The Writers' Strike Diary

Forget about hitting the picket lines. Sometimes the writers' strike comes to you. From one friend:

"So I'm doing bills in my living room, trying to figure out how the hell we're going to survive this strike, when I see dozens of WGA strikers walking down my street. Well, I throw on my strike t-shirt and pull out my megaphone and we all go to a house where Desperate Housewives is shooting and try and shut it down!"

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Wanda Sykes were there. Lots of press.

"The teamsters gave us very nasty looks. Eva Longoria did not stop work to help us, though she did issue a brief statement and bought all the strikers pizza."

This from me: I've still heard nothing from the writers guild regarding Strike Rule #8. All the working membership of the guild that hasn't turned in scripts by tomorrow will be in violation!

How did Wall St. react to the strike? With a big shrug.

Read more about the strike on the Huffington Post's writers' strike page.

Comments

[DummieBommieDave]

John,

Today's e-mail from our strike captains contains an attachment addressing the Script Validation program. If you didn't get this e-mail, contact your strike captain if you have one. If you don't have one, contact the WGA.

[lycanthrope]

I'd like to say first and foremost, Mr. Ridley, as a member of the public, but especially as a proud member of the American Federation of Musicians, that you and your fellow writers have my complete support. With the disputes over new media, you are going through a lot of what the music industry has been battling for years. I wish the writers well, and hope they are able to achieve their goals of fair compensation for their efforts.

[politicky]

Wall street isn't invested in American workers. They don't care that soon Americans won't have enough money to buy the cheap Chinese crap that they've invested in at Wal-Mart. They're making money THIS quarter.

Heh.

[MsLiz]

I was glad to hear you on Morning Joe today. Look forward to you being on next week, too.

[DietrichMoody]

How was Wall street suppose to act Mr. Ridley??

Wall streets sees it as a fight about money and as money tends to do in this culture right now, Wall Street figures that supposed "united writiers" are going to start turning against each other eventually, much like Auto corporations have manipulated the United Auto Workers (UAW) to contracts that contain two-tier wage provisions.

What integrity and beliefs will keep the WGA from negotiating a two tier future profit provision (watch, they'll figure out the tiers and categories to put people in), leaving the future writers and possibly the true highly creative ones, not only with NO creative control but no control over future benefits or profits? None. Nonetheless a tier system is rancid. By a couple of weeks or months the WGA or A-list writers will try to calm things down and be brokers, and they will talk the WGA into whatever they can get, sure enough. Basically, where they were at on Nov. 4., but it will seem like a victory.

Why should Wall Street care, the ending has already been written.

Cut to scene of exhausted writers:
Strike over ! "Heroes" and "Lost" back on air, both sides say they are satisfied.

[Mac-A-Roon]

Your Ken Burns comment came off as condescending rather than humorous this morning on NPR.

Just sayin'