From Nuts to No. 2's: Joining the Virtual Picket Line

This was submitted by Rubberpoultry, a fan of Jericho and an advocate for writers -- and an amazing vidder.

Like just about anyone who’s grown up in western culture, I’ve been a fan of the television and movie industry since about the time that Bert and Ernie first taught me to count to 10. As I’ve gotten older, my viewing habits have gotten more sophisticated, to the point where now, effects, hype and all of the summer popcorn movie tactics have begun to matter much less and great writing is now the determining factor for what I watch on TV and at the theater - maybe that’s just part of growing up.

I’ve been a fan of serialized drama for some time and in 2006, I was more than interested when I saw the advertisements for the post apocalyptic drama, Jericho. Right from the beginning, the plot, characters, and story had me hooked. The writers had created a world that was full of uncertainty, full of mystery, and that was totally engaging. Early indicators were that it was going to be a hit, but the show went on a long hiatus, and never recovered its audience after the break.

The show’s second half found a maturity that didn’t seem possible with only a 12-episode history, and we fans loved what we were seeing. However, many of us weren’t being counted. After a gut wrenching season finale, CBS (looking at outdated Neilsen ratings) cancelled the show with no resolution to the story.

A now infamous campaign ensued, and my fellow fans and I bombarded CBS with nuts (a reference to a line in the finale), letters, videos, graphics, calls and other items of protest. In only 3 short weeks, we managed to change the mind of CBS, and they gave us 7 more episodes, and allowed our writers to keep telling the story.

As I reflected on what we did, and why we did it, it became crystal clear to me that this world we all thought was worth fighting for started in the hands of three very talented writers (Stephen Chbosky, Josh Schaer, and Jonathan E. Steinberg). It was further defined and refined by seven other writers who gave the show a real life/”what if” quality that drew us in week after week (much of it through new media outlets).

Good writing has the power to make you care. Good writing makes you think, it makes you feel, and as I’ve now experienced, it has the power to make you act. I’ve never been an active fan of any other television show beyond just tuning in on regular basis, but this show made me want to take on the networks. It made me want to invest time and money and artistic skills in the effort to revive it. And then came the writers’ strike.

When I was forwarded the link to “Why We Fight”, which creatively encapsulated the strike so well, I was angry. I knew at that moment I had to do something. I joined others in the Jericho fandom in sending pencils, promptly became involved with sites like www.fans4writers.com. I stopped watching online repeats, and I haven’t downloaded a show from itunes since November (a big change). I was no longer just pro-Jericho, I had become pro-writer, evangelizing to all of my friends and family about the injustice of the AMPTP. I even managed to create some videos and graphics featured here on United Hollywood, and United Hollywood Live.

Writers, while many of your fans have not been able to be physically present for the strike, we have joined with you in spirit. We’ve joined the virtual picket line and stand proudly with you as you fight this tough battle. You are the genesis of this industry, and you deserve everything your are asking for.

As rumors of a deal are looming, I wanted to say from the fan perspective, I hope you don’t settle for something that is anything less than you were hoping for.

This fight means too much, and you will not get a chance like this again to safeguard your/our (we fans are in this too) future. You have held out for too long to give in to something less than fair, or else, what was the point of the last several months?

I know that many fans are willing to happily give up new episodes of their favorite programs, online viewing and whatever else it takes until you get a fair deal. And when this thing is over, remember the affect you have on us. Your work is something that enriches our lives, and although throughout this strike you’ve even more aware of our presence, we are still there even if we are less visible. Stand strong WGA!

-Rubberpoultry
Fan

Help Build the Future of United Hollywood

One day, hopefully very soon, the WGA strike will end. But the technological changes that sparked it will continue.

Over the past three months, we realized that in covering the dispute between writers and media conglomerates, we were also covering the evolution of the entertainment industry. Digital technology is changing how music, television, films and games are created and consumed. Old business models are dying and new ones are being invented. Workers in the entertainment community need an outlet for reliable information on how the digital revolution will affect us. There are incredible risks but also unprecedented opportunities. United Hollywood can help us manage both.

Over on the right side of this blog, you'll see the official U.H. t-shirt and hat. We've partnered with StrikeSwag.com to design and sell them. You'll also notice that we've posted some Google ads. Proceeds from both will help pay for the hosting and bandwidth of an entirely new United Hollywood.

