BUZZING BECK II

Seems that industry buzz can come from anywhere . . . even crew members.

According to syndicated columnist Marilyn Beck, that’s where she got the word that Broadway vet Elaine Stritch may be Oscar-bound for her performance in Woody Allen’s “September.”

Beck buzzed in her column that Stritch, 61, is expected to be up for the gold for her portrayal of Mia Farrow’s mother.

That got us to hmmmmm ing, since “September” won’t be out until December--and since the cast includes a few other heavyweights like Jack Warden, Sam Waterston, Denholm Elliott and Dianne Wiest (herself a recent Academy Award winner).

But, according to Beck, who last dropped the buzz that Universal’s “Cry Freedom” (about Steven Biko) would be an Oscar contender (based on word from execs at competing studios), she’s got confidence in her “September” sources.

No, she didn’t talk to Allen: “I talked to people on the set--crew members--whose opinions I really do trust.”

Acknowledged Beck: “Their excitement over Stritch may have been due to the fact that she hasn’t really been that prominent in movies in recent years. There was a God-she’s-so-terrific attitude--a feeling that audiences are really going to be taken with her work.”

Beck stressed that she doesn’t often play soothsayer, “Because after 25 years in this business, you become cynical. Which is why I get such a kick out of those corny columns (the kind often found in the trades) where there are all these great quotes about some movie’s sneak preview--then it turns out the person saying it is the studio’s marketing head or president.”