call 703-584-8459 or visit http://www.redcrossnca.org.