Stepped Up Security for Oscars

L O S  A N G E L E S, March 23 -- Sunday's Academy Awards will offer celebrity, glamour, entertainment — and metal detectors.

In the wake of Sept. 11, and with the Oscars' move to a new theater, security will be the tightest it's ever been for an awards show, officials said.

"It will be presidential, as if the president were there — presidential-level security," said Laura Ziskin, the producer of the Oscars.

"Security is, of course, a big issue, as it has been for every big event since 9-11, and I think is something that's going to be with us for the foreseeable future," she added. "There are tremendous measures in place, some of which you'll see and some of which you won't."

Streets around the Kodak Theater will be shut down for blocks in all directions. Everyone, including the stars, will have to walk through metal detectors. This, after journalists and other attendees already had to be cleared in advance by security checks.

According to one official with the Los Angeles Police Department, there will be as many police in Hollywood on Sunday as normally patrol the entire city of Los Angeles.

Busy Neighborhood

Ric Robertson of the Motion Picture Academy said security has been a concern since even before Sept. 11 because of the Oscars' new home in the heart of Hollywood.

"It's a more challenging area — a denser urban environment in the middle of a more complicated project here, with stores and restaurants, which will all be closed, of course, on Sunday," Robertson said. "But we're confident that we're going to have a very safe and secure environment for our guests."

ABCNEWS' Dave Alpert in Los Angeles contributed to this report.