Golden Globes: And The Losers Are...

There was a classic opening to the Golden Globes press conference. The very first award.

"For Best Supporting Actress the Golden Globe goes to... Cate Blanchett for I'm Not There"!

I'm Not There!

And neither is Cate! Nor any of the other actors, writers and directors.

All because the studios and networks are too greedy to share a little of their gargantuan bounty with the writers..

Power to the Writers!

And thank you to the actors, directors, SAG and DGA for their solidarity.

The real losers are the conglomerates who are cutting off their noses to spite and deny people who contribute so much to their profits.

The reason the "news conference" was so stunningly boring was simple.

No writers.

Comments

[Richter]

Great post, Martin -- and a wonderful antidote to a certain Huffington Post scab who shall remain nameless and soulless.

The gutting of the Golden Globes will perhaps now convince the producers that the Writers Guild stands strong and united. If it didn't, well, we'll take down the Oscars next. In the end, we will surely prevail -- as a motivating force in human nature, justice has always outlasted greed.

[MichelleMauceri]

I for one am very happy that the Golden Globes were canceled. I was nice not to have to hear about it. I never watch awards shows.

[avicenna]

This is the only golden globes I actually watched the whole thing. Fantastic. How can one say 30 minutes was more boredome inspiring then 3 hours of mind-numbing fillers and delusions of grandeur. How many times can one really pretend interest in the question - "...who are you wearing tonight?" - and the bland dialogue and speaches that get cut off in mid-sentence is both a redundant exercise repeated too often throughout the year - losing it lustre - and cringe inspiring. Does anyone (other than those who wish to continue to want to believe that they really are worth congratulating for their contribution to human kind) need to see so many of these award shows? Thank you writers to perhaps starting a new trend - the short and sweet show.

[InofTouch]

Short, Quick and to the point. I think people might not like it first but when was the last time people pick on to something on the first try.

Werid, People argue about how the show take too long and now that it short, we argue.

[katlade]

The viewers really won by having the award show canceled. Otherwise we would have been subjected to looking at the 2008 Miss Golden Globe - Rumer Willis - all night long.

[cobraxus]

OK here's my idea for how to handle all these damned award-shows during the writer's strike.everyone who's nominated will receive a package in the mail.whoever wins will find a statuette inside.the others will open theirs and find it empty.have camera crews standing by to catch their reactions...with no hair and make-up or expensive outfits just celebs hefting their boxes to feel if there's anything inside of it.

[buckbuck11]

I would have liked to have heard Queen Latifah's acceptance speech, otherwise, I don't think I missed much at all. I haven't seen most of the movies or shows that were recognized. I don't do premium channels and some of the art house films haven't even opened here in Upstate, NY.

As a die hard union man, I'm glad to finally see labor organizations show some cojones by standing up to the greedy corporations and by showing solidarity for other union laborers. Maybe the rest of organized labor will rediscover the values of courage and solidarity.

[Lemastre]

Awards ceremonies may be needed if we assume that the awards themselves are needed. But you certainly can ask why writers are necessary in the handing out of the awards. Most communities of intelligent people can come up with their own remarks appropriate for the presenting of whatever awards they devise. Of course, in the world of TV, the writers are needed to help invent the incidental and perhaps amusing chitchat and bits of business that make what should take an hour last long enough to provide time for many, many commercials. An awards show without all that would indeed be refreshing, but probably score a zero in the ratings.

Maybe I'll contact the Nobel prize people and see how many writers they employ for their awards ceremonies. For all I know, recipients of the award for literature may be asked to come up with a few good gags for the King of Sweden to deliver as he hands out the prizes.

[IntrepidReader]

If the word really gets out that the Golden Globes are a joke instead of "important awards", that audience will get even smaller.

I was one of those who never realized that the Hollywood Foreign Press Corps is about as qualified to give awards as the kids who work the concession stand at the multiplex would be. I didn't realize that was the case until the strike.

[tcagle]

Let me be sure I am understanding this correctly. You are telling us, ostensibly to bolster the writers' case, that we are missing one whale of an entertaining, toe-tapping awards show for their absence. Please explain the down side of this to me.

============MARTIN RESPONDS===========

To you personally - no down side. To NBC and Dick Clark Productions - millions of dollars in lost advertising revenue and production fees respectively

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[elizaW]

It's certain writers running things over at the WGA who are acting without regard for others. They obviously don't care who gets hurt as long as they get to perpetuate the fantasy that they're more powerful than they actually are. I'm not a fan of award shows but come on guys. Don't you think the actors and creator of Mad Men deserved their moment in the spotlight? You deprived them of that. Jeff Zucker didn't.

===========MARTIN RESPONDS===========

The actors, director and key creative people support the writers for an age-old simple and noble reason. Because if the writers allow themselves to be screwed by the studios and networks - the actors and directors will be next. This is the vital power of guilds and unions to protect individuals against mighty corporations who care about the bottom line more than about those who work hard to make them profitable.

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[sarge]

Whatever....What concerns me is a unitary president that can, at his discretion, offer billions of arms to the country that produced 15 of the 19 9/11 hijackers & OBL, and the majority of insurgents that crossed the border into Iraq. An undemocratic sheikdom that oppresses women, executes at the drop of a hat, is two-faced, weasely, and cannot be trusted.

All this can be done at his whim, at which point he "notifies Congress".

Our foreign policy is out of control, and we are letting this desperate, incompetent fool continue to run this country, as the war president, exempt from any oversight, like its his own personal monarchy.

[AMolinaro]

You forgot the other losers, the few viewers actually upset by the lack of an awards show.

============MARTIN RESPONDS===========

Too low a number to be accurately counted!

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