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Hollywood Writers Going Back to Work

Could it be? Is it possible? Are striking Hollywood writers really putting down their picket signs and heading back to work… so we can finally learn what happens to the ladies on Wisteria Lane post tornado? Sort of. It appears as though the three-and-a-half-month-old work stoppage is finally coming to an end. Hollywood producers reportedly caved in and agreed to give striking writers a piece of the profit that their work might make over the Internet. In exchange, the Guild had to end their fight to have their membership include animators and reality television players. Hooray! Reruns be gone! Well… … Continue reading →

Ray of Hope Emerges for Striking Hollywood Writers

For the past six weeks members of the Writers Guild of America have been out of work and slowly running out of patience with the negotiation process. Two days ago the situation look even grimmer when the announcement came that talks had been indefinitely suspended. Then, just last night, a ray of hope emerged when the union representing the picketing writers said it would try to deal directly with Hollywood studios and production companies, bypassing the umbrella organization that has been representing them. That’s welcome news for companies like the one that produces David Letterman’s “Late Show.” Letterman’s Worldwide Pants … Continue reading →

The Continuing Writers Strike—What’s Happening with Your Favorite Shows?

It doesn’t look like striking Writers Guild of America members will be having a very merry Christmas this year. Prospects for a compromise came to an abrupt halt when talks collapsed last week. What’s more, no new negotiations are scheduled. So, now that we know that it is very, very unlikely that a new deal will be reached by the end of the year what does this all mean for your winter TV viewing? Most of the major networks are keeping tight-lipped about their plans for the first few months of 2008, except for ABC. Big wigs at the Disney … Continue reading →

The Writers Strike and Late-Night Talk Shows—THE BACKLASH!

Did you watch “Last Call” last night? If so you witnessed the first fresh episode of late-night talk since the writer’s strike began more than four weeks ago. After host Carson Daly cracked jokes about his applause sign still working and shared pictures of what he and his staff did in the last month he finally explained why his NBC show became the first late-night chatfest to return to the air with fresh material since members of the Writers Guild of America took to the picket lines more than a month ago. “We ran out of repeats,” Daly cracked. “A … Continue reading →

Striking Writers Temporarily Shut Down Picket Lines

It took a Hollywood legend to get striking Writers Guild of America picketers to briefly put down their signs. Elizabeth Taylor apparently hasn’t lost her magic touch given her affect on determined writers who began their work stoppage more than a month ago. But, don’t look for the great dame’s spell to last very long, strikers will be back on the front lines first thing tomorrow morning—their temporary break instituted in honor of Taylor and World AIDS Day. Taylor returned to the stage last night, but not until striking TV and film writers put down their signs. The 75-year-old screen … Continue reading →

Writers Strike—Is There an End in Sight?

We should know by the end of the day. Later this morning writers and Hollywood producers will resume talks regarding contract negotiations. It’s the first time since the Writers Guild of America work stoppage began on November 5th that the two sides have agreed to return to the bargaining table. In the meantime, picketing by some of TV biggest stars and writers continues in Los Angeles and New York. The sign-toting strikers say they don’t plan to back down on their demand over payment for work aired on the Web. Writers want more money when TV shows and films are … Continue reading →

Hollywood Writers’ Strike—Week 3: Movie Alert

It’s week three of the Hollywood writers’ strike and despite the announcement that both sides are headed back to the bargaining table after Thanksgiving, things don’t appear to be improving for the TV or movie industry. In fact, Variety is now reporting that the film industry saw its first group of flicks go up in smoke (hopefully not permanently). According to the new report, “Angels & Demons,” the prequel to the box office hit “The Da Vinci Code,” reuniting Tom Hanks and director, Ron Howard, has been put on hold due to script problems. The thriller was scheduled for a … Continue reading →

Writers Strike Update—-How Many New Episodes Are Left?

In my previous blog I shared the good news that representatives from the Writers Guild of America and Hollywood producers are set to head back to the bargaining table later this month to hopefully end the two-week-old strike. Since the strike began November 5th, late night talk shows and several sitcoms have gone to reruns. Other series are now precariously close to running out of new episodes. Frankly, I found the news rather surprising given all the talk that preceded the strike. Prior to the writers hitting the picket lines industry analysts were flapping their lips on various cable channel … Continue reading →

Writers’ Strike—-Producers Hit Back

It’s been exactly one week since Writers Guild of America members hit the picket lines and it doesn’t look like they will be leaving anytime soon. But, as the numbers of celebrities joining the strike’s front lines grows, producers (the other half of the warring factions) displayed some defensive moves by taking out full-page ads in today’s trade papers to state their case. Ads with the headline “Setting the Record Straight,” which appeared in “Variety” and “The Hollywood Reporter,” emphasized that writers already get paid when TV episodes and films are downloaded from Internet stores such as Apple iTunes. What’s … Continue reading →

Writers Strike Day 6—-Let the Firings Begin

Day 6 of the Writers Guild strike started with 102 members of “The Office” being fired. The hit NBC comedy shut down this week, and as a result, more than 100 below the line employees from grips and camera assistants to hairstylists and set dressers were given pink slips. In addition, the peacock network also informed the nonwriting staff of “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” that it would be laid off next Friday if the strike doesn’t end. And since Leno has already gone public refusing to cross the picket line, show producers are looking at alternative ways of … Continue reading →