Starting as soon as next week, you'll see a new look and new features here. We are moving off of Blogspot and onto a dedicated server to make this possible. Soon, you'll be able to create your very own page on U.H. to express yourself and share the industry news that matters to you. We'll also be adding forums to discuss all aspects of the entertainment business. Writers, actors, below-the-line crew members, musicians, directors, computer programmers and fans will all have places to interact on our site.

We want to make sure that the server we purchased has all the security, backups and bandwidth necessary to keep U.H. accessible and safe. We went with a reliable, high-end host. Buying some swag or clicking on ads that interest you helps us cover those costs.

We're honored by the way you've turned to us as a source of news and opinion, but there's no way we can cover all the news or capture the range of opinions that need to be heard. We want to empower all of you to build the United Hollywood of the future. By opening up the site to you, we hope to fulfill the promise of our name. Though we may have huge differences of opinion on the WGA strike, we are all in the digital revolution together.

So please buy a shirt or a hat! If you'd like to be among the first to have your own page on the new U.H., sign up to get an email when the community features are up and running.



Subscribe to UnitedHollywoodRedesign

Email:

Visit this group

And thank you.

Fans Will Picket With Writers On MLK Day

Brought to you by Fans4Writers. As always, we are inspired by their generosity and solidarity, and deeply grateful to them for their support.

On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (Monday, January 21), fans will be joining the picketing writers at NBC Burbank. All fans in the Los Angeles area (and beyond) are urged to join in on the picket.

NBC BURBANKPicketing Shifts:
2:30pm-5:30pm
3000 W Alameda Ave, Burbank, CA

Meeting Point: Check-in table is located on Bob Hope Dr. (Johnny Carson park)
Parking Option: Street parking on Bob Hope and Riverside
More information on the picket location and schedule can be found on the WGA website .

Pencils2MediaMoguls: NYC Delivery Today (1/16)

Below is a press release from the WGAE about the completion of the Pencils2MediaMoguls fan campaign today in New York. -JA

For the last couple of months, television fans have been buying pencils to send to the media moguls – the heads of six major companies that dominate the AMPTP – to demonstrate their support for the writers of their favorite TV series. On December 11, the first 500,000 pencils were delivered in Los Angeles. On Wednesday, another 200,000 will be delivered in New York.

The United Federation of Teachers (UFT), which represents most of the non-supervisory educators who work in the New York City public schools, has agreed to accept any pencils that the media moguls reject, and pass them on to students. Writers, fans, and representatives of the UFT will speak at a press conference.

Following the press conference, small groups of writers and fans will deliver pencils to four media moguls via taxicab. The moguls include: Leslie Moonves, CBS Corporation; Rupert Murdoch, News Corporation (Fox); Jeffrey Bewkes, Time Warner; and Sumner Redstone, Viacom.

Also following the press conference, writers and supporters of the WGA will present pencils to UFT teachers coming in for their Delegate Assembly.

WHO: Writers slated to appear include: Judy Tate, a teacher and writer on "Days of Our Lives"; Michael Winship, president of the Writers Guild of America, East.

WHEN: Wednesday, January 16, 2008 at 3:00 PM EST

WHERE: United Federation of Teachers, 52 Broadway, New York, NY. Kitty-corner from the New York Stock Exchange.

Writers and fans who would like to be involved should contact Karen Young at the Writers Guild of America, East at 212-767-7810 or kyoung [at] wgaeast [dot] org. For press inquiries, contact Sherry Goldman at 718-224-4133 or sherry [at] goldmanpr [dot] net

"Criminal Minds" Fan Actions Continue

It's a new year, but the Criminal Minds Fanatics site is as busy as ever.

Their petition to CBS chief Les Moonves has reached almost 600 signatures so far. The goal is to reach 1,000, have it printed and then sent to LA for hand delivery.

And congrats and thanks are in order for the third delivery of a check from "The Criminal Minds Assistance Fund" to aid the show's crew. A lot of the money has come from auctions. Two new items are scheduled to be auctioned every day next week.
Items are set to include CM collectibles as well as memorabilia from Studio 60 and The West Wing. Full info at http://criminalmindsfanatic.blogspot.com/.

