OUR BODYGUARD: Oscar-nominated Michael Clarke Duncan is a huge and happy guy right now. The former bodyguard is a favourite to win the supporting actor Oscar for his Green Mile role. And his recently released, The Whole Nine Yards, is a bona fide hit.

 "I'm definitely taking more phone calls than I'm making now," says the affable 6-foot-5, 300-pound Duncan.

 He received a few notable ones from his Green Mile and Whole Nine Yards colleagues after the nominations. Duncan says two-time Oscar winner Tom Hanks good-naturedly teased him about the nomination. "He told me it didn't mean anything until I win one," reports Duncan laughing.

 Whole Nine Yards star Bruce Willis, who recommend Duncan for the Green Mile part, was just as glib. "Bruce said that the nomination didn't matter, he was still prettier than me" ... Speaking of glib, Annette Bening, Oscar nominated for American Beauty says that doing a 5:30 CNN interview on nomination morning was not a problem.

 "Being pregnant you wake up a lot during the night, anyway. Even turning over can be an event," reports a smiling Bening, who is due to deliver her fourth child in April.


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