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Writers Strike News Roundup: Wed., Dec. 26

Dec 26, 2007  •  Post A Comment

European Television Worries Over U.S. TV Shortfall
European television executives are fretting about the slim season in store for them from the U.S. in 2008 due to the writers strike, Daily Variety reports.
U.S. dramas are big business for European channels, and a limited season has execs looking over contingency plans, such as buying stop-gap programming from outside the United States, the newspaper reports.
Letterman, WGA Still Without Deal
David Letterman’s production company, Worldwide Pants, is still without an interim deal with the Writers Guild of America. Both sides are keeping mum about their discussions on Friday, the Hollywood Reporter reports.
Letterman had planned to return to the airwaves in January, but nothing concrete had been laid out. The guild said negotiations with Worldwide Pants would continue sometime this week, the newspaper says.
Writers Send Christmas Plea to Execs
On Christmas Eve, 127 writers with pilots up in the air due to the writers strike e-mailed their plea to the executives they were working with to spur the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers and the Writers Guild of America back to the bargaining table, Deadline Hollywood Daily says.
Nearly 200 network executives received the e-mail, which was sent with the blessing of the WGA, but not through the WGA, the blog said.
Katzenberg Effort Fails to Restart Talks
A back-channel effort from Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of DreamWorks Animation, to return the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers has failed, painting a grim outlook for the future of negotiations, Deadline Hollywood Daily reports.
The blog reports that producers remain steadfast in trying to punish writers into submission, already viewing this season as well as next as written off.
In order to stem spending, the studios are looking to rework their pilot setups as well as their upfront proposals, the blog says.
Andrew Krukowski

25 Comments

  1. Shut down the WGA!!!

  2. The U.S. is destined to become a culture of vindictive, ruthless and vengeful renegades. Everyone is determined to win and no one is ever wrong. The present reality is that of internal destruction. If the networks executives desert their quasi fiduciary responsibility to provide quality entertainment to their public, it is just part of these new rules. If the WGA does not negotiate with the networks, the bargaining process is as antique as the Model-T. Whatever develops from the parties butting heads will not be the best outcome because the losers will retaliate and the winners will gloat. What happened to the “us” in U.S.? There will be enough fighting within and without the Republican and Democratic parties next year. Maybe that will be the newest 24/7 reality show.

  3. This is the worst… we as poeple should always be able to find common ground, expecially when the issue is about money.. there is enough for everyone when good entertainment is provided, you lose that and no one get paid. It’s simple if we can’t watch what we want via broadcasting then people will find other ways… in the end everyone loses…

  4. What people seem to have lost sight of is the amount of people out of work that have no stake in the outcome. Lives are being ransomed by fat cat execs and spoiled writers, two that sides can afford a couple months off.
    Publicly everyone supports the writers. It’s a very different story behind closed doors. A lot of bartenders have scripts in hollywood.
    GET BACK TO THE TABLE!!!!!!

  5. Everytime a created property gets sold, or resold, money changes hands. Without someone to create the original material there is nothing to sell the first time. If the material is poorly written, there will be no resale. However, if well written, then money will pass hands many times over.
    Cut the crap, AMPTP, no matter the media market, at every resale, pay the writer. Let’s all get back to business.
    Everyone, check your ego, check the power struggle.
    Go back to work, and Happy New Year.

  6. This country has become power hungry. No one will take the time to listen to the crys of others andnow we suffer the consequences. The writers’ strike has now begun to affect parts of California and not to mention the viewers who tune in every week. We need to sit everyone down and not leave the table until a compromise is made.

  7. WGA STOP being so selfish and only caring about yourselves and your wallets!! How about the crews that make your words that you put on paper( not alone i might add) come to life!!! I have lost any kind of respect that I had for you all!!! I am a single mother striving for a good life for my kids instead of living off the system! You should only hope that something this horrible doesn’t happen to your family! You still have a home and cars and money in the bank!! I don’t thanks to the WGA and all of the self centered greedy skin bags that don’t give a crap about anyone but themselves! Oh sure but you become our buddy when it’s time to shop or manufacture your dreamed up props or wardrobe,location,lights,grip gear,transportation,COFFEE TRUCK on Fridays,craft service,accountants,YOUR ASSISTANTS that you have screwed ETC. Happy holidays and remember KARMA is real!!!!

  8. Look, I’m truly sorry for the people who have been put out of work by the writer’s strike. However, asking the writers to get back to work without a deal for new media is like asking the craft service guy to go back to work with the understanding that he will only get paid for every 15th meal he serves. It’s like asking the gaffer to only get paid for his first hour of a 12 hour shift.
    And b fair to the writers. Yeah, some writers make a ton of money, but more than half are out of work more than they work. It’s like saying all actors are greedy money-grubbers because Tom Cruise makes $20 million a movie. Don’t compare apples and oranges.
    Frankly, it sounds like the only way this will get resolved is for EVERYBODY to go on strike. We actors, the writers, the craft service cats, the Teamsters (thank you!),EVERYBODY. Everybody put your demands on the table and make them deal with everyone. Obviously the producers aren’t completely terrified of one group, but if we were all standing together – really standing together – we could make the changes that need to be made.
    And if you want to talk to someone abut greed, talk to the media companies. There’s a new bill being passed that allows even MORE media consolidation. There are roughly five media giants in this country. How much more consolidated can they get without becoming a monopoly? The only way to balance the scale of power is for the employees to ALL band together.
    I don’t want a war. I don’t want to strip the corporations of their profits. I’m just asking that everyone realize that the current situation is unfair, and as technology grows, so too will the imbalance if it’s not addressed now.

  9. Since Jay and Conan apparently may not be able to do their opening monologues, I wonder if they can use a different stand-up comedian (assuming that the perrson is not a WGA member and is willing to cross a possible picket line) each night?

  10. To William
    You know as well as I that the WGA could have easily arranged for Extensions on current contracts so that the writers could have shown a united front with the SAG (If they decide to walk as well)
    The only leverage the writers had was to ransom the television season, put as many people out of work as possible and blame the other side.
    Ya’ know what I WAS pulling for the WGA (Demands seemed reasonable enough) but now it’s two months later, my bank account is empty, my job evaporated and you’re not even talking. The WGA the leadership has dropped the ball!!!! Most of us are now looking to the DGA to hammer out a deal on behalf of the writers.
    Thats really gonna’ make the WGA look foolish too.

  11. I can’t believe people are still buying that this is only about more money from online sources, the WGA wants control over animation and reality shows as well. That is a power grab, and I can’t blame the studios for cutting off negotiations until that is pulled off the table.

  12. Dear WGA,
    Happy new year. I hope you all choke on your own spit and die. You should suffer a pain ten times worse than the pain you are causing to the countless BTL people who have nothing to gain here. You selfish swine are such a pain in the ass that I can’t even stand to look at your blog anymore. I’m glad the late night shows are back. Protest all the fuck you want, you will all go to hell for the pain you have caused.
    You all deserve to get dick cancer. You fucking pussies are so selfish, that you don’t deserve ANYTHING. You are acting like a bunch of whiney bratty kids who all deserve a fate worse than death. Fighting for your rights. Bullshit. At what cost. Do you not see the harm you cause? Look around you fuck! You are no better than the terrorists who killed 30,000 people on 9/11. Osama bin Laden.
    You don’t deserve the shit you eat from your ass. Why do you eat shit out of your ass? Are you even reading this anymore. If you are, you are more stupider than I thought. Huh? I hope you still read this because there are things in here that need to be heard by the WGA. Suck!
    Love,
    Fierres

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