Hello from Hollywood and the red carpet of the Oscar ceremony.
I say red carpet, but of course when the riff-raff like me are let in it is all covered with plastic sheeting, keeping it pristine for the big stars while the technicians and crafts folk put the finishing touches to the very large TV set known as the "Red Carpet" - a set that takes days to build on Hollywood Boulevard (corner of Highland Avenue), but which will start to come down the minute the stars take their seats in the Dolby Theatre.
All the craftspeople, technicians around here getting everything set up, and those crafts people and technicians very much on the minds of the academy this year. Because, of course, this Oscars is going on in the shadow of those devastating fires that burned a lot of houses on the outskirts of Hollywood.
A few of them belonged to movie stars, of course (publicists at the Oscar Wildes Awards last Thursday were adamant that nobody be asked questions about their houses).
But most of them – thousands and thousands of them - were just the homes of ordinary people. And some of them belonged to the ordinary people who work in this movie industry: craftspeople, technicians, painters, electricians - all the hundreds of trades that go into making a movie.
They were uppermost on the thoughts of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences – the long winded title for the people who organise this gigantic beano (it is why most people just call them "The Academy").
There had been some discussion about canceling the event, particularly right after the fires, but no – the show must go on - and for good reason.
Lots of people depend on the Oscars for a big pay cheque – the kind of thing that gets you over the hump, especially in the uncertain world of the gig economy.
All the self employed, the freelancers, the people who get by with the aid of the occasional nixer - drivers, caterers, party arrangers, photographers, people who put up tents, or roll out red carpet for a living. This is a big payday for them and cancelling it would have piled on the misery.
And besides – people here get a kick out of the Oscars. It is a big deal for the citizens of Los Angeles.
It put their city on the map, and keeps it there before a world audience.
An industry built on escapism can give the city a lift from the grim reality for thousands still in emergency accommodation after the fires, and everyone else who is depressed about the fires impact – or even the impact it will have on their already very high home insurance costs.
Not forgetting that the filmed entertainment industry is one of the biggest employers in this city, so putting its best foot forward and putting on a big show is psychologically important for everyone involved in this business.
But still it is a rather restrained feel to this year's festivities.
There is less talk about parties, designer clothes, bacchanalian excesses and political speeches.
Especially the latter, as the political weather has changed in Washington DC.
The return of Donald J Trump to the White House has chilled the blood in an industry that nobody would ever describe as rabidly MAGA.
The President has appointed no less than three "Ambassadors to Hollywood" in the shape of Mel Gibson, Sylvester Stallone and Jon Voight – their mission to talk some "common sense" into the denizens of Tinseltown.
As a temporary DC resident myself, and therefore plagued by conspiracy theories from every form of media known to man, I have to wonder if the inauguration of President Trump has had a direct impact on the Oscars?
Because, if you recall, before President Trump was inaugurated, all the talk was of "Emelia Pérez" being the movie that was going to sweep the boards here.
But then President Trump gets into power, and suddenly a film about a transgender Mexican drug lord does not seem like such a great idea to be promoting anymore.
Instead, Anora is the film that they are all talking about now. And that is a film about the son of a Russian oligarch having a great time in New York with a call girl.
And then, of course, God is back in the White House.
President Trump says that God intervened to protect him from an assassin's bullet during the election campaign. So "Conclave", another movie about an election, but this time set in the Vatican, has come roaring back into contention for a clutch of statuettes.
Then there is a film called "The Brutalist", a three and a half hour epic about a Hungarian architect living the American dream.
And of course, we know that President Trump is very friendly with Viktor Orban, the Hungarian Prime Minister and possible spearhead for the Trump movement in European politics. At CPAC ((the Conservative Political Action Conference)) in Washington last week, there was a prominent stand from CPAC Hungary, a well established European bridgehead for the movement.
And then we come, of course, to the movie about Donald Trump himself - "The Apprentice".
It is a really good film, well worth a watch, detailing the early days of Donald Trump's ascent in the world of New York property, and how he learned the "fight, fight, fight" tactics of the notorious New York lawyer Roy Cohen.
The two lead actors – Sebastian Stan as Trump and Jeremy Strong as Cohn – have been nominated for best actor and best supporting actor respectively.
The trouble is, the President of the United States does not like the film.
He made that very clear to the producers, and the producers are from Canada, Denmark and Ireland.
I met the Irish producers at the Oscar Wildes on Thursday, and asked if they had heard from the President?
"We've heard quite a few things from Donald Trump", Ruth Treacy of Tailored Films said.
"He hasn't been too quiet about the film. He firstly tweeted after the Cannes Film Festival to say that it should be burned in a dumpster fire. Then he sent us a cease and desist letter.
"Then he went on to call us human scum. So he's been quite vocal - though he's actually been pretty quiet of late. I think he might have other things maybe occupying his mind - or maybe he's watched it and liked it, I don't know - but he's had a lot to say, and I guess that's just motivated us more to get the film out there".
I asked her fellow co-producer and founder of Tailored Films Julianne Ford if the President might feel better towards the movie if one or both actors win Oscars tonight?
"Well, I think, I think he should, actually, - I think he'd enjoy the film if he watched it. We're not sure if he has or not.
"In the run up to the election, there was a lot of threats that we received - in one of the letters he wrote, he was very much calling it election interference and things like that. But I think now that he's been elected, he's not as concerned.
"A few people have said, you know, if anyone has Sebastian Stan playing them in a movie that should be taken as a compliment!".
Maybe so. But on the other hand maybe this movie is the genesis of another conspiracy theory.
"The Apprentice" is a Canadian-Danish-Irish co-production. And we know, of course, that President Trump wants to make Canada the 51st State of the Union (hence the "Governor Trudeau" comments about Canada’s Prime Minister).
He wants to take Greenland away from Denmark too – by force if necessary (something few believed... until that meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday).
He hasn't said much about Ireland yet, but you know what - the Taoiseach is going to the White House the week after next. Watch this space!
And how about a sequel - "Revenge of the Apprentice"?
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