Writers' Strike Begins: Mediation Talks Fall Apart, Thousands To Picket

AP:

Film and TV writers resolved to put down their pens and take up picket signs after last-ditch talks failed to avert a strike.

The first picket lines were set to appear Monday morning at Rockefeller Center in New York, where NBC is headquartered.

In Los Angeles, writers were planning to picket 14 studio locations in four-hour shifts from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day until a new deal is reached.

Read the whole story: AP

Comments

[ConcernedAboutRFuture]

09:32 AM on 11/06/2007

WooHooo!! NO TV!!

This is like a really good dream.... isn't it? We will be forced to go outside and move around, communicate, bond, read, and learn.....!!!

Obvioiusly, this MUST be a dream.... because Geroge Bush is STILL president.

[Soulsurfer]

08:37 AM on 11/06/2007

BFD! TV has become unwatchable, too many commercials, hackneyed, insipid and trite dialogue on sitcoms, idiotic hosts and announcers. They all should take a pay cut and shut up. The only problem is, their bosses are worse than they are for allowing the tripe that passes for entertainment to air on our airwaves.

[SNS]

07:34 AM on 11/06/2007

collapse bigfan08 (See profile | I'm a fan of bigfan08)
Every hollywood writer is almost millionaire. Larry David is a billionaire! His profile was found on millionaire dating site http://WealthyRomance.com last week! It is said he gas a major crush on young beauty!
.

The current median salary for screen writers is 20k/year, and mind you, this is only for professional writers, with gigs. That's far less than what union grocery clerks make, even part time. I know because I am one. I'm also a script writer. I would call myself a starving script writer but it wouldn't be fair to scribes actually starving. I make 30k/year, and live in Sacramento, where the cost of living is still reasonable, although it's starting to skyrocket. 20k/yr. in L.A? To paraphrase Adam Carola, you're doing gay porn to make the rent. I'm not in the Guild, but on the other hand I wouldn't take an offer during the strike even if I got one. This lifelong union guy is no scab. Best of luck to the striking writers. Hang in there and don't settle for b.s. You KNOW you're the backbone of the "talent" in that town, anymore.

[blytzd]

06:49 AM on 11/06/2007

Outsource them all to India.

[StillAmused]

05:54 AM on 11/06/2007

Not naïve about the critical role of writers (particularly film and sitcom) but, concerning late night TV, what does this tell us about the depth of the hosts? They started out as standups... gotten so fat and lazy that they can't extemporize, diddle with the band and crew, swap sillies with guests?

We're not talkin' "Gone With The Wind"...

[VictorLudorum]

02:30 AM on 11/06/2007

reality is marginalised as yet..the new global knowledge of internet conversation has effected history books..the bubble must burst.............
let their be true light of knowledge...
american kids are still taught that jesus was a jew! imagine!

[VictorLudorum]

02:22 AM on 11/06/2007

let the new global worlds bubble bust too....

[StephieL]

12:08 AM on 11/06/2007

Maybe the lack of new TV shows to watch may encourage people to do something they haven't done in a while -- get up off the couch, take to the streets and become more politically and socially active.

We're living in a time when our nation is on the verge of plummeting into social chaos due to massive home foreclosures, and the potential for an insane war against Iran is even greater now than it's ever been. Public support for a progressive political agenda is needed, and as long as too many Americans are "armchair patriots" and won't stand up and fight for those things which they value, America will cease to exist if the citizens who could take action to save our nation from self-inflicted ruin refuse to act and let the country collapse into the muck and mire of fascism.

[tennisball]

11:51 PM on 11/05/2007

I don't watch network crap, does the strike mean it will be the end of network crap? cool

what channels are all of that crap on?

[postedby]

11:48 PM on 11/05/2007

What's with the Hollywood Leftist Libs not supporting The Worker? HypoFUCKINcrites.

They deserve each other. Stay out forever (writers) and go bankrupt (studios). I stopped watching their sludge long ago.

[PuffAndStuff]

11:09 PM on 11/05/2007

I could never understand how actors, with all due respect to any actors who read this blog, receive such an excessive compensation --particularly their salaries here in America. This is after all, a group of people, who historically, prior to the advent Hollywood were court jesters, traveling clowns, gypsies, etc.

The amount of money generated from our entertainment industry is extremely telling about our dumbed-down culture. While there are a couple funny sitcoms on the tube and like most people I do enjoy seeing a very well - written, compelling dramatic movie once in awhile -- for the most part I find the entire thing ridiculous. Geez ... not only does it seems to me there are many other ways to be entertained, but this money could be put to better uses toward the actual improvement of our society.

However, since this amount of money is generated from peoples need to be entertained from watching a screen, and that isn't going to change, then it only seems appropriate that the folks writing the material should be proportionately compensated -- rather than the disproportionate amount going to the folks on the screen who are reliant on the writers' material.

[realitytrumpsbull]

10:44 PM on 11/05/2007

Maybe if they can find all the Twilight Zone
episodes, they could broadcast stuff like that
instead of America's Most Bestest________(
fill in the blank). Yeah, let's have the 50's
channel, get some of that old black-and-white
stuff going again, get all Superman on the AM
dial, there, and Flush Rush, too. They used
to have some good quality entertainment stuff
on the radio, now it's all ClearlyBustedChannel,
format music and whatnot. Bring back The Shadow,
or some of the other good stuff. Yeah, baby,
late-night 50's-vision, ALL DAY LONG. Addams
Family back on ABC? Leave it in Black and White
too! Fog out the rest of that garbage, yeah
baby, reruns! TV worth watching!

[bullypulpit]

07:37 PM on 11/05/2007

How will we ever receive unbiased reporting on this story? All the writers are union.

[Skyhawk]

07:17 PM on 11/05/2007

Thank God there's no comic book writers strike!

[JaneaneTheAcerbicGoblin]

06:53 PM on 11/05/2007

One more suggestion....

Rainer Werner Fassbinder's epic miniseries, Berlin Alexanderplatz, is being released on DVD on Nov. 13th. A mere 15 1/2 hours of brilliance...