ON THE INSIDE: SOME LUCKY OSCAR HOPEFULS WILL GET A NICE DESSERT.

Byline: Valerie Kuklenski Staff Writer

Gilbert Cates, producing his 10th Oscar telecast in two weeks, has tried pleading, cajoling and threatening each year's nominees into keeping their acceptance speeches short. Now he's trying bribery.

Cates, addressing the 20th annual Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon on Monday at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, offered two incentives aimed at keeping the March 25 telecast from becoming more of a telethon.

First, the nominees were invited to bring to the Shrine Auditorium written remarks - including a list as long as their sleeve, of people and pets they wish to thank - so academy staff can post the ``speech'' on the official www.oscar.com Web site during the ceremony.

Second, Cates tried dangling a present too big to fit into the lavish gift baskets the presenters haul away.

``The Oscar winner who delivers the shortest speech on Oscars night will get a special producer's award: a brand-new, high-definition television set - a very expensive television set,'' Cates said, drawing applause and laughter. ``If there are four winners in a category like visual effects and their combination is the shortest time, they will get four high-definition television sets. If there are 20 of you, you will get 20 high-definition television sets.''

That may be little incentive to a Tom Hanks or a Julia Roberts, and it's still a small fraction of the ceremony's $10 million-plus budget. But the motion picture academy will try anything to ward off a repeat of last year's record four-hour, nine-minute epic.

In an interview before the lunch, Cates projected a running time of eight hours, nine minutes, which prompted longtime Oscars writer Buz Kohan to quip, ``He's being conservative.''

With a less than two weeks to go until Hollywood's big night, the 100 or so nominees at the luncheon were a little awestruck, humble and generally relaxed at their last gathering before they meet up on the red carpet or at the Governors Ball after the ceremonies. This was their last public appearance on a level playing field before the rip of a few envelopes sorts out the winners and the also-rans.

The annual event resembles a high school commencement - OK, a nicely catered high school commencement, at a very elite school, with multiple valedictorians. The nominees assemble on bleachers for a ``class picture,'' then step down one at a time, in alphabetical order, to accept a certificate from academy president Robert Rehme and a commemorative sweat shirt. (Supporting actor candidate Joaquin Phoenix said he will keep the shirt as a memento, but documentary filmmaker Eric Simonson says he'll be wearing his to the supermarket.)

It was hard to gauge from the applause which ones might emerge winners. The audience gave nearly equally hearty reactions to the film editor for ``The Wonder Boys'' and ``Gladiator'' star Russell Crowe.

Frances McDormand, up for best supporting actress for her role in ``Almost Famous,'' admitted this nomination is not the same as her best actress bid for ``Fargo,'' which she won.

``It's like going back to your old high school in a way,'' she said. ``You remember the lockers being a lot bigger and the halls being a lot longer, and there's a certain familiarity to it. But it's still odd.''

Willem Dafoe, up for best supporting actor for ``Shadow of the Vampire,'' said he was enjoying catching up with people he'd already worked with at this ``little bit of a schmoozefest.''

Hanks, basking in his fifth nomination, enjoyed his third luncheon with wife Rita Wilson. He said in 1988, his first nomination for ``Big,'' he didn't understand the luncheon's significance so he opted to stay on the set of ``Turner and Hooch'' instead. He also sat out the year of ``Saving Private Ryan'' because he was hospitalized with an infection he contracted while filming ``Cast Away.''

Even after five nominations and two wins, Hanks said with all sincerity that he has savored each of those Oscar seasons.

``It's always the coolest thing in the world,'' he said. ``There are a lot of analogies you can add to it, but it only comes around once a year and, look, sooner or later they're going to stop asking. So just pulling up in the car the heart starts beating again, and the fact that you've been here before has nothing to do with how exciting it is.''

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11 photos

Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) Juliette Binoche, Best Actress nominee

(2 -- cover -- color) Kate Hudson, Best Supporting Actress nominee

(3 -- cover -- color) Tom Hanks, Best Actor nominee

(4 -- cover -- color) Russell Crowe, Best Actor nominee

(5 -- 9 -- color) Attending this year's Oscar luncheon Monday were, clockwise from left, Laura Linney, Marcia Gay Harden, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Javier Bardem, Joan Allen.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer

(10 -- 11) Supporting actor nominee Joaquin Phoenix, left, attended on behalf of ``Gladiator,'' while supporting actress nominee Frances McDormand represented ``Almost Famous.''