Fans4Writers Rose Parade Update

Chris from Fans4Writers.com sent me this news. -JA

Our messages went up at 9 a.m. -- from what I understand, there were more winds than the Skytypers liked and they ended up repeating two of the messages to be on the safe side, which we appreciated. The messages were:

FANS4WRITERS.COM
HELP A WRITER SCORE
SAVE YOUR SHOWS
SUPPORT THE WRITERS

Didn't get any news coverage at the time that I'm aware of, but we didn't really expect that to happen. We had volunteers handing out flyers on the ground with more information. Still waiting on pictures. The Skytypers had a photographer, and they've told us we'll be getting pics and YouTube video soon. One of our volunteers got a few pics but was too busy to get more as we wanted flyers out while the messages were in the air. They [the volunteers] did an outstanding job of handing them out while not annoying anybody.

We'll bring you that YouTube video if and when it gets posted. Huge thanks from everyone at UH to Fans4Writers for making this happen. You can help cover the cost of the skywriting either by donating or bidding in Fans4Writers' silent auction.

Heroes Strike Day

Masi Oka (Hiro) came to support the writers, along with many of the rest of the cast.

Writers, actors and fans of the show "Heroes" all picketed together at Universal on Tuesday.

Check out the whole album to see everyone together on the lines (and see what Claire's dad looks like without the hornrims.)

photos by Mark.

UPDATE: The First Delivery of Pencils2MediaMoguls!

The first delivery of Pencils2MediaMoguls took place on Tuesday 12/11 in Burbank. Check out our photoset on Flickr. Full report from Jeffrey Berman:

We had a good crowd. The press was there. ABC, NBC, AP and several local radio stations including KFWB covered the event.

Ron Moore read a statement to the press, then we dumped the pencils into the delivery bins, which filled up very quickly. We then rolled them over to NBC followed by procession of folks chanting as we approached the gate. Ron told the guard we were here to deliver the pencils to Jeff Zucker and the guard turned us away. I used their company phone and called Zucker's office and asked his secretary if at the very least Mr. Zucker could come down and address us. She promptly hung up on me.

We then rolled the pencils over to Disney and asked for Bob Iger. The guard told us they weren't accepting deliveries at the main gate. So Ron asks which gate they would accept them, and the guard calmly responds, "We're not accepting deliveries at any gate."

At Universal they wouldn't even let me near the front gate. A policeman told me he had already spoken to the main office and they didn't want our delivery.

Events of the Week

Compiled from WGA and United Hollywood emails. -JA

TUESDAY DECEMBER 11TH:

PENCILS2MEDIAMOGULS: It's here! The first delivery of pencils will take place today. Over 500,000 pencils have been shipped. Please join us as we deliver the pencils to NBC CEO Jeff Zucker, Robert Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company, and to Universal Studios for GE's CEO Jeffrey Immelt. Writers slated to appear include: Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica), Joss Whedon (Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly), Carol Barbee (Jericho), Alfred Gough (Smallville), Miles Millar (Smallville). We will meet at 11:30 am at Johnny Carson Park, 400 Bob Hope Drive in Burbank.

PICKET WITH THE WRITERS AND STARS OF HEROES: Showrunner Tim Kring along with series stars Ali Larter, Adrian Pasdar, Jack Coleman, Christine Rose will be on the picket line from 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm at Universal Studios’ Main Gate (Universal Center Drive and Lankershim). T- shirts and comics will be handed out to fans who show up and picket with us. Contact Adam Armus chammax [at] aol [dot] com.

CHRISTMAS CAROL VIDEO BY HOLLYWOOD INTERRUPTED: Today at Universal, Peter Rader will be shooting music videos featuring SAG actors and picketers singing modified carols that skewer the greedy old Scrooges who are ruining the holidays for so many with their appalling greed. It's part of Hollywood Interrupted's "Santa Supports the Strike" DVD boycott. Picketers are encouraged to bring Santa hats. Peter is distributing lyrics you can download here.

Coincidentally, Graham Flashner, Lorin Wertheimer and Maria Elena Rodriguez sent us their own satirical holiday songs. Download them here and here, then sing them at your next studio picket. But don't expect any hot cider from the moguls inside, only a big lump of coal.

