Whether or not impending military action against Iraq begins this week, "the show must go on."

That's the sentiment expressed by organizers of the 75th annual Academy Awards, which will be broadcast Sunday night on ABC. It's also the way that the NCAA "March Madness" tournament, "American Idol," and the WWE's Wrestlemania plan to do business in the face of war. Even if the strikes against Saddam Hussein's regime begin during the Oscars, which will be broadcast live from Los Angeles' Kodak Theatre, the show will not be canceled, Oscars producer Gil Cates Jr. said at a press conference Tuesday (March 18).

If ABC pre-empts the broadcast in favor of war coverage, the show may be delayed, Cates said. But, he added, "If you are a betting man, the show will go on."

A military conflict without the approval the United Nations Security Council is expected to commence this week, given President Bush's 48-hour ultimatum given to Saddam Hussein during a televised address Monday night (see "Bush To Saddam — 'Leave Within 48 Hours': Latest News On Iraq").

If strikes on Iraq begin during the show, or should major events surface in an existing military action, ABC will likely run news crawls or break from the awards for coverage in order to keep what has traditionally been one of television's largest audiences informed, a network spokesperson said. It really all depends on what happens and when.

"As is always the case, if there are world events that warrant coverage on the night of the Academy Awards, ABC News will bring them to the American audience with the full support of the academy," a network spokesperson said.

The show's producer said the tone of the ceremony would be appropriate and would reflect the national mood. At Tuesday's press conference, it was announced that there would be no red-carpet arrivals because some celebrities felt uncomfortable glamming and hamming for the camera given the current atmosphere.

Meanwhile, media talk abounds that academy officials are putting pressure on presenters to stick to their given scripts and not mention the war. Winners, whose speeches are beyond the control of the academy, were reportedly warned that if they raised the topic, their televised time at the podium would be cut short. An academy spokesperson would neither confirm nor deny the allegation, and Cates' publicist did not return calls by press time.

In 1981 the Academy Awards were postponed a day after the attempted assassination of President Ronald Regan. Two years ago, the Emmy Awards were delayed twice after September 11 and the anthrax scare that followed.

Networks with high-profile programs are also contemplating adjusting their schedules. ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox will switch to war coverage should conflict break out, while the WB is expected to run CNN reports, and UPN is likely to adhere to its scheduled programming, augmented by hourly UPN-branded updates courtesy of CBS.

As for TV shows, Fox's "American Idol" will post results on its Web site if Wednesday's episode is pre-empted, the Washington Post reported. CBS's "Survivor," as well as the season finale of "Star Search," may be moved by the network.

The Academy Awards are one of the few shows to announce definite contingency plans. All the major sporting events, including the NCAA basketball tournament and Major League Baseball's opening day, have contingency plans in place. Spokespeople for those organizations as well as the NBA, NASCAR, NFL Europe and the WWE said they're in communication with federal agencies and will proceed however they're advised to — with safety of the athletes and fans a top priority.

The first game of the NCAA's "March Madness" playoffs, between North Carolina-Asheville and Texas Southern, is set to begin Tuesday in Dayton, Ohio, with the rest of the first round scheduled for Thursday. While things are expected to go as planned, it was suggested that athletes get to their destinations as soon as possible. NCAA President Myles Brand said the league had been checking on the availability of arenas and hotels for the future, but announced today that all games would proceed as scheduled.The Final Four is scheduled for April 5 and 7 in New Orleans.

"We don't know when it will start, and we have to be respectful of our men and women in uniform," Brand said. "On the other hand, I think we have to be very careful not to let Saddam Hussein control our lives. We have to balance those."

CBS is slated to broadcast the tourney, but at press time the channel was in talks with ESPN and ESPN2, as well as TVLand, UPN and TNN, to pick up the games should a conflict erupt and prompt a shift to news coverage. MTV's parent company, Viacom, also owns CBS, TVLand, UPN and TNN.

Major League Baseball's first game, between the Oakland Athletics and Seattle Mariners on Tuesday in Tokyo, has been canceled, commissioner Bud Selig announced Tuesday. Both it and a game set for the following day have been rescheduled to April 3 and June 30, respectively. The season will now begin March 30, with the Texas Rangers taking on the Anaheim Angels.

With marquee matchups between the Spurs and Mavericks and between the Lakers and Kings scheduled for Thursday, the NBA, too, is discussing its plans. There were no scheduling changes at press time, though a league spokesperson said NBA officials are in regular talks with the highest levels of government.

"We have a place in society, and we're going to keep that appropriate place," NBA spokesperson Tim Frank said. "Obviously the goings on in the world are a lot more important than anything else going on, and we'll get our direction from the government on how they feel we'll need to play a role."

When the Gulf War took place in January 1991, no NBA games were cancelled or postponed.

NFL Europe, whose season begins April 5, is considering moving their games from across the Atlantic to Florida for safety concerns.

Professional wrestling's WWE is also contemplating their scheduled events in the near future. Live "Raw" and "Smackdown" events are slated for Monday and Tuesday, respectively, and Wrestlemania XIX is still set for March 30.

However they decide to proceed, WWE chairman Vince McMahon said he "plans to be a leader and not a follower."

McMahon, who prides himself on the fact that his wrestling event was the first public gathering after September 11, strove to persevere because "it sends a message around that world, and that message is 'Screw you.' We're going to do what we normally do, and that's entertain people."