Oscar Night Parties: A Rundown

NOT HERE FOR THE PARTY Carter (Photo: Getty Images) As we first reported yesterday, the writers' strike has forced Vanity Fair to pull the plug on its famed Oscar Party, leaving A-Listers without a default post-awards hangout for the first time in 14 years.

The soiree, which reportedly costs upward of $1 million (not including the ancillary cost of putting up a host of Vanity Fair staffers at the Beverly Hills Hotel for the three weeks preceding the party or the food and black car expenses they might incur), was set to be held at Century City restaurant Craft, a departure from the old standby, Morton's. Of the new space, a hangout frequented by CAA agents, Carter said, it's "the ideal place for the party: great food—which we will not be serving family-style, by the way—great location with a dramatic entrance and a big, sweeping space."

It's unclear how much money Vanity Fair stands to lose on the last-minute cancellation—construction on the elaborate set had not yet begun, though the magazine did print up 900 invitations. (For a look at just how labor-intensive party preparations are, as well as a funny anecdote about the time Courtney Love called VF special projects director and event organizer Sara Marks a "cunt," read Carter's account here.) A call to Craft has not yet been returned.