BRING AN ACTOR FRIEND TO THE LINE DAY: This is about all actors coming out to support you, their friends and union brothers and sisters. Our fight is their fight. And hopefully, after they walk with you, a lot of them will keep coming back. All Studios, all shifts.

STUDENT PICKET DAY: Film and screenwriting students join WGA members on the picket line at Sony, Overland Gate from 10:00am to 1:00pm.

PINK HAT BRIGADE: Female sci-fi and genre writers gather on the picket lines once a week. You can spot us by our Pink Cowboy Hats adorned with alien antennae. Our next group picket is planned for Warner Brothers from 8:00 am – 11:00 am. For more information, please contact Gillian Horvath at ghorvath [at] aol [dot] com

WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 12TH:

WGA/SEIU JOINT ACTION: Wednesday December 12th at 5:00 pm at the corner of Wilshire Blvd. & Veteran Ave. in Westwood. WGAW members will join SEIU Security Officers in a March and rally to bring General Electric’s disrespect of workers to light. Please wear red t-shirts. Picket signs & flashlights will be provided. Speakers will include President Faith Culbreath, SEIU SOULA Local 2006, Nancy De Los Santos, WGA Board Member, Dr. Norman Johnson, Sr., Pastor of First New Christian and Rev. Eric P. Lee, Sr., President/CEO - SCLC of Greater Los Angeles Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church.

THE STRIKE SHOW: A live comedy/variety show produced by Nick Kroll and Kat Foster. Wednesday December 12th at 10:00 pm at THE STEVE ALLEN THEATER Center for Inquiry-West, 4773 Hollywood Blvd. Hollywood, CA 90027 Two blocks west of Vermont -- Plenty of FREE parking in the rear. Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 at the door. WGA Members get in Free, but donations are encouraged. All proceeds will benefit members of the industry who are affected by the strike via the Motion Picture and Television Fund, which provides financial assistance to industry members during these challenging times.

DIVERSITY PICKETING DAY: The Committee of Black Writers wants to cordially invite all members to DIVERSITY PICKETING DAY, Wednesday, December 12th at the Paramount Gates from 12- 2. Please join a diverse group of celebrities and writers for a day of unity on the picket line. Also, the Committee of Latino Writers is sponsoring salsa-dancing lessons at Paramount’s Bronson Gate (the unofficial dancing gate). Everyone is welcome. For more information contact Jacqueline McKinley at JacMac14 [at] aol [dot] com.

UNITED HOLLYWOOD LIVE: Tune in by clicking on the United Hollywood Live widget along the right hand side of this site or by clicking here. 12:00 pm -1:30 pm for the duration of the strike.

THURSDAY DECEMBER 13TH:

MIRACLE ON 1ST STREET TOY DRIVE: The Latino Writers Committee is sponsoring a toy drive to benefit east L.A.'s famous Hollenbeck Youth Center on THURSDAY DECEMBER 13th . For over 25 years, the Hollenbeck Youth Center has helped organize the Miracle on 1st Street Giveaway that annually distributes over 10,000 toys to needy inner city L.A. kids – it takes place in Boyle Heights on Dec. 15. If you can, please bring a new toy to drop off when you sign in for your Thursday picketing shift – there will be boxes available at all picket sites and in the WGA Lobby. Contact Alan Dybner at dyb@aol.com if you have any questions. Click for more information on the Hollenbeck Youth Center.

NYC MUSIC VIDEO SHOOT FOR CANTINERO: Chris Hicken aka Cantinero will be on the picket lines in New York this coming Thursday at noon shooting a video for his strike anthem, "No Apologies." He is looking for audience participation. We are told it is also student day on Thursday in NYC, so invites all students to join the chorus along with WGAE members on the line.

INDIE FILM GATE: Please join your fellow writers at Indie Film Gate, a picketing event on Thursday, December 13th. Independent Film Screenwriters and their friends & supporters will be gathering at Paramount - Melrose Gate from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. Confirmed speakers include Howard A. Rodman, Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal, Robin Swicord, John August and Bill Condon. Site is located at 5555 Melrose Avenue and parking options include streets South of Melrose. Contact Kay Schaber Wolf: kschaber [at] wga [dot] org

WGEh: Canadian writers and the people who love them will be out and about picketing on Thursday, December 13th from 11:00 am - 2:00 pm at CBS Radford (main gate). Bring anything Canadian -- flags, hockey stick signs, plucky optimism -- and wear your Canadian colors in honor of this event.

FRIDAY DECEMBER 14TH:

WRITE AID: A benefit concert (organized by Marti Noxon, Dawn Prestwich, Nicole Yorkin and the United Showrunner Committee) to provide assistance to industry employees affected by the Strike featuring performances by Edie Izzard, Lewis Black, Patton Oswalt, Sarah Silverman and Tenacious D (Jack Black and Kyle Gass). Friday December 14th at Royce Hall, UCLA at 8:00 pm. Tickets are $75.00 per person and can by purchased at UCLALive.org or by calling (310) 825-2101 or through Ticketmaster. Tickets are also available at the UCLA Central Ticket Office (southwest corner of the James West Alumni Center) and at all Ticketmaster Outlets.

DANE COOK BENEFIT SHOW: Dane Cook is currently scheduled to headline this Friday at the Laugh Factory, and he is donating the entire door to support workers affected by the strike. We will post any changes or additional information as we get it.

BOSTON TV PARTY with Joss Whedon, Rob Kutner and Jaime Paglia: Full details in this Boston Herald article. "Festivities begin at the Meeting House of the First Parish Unitarian Church in Cambridge, where writers and celebrities will speak. Then the strikers and fans will march across Harvard Square to the Harvard Lampoon building for a rally."

“We encourage people to bring their own picket signs, (tasteful slogans please,)” the union says in a press release, “and look forward to having writers and fans march side by side in support of the people who provide the content that gives the studios and television networks their record profits.”

THE STRIKE SHOW: see calendar WEDNESDAY 12/13

UNITED HOLLYWOOD LIVE: 12:00 pm -1:30 pm

Pencils2mediaMoguls rolls out the first delivery

For the last few weeks, television fans have been buying pencils to send to the media moguls – the heads of the six companies that make up the AMPTP – to demonstrate their support for the writers of their favorite TV series. Over 500,000 pencils have been purchased. On Tuesday, December 11 at 11:30 the pencils will start being delivered. The staging ground for this event will be Johnny Carson Park, located at 400 Bob Hope Drive in Burbank, just across the street from NBC.

Writers slated to appear include: Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica), Joss Whedon (Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly), Alfred Gough (Smallville), Miles Millar (Smallville), and others to be announced.

Fans Reaching Out to Touch the AMPTP Where It Hurts

FireDogLake has launched a web site that makes it click-through-easy for a fan to email the studios behind their favorite shows.

Other sites joining FireDogLake in the campaign are Daily Kos (4,050,000 hits/week), Raw Story (2,833,500), Crooks and Liars (1,850,000), AlterNet (1,500,000), and Democratic Underground (1,500,000). Carried on all those sites, almost 12,000,000 visitors/week will have the opportunity to click and send a complaint to the studio of their favorite show.

A fan group called "Television Unplugged" has recently launched an advertiser boycott and guerilla commerical project. What's nice about this idea is that it encourages fans not only to stop doing something (buying products) but to DO something (make a video). We at United Hollywood don't all agree on boycotting practices, but we do agree that no boycott is effective if it's done silently. If you're not going to buy products, make some noise about it!

A group on LiveJournal called Consumers Support the WGA has been emailing companies every day of the strike to send the message that viewers and advertisers alike have a stake in seeing a fair settlement. Their goal is to tell advertisers "loud and clear they need to put pressure on the people they pay to sell their things - people refusing to pay others a fair wage. Or we as consumers may decide not to pay them by not buying their goods."

TV fans are angry about their favorite shows going into reruns or going off the air. Reading the fan sites, it's great to see how connected people are to their shows. They appreciate the importance of writers, and to show their displeasure, they have been emailing the networks and studios who produce their shows. They've heard that the AMPTP is prolonging the strike to hurt the writers and the whole entertainment community, and they aren't having it.

There have been rumors that major advertisers, hearing the concerns of viewers and livid over the conduct of the networks, have threatened to take all their commercials off the air if the strike isn't settled before Christmas. That's a serious threat, with serious consequences.

Pencils2MediaMoguls Fan Raffle Madness!

Over the past week, several showrunners have stepped forward and set up raffles for fans of their shows who participate in Pencils2MediaMoguls. Here's a rundown of all the prizes so far.

For Criminal MInds fans:
Executive Producer Edward Allen Bernero writes that he will draw a name from the names of the Criminal Minds fans who buy pencils. The winning fan will get a phone call from Ed and as many members of the cast as can get on the phone (Joe Mantegna, Thomas and are others are in the works). The winner will also recieve an autographed script. Make sure you register as a fan of CM!

Ed adds, "Let's show them how many pencils a truly driven fan base can get out there. Thanks, guys. And, by the way, the LOST folks were crowing about how many pencils their fans bought. Let's beat them... AGAIN!"

For LOST fans:
Showrunners Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse write:

Please join us and support all the writers of your favorite TV shows. So many of you guys have asked what you can do to help and this is it! We're gonna offer three prizes (chosen at random) -- Every box you buy [and enter "LOST" in the "show you're supporting" box] gives you one shot at the raffle.

GRAND PRIZE: A personal thank-you call from us (Carlton and Damon) AND Matthew Fox where we shall do our bestest to answer your questions about the show's mysteries AND a Season 3 DVD set.

FIRST PRIZE: A signed finale script by writers Damon and Carlton and a surprise cast member!

SECOND PRIZE: Signed Season 3 DVD Set (standard and blu-ray!) by the entire writing staff!

Thank you for all your support. We love you and miss you all. And we really hope to get back to work soon!

Damon Lindelof & Carlton Cuse

For BATTLESTAR GALACTICA fans:
PRIZE 1: A Hockey Game with the Chief. Aaron Douglas will take one fan to a Canucks hockey game, along with another buddy of his up in Vancouver. Type in "BSG Aaron Douglas" to enter your name in that raffle. In the event that the winner of the Aaron Douglas raffle is not in Vancouver, or cannot travel there (on their own dime), Aaron has offered to make a personal phone call to that fan and send a piece of signed memorabilia.

PRIZES 2-5: Calls from Mary McDonnell, Tricia Helfer, Michael Hogan, or Michael Trucco. All four have agreed to make a personal phone call to fans who win the raffles in their names. Type in “Battlestar Galactica” and then the name of one of these actors, and your name will be entered into a raffle, with the winner in each category receiving a personal phone call from that actor. You can buy boxes of pencils for more than one actor, but each box can only be assigned one name.

PRIZE 6: Jamie Bamber's Towel



Showrunner Ron Moore writes:

No, I haven’t turned this into a porn site.

Or at least, not yet. I hear it’s quite lucrative.

Instead of a phone call, Jamie has offered to sign and donate three worn (as in actually worn, not threadbare) towels to the Pencils campaign. The first two will go to the fans who buy the most pencils in Jamie’s name, while the third will be raffled off at random. The towels will be yours to do with as you wish (insert your joke here) but any and all cloning will be subject to the appropriate international treaty restrictions.

This particular raffle has generated quite a bit of fan interest.

For EUREKA fans:
One supportive fan will receive a phone call from Colin Ferguson (Sheriff Jack Carter) and co-creator Jaime Paglia, personally thanking them for their support. Make sure you list Eureka as the show you are supporting when you click on the icon.

For ARMY WIVES fans:
For each box of pencils fans buy in support of Army Wives they will receive an entry into an e-raffle where one supportive fan will receive a phone call and an autographed photo from Kim Delaney (Claudia Joy Holden) OR Drew Fuller (Trevor LeBlanc) personally thanking them for their support of the cause and the show. When you buy your pencils to support writers, be sure to indicate if it's Drew or Kim's challenge you're entering.

As for the photo of Kim Delaney, show creator Katherine Fugate adds:

If it ups the stakes any, we'll see if we can get one of those sexy lacy shots that Drew Fuller snatched and hid in his cave for winter.

For SMALLVILLE fans:
The Gift Of Lex. A winner chosen at random will receive at phone call from Michael Rosenbaum thanking them for their support of both the cause and the show. Make sure you list SMALLVILLE as the show you are supporting when you click on the icon.

Joss Whedon Looks Into A Crystal Ball...

(From WGA Member Joss Whedon, originally posted on Whedonesque)

We're a week away from Mutant Enemy Picket day! Since the AMPTP have generously offered us a thimble of sputum in exchange for everything written ever, I think it's fair to say it won't be a picnic.

And in two weeks, I'll be in Boston, speechifying (look for some long, fancy words, yo) and rallying shoulder to shoulder with, among other people, my dad, who somehow lived through both the '88 strike and my adolescence. Word. (Long fancy.)

And after that? Well, we might take this to the streets of some other cities. Get the word out, remind everyone that corporate greed (it's nothing but) is hurting everyone in this country. Not just because they're robbing people of entertainment (and, on occasion, art) and strangling an entire (non-writing) community, but because they're sending a message to every union in the country: you're next. The actors know that in their case, it's literally true, but it's also true for the concept of a unionized workforce. We get a lot of flack for being well-fed, glamorous, rich and powerful. We've worked hard to dispel that stereotype but in fact, a select few of us are wealthy and influential. And we have the support of some of the most famous and beloved (and wealthy and influential) people in the country: TV and movie stars! So the fact that the studios feel perfectly comfortable SPITTING IN OUR FACES in front of the whole world cannot bode well for any other union that works under them -- or under anyone who sees how easy it is to deny the basic rights of workers even so public as we. This is bad for writers, bad for actors, teamsters, teachers, nurses, dockworkers... the shape of this country is changing. The middle class is being squeezed out. We're trundling back to the middle ages, people, and all we can do is lie there and take it.

But of course, that's not what's going to happen. The studios mean to starve us out. They can't. We know what's at stake. We take care of our own, and those around us who aren't our own. We dig in. And eventually, if after months of deadlock we still can't make an equitable deal, you will start to see real change. Change in the way we entertain you, change in the essential structure of America's most popular export. (Unless it's corn. Is it corn?) The fact is, the studios have been robbing us for twenty years. (Actually, it's been much longer, but the statute of limitations says I should let 'em off easy.) This grotesque insult of a negotiation is the end of an era. It will be remembered as the stupidest move the conglomotainment empires ever made. WE ASKED FOR PRACTICALLY NOTHING. And they...

Something snaps. Something changes. Chaos, meet opportunity. Let them try to starve us out. We won't just survive. We will THRIVE. We're known as a creative community, and those numb f#$%ing frost-giants are about to find out we're a lot more of both than they knew.

If they come back to the table this very Tuesday next with the deal we need (and they won't), the change will still have come. The snap. The thing that broke, that can't be fixed. The eye, still wincing from the light, but finally wide open.

Good going, guys! Way to think it through.

Criminal Minds Fans Fundraise For Support Staff and Crew

The fans of Criminal Minds have a daily blog, and have been raising funds for the crew and support staff of their favorite show.

For information on contributing to the "Criminal Minds Appreciation" fund contact Jill Davidson at displacednewyorker@gmail.com. Also, check out their Ebay auction. All proceeds, minus Ebay fees will go to the fund.

Fan Call-In Blitz Happening NOW

The LiveJournal group Fans for WGA / wga_supporters has launched a "call the big wigs" campaign. They've really thought it out and written a very polite script for fans who want to call the heads of the big six companies.

"On Monday the WGA and AMPTP will recommence negotiations. The FFWGA wishes them Godspeed. However, our support cannot waver. I must stress: we will not stop campaigning on the writers’ behalf until the contract is signed, sealed, delivered, and serenaded by Stevie Wonder."

We're honored by the passion of this group and thrilled that they're articulating the issues in a POSITIVE way. Check it out.

Monday Morning Links

- Garth Brooks Rocks
The best-selling solo music artist in US history refused to cross picket lines and appear on "The View" or "Ellen" last week to promote his album. Reports cited this quote from Brooks' publicist: "Garth is proud of the position he has taken since he hopes to be a writer in the not too distant future."
Garth, I'll bet you now have several thousand writers who will happily look at drafts for you. Thanks for your support.

Many outlets carried this story, but when one is called CountryStandardTime.com, well, that's the one getting the link.

- The LA Times' strike coverage has been ramping up, and it now regularly includes angles of the story unreported elsewhere. Two examples: a Christian group's prayer for a fair resolution and the announcement of a worldwide day of protest on November 28 to support the strike.

Today, the paper runs two pieces of note. The first provides some good context on the battles over fair compensation that got us here. And it provides this great quote:

"Profitability is next to nothing," said one studio executive who asked not to be named. "The notion of taking out more money from a business that's nascent just seems crazy to us. The problem is, we said the same thing about DVD and it became a $10-billion business."

Yes, nameless executive, that is the problem. I suppose there was a time when it cost a king's ransom to manufacture the housing of a single VHS cassette. "We're getting reamed on the plastic costs! Throw us a bone here!" As if to reinforce nameless executive's confession, the headline of the second LAT article states, Digital Media Won't Be a Sideshow in the Future.

- Michael Fox writes in The Smirking Chimp, a political blog:

The visibility is tremendous, and the zeitgeist in L.A. seem unanimous: This is not the fault of the writers – the studios have reverted to the state they were in 1948 (and then some), they are greedy beyond any sense of reason, and we are all damn mad – and supportive of the strike; the writers must get their fair share of the income their work generates.

- Ruth, aka "Anonymous English Major," e-mailed UH asking how to help, and she joined the picketing for a day! She's posted her picket story on her LiveJournal page, complete with pictures.

- I'm told the most recent Prairie Home Companion included a "sympathetic, funny bit" about the strike near the beginning of the show.

- John Vorhaus hit Vegas after a week of picketing, and he found metaphors at the poker table. WARNING: Highbrow literary theory content. But there's also this:

I asked what people thought about the strike, and this one old guy (by old, of course, I mean about my age) said, deadpan, "'Fair is fair,' says Billie Jean." This, if you don't recognize it, is the signature line from the movie The Legend of Billie Jean, written by Lawrence Konner and Mark Rosenthal, released in 1985, and starring the delicious Helen Slater.

- I'm not sure if I'm supposed to reveal the identity of Charlie, the writer behind My Second Strike, but here's a hint: This is not his first strike.

- "The most prominent TV critic in Canada" supports the WGA.

Here's the idea: Let's just boycott American network TV until the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers settles with the Writers Guild of America and the writers can get back to doing what they want to do -- entertain us.

*****
Don't forget to visit Strike Points for all the news from our friends in the Guild East. I also recommend Late Show Writers on Strike. We have relaunched pages on Facebook and MySpace, plus a growing Flickr account. Send your strike-related pictures to unitedhollywood [at] gmail [dot] com!

Blind Item: Please Hold for the Next Available Panicked Mogul

CARE TO GUESS?
Which of five networks is said to have been forced to hire extra people to handle all the calls flooding in from angry fans demanding a fair deal for writers? Our source says an assistant to the CEO of the network's parent company contacted a fan site that posted the CEO's phone number and pleaded, "What do I have to do to get you people to stop this?"

You see, when your business is keeping viewers and advertisers happy, there IS such a thing as bad publicity.

Pencils2MediaMoguls

Here's what's being done by fans for the WGA strike: "Now is the time to save ALL our shows. MAIL PENCILS pencils to the AMPTP and to any studios whose shows you enjoy...
Maybe we can help the studios see just how much support the WGA has. And maybe, just maybe, we can give them a graceful way out (not because they're buckling under the writers' demands, but because they care so much about their audience. Us. And isn't that supposed to be their job?"

-- Nikki Finke, 11/12/07

PLEASE NOTE: As of 12/31/07, the campaign is closed.
Total Pencils Sold: 650,026!
THANK YOU, FANS!

Okay, what is Pencils2MediaMoguls?
We’re asking people to use our site to buy pencils to send to the six media moguls who run the six corporate conglomerates.

Why pencils?
A lot of different fan sites were suggesting that people send pencils to networks and studios. United Hollywood and Strike Points met with some of the television showrunners, and together we decided to follow the fans’ lead.

Pencils have become the symbol of our cause: We are putting them down until we get a fair deal.

Symbolism, whatever. Let’s face it -- isn’t this kind of a waste of pencils?
We were worried about that too, so we found a vendor who makes environmentally sensitive product: California Republic Stationers. Their pencils are made from sustainably harvested wood, which means they don’t deforest.

We’ll also send the media moguls suggestions about where they can donate the pencils to non-profits that teach kids how to write. After all, the CEOs aren’t writers. It’s not like they can use them.

What happens to the money from the pencils?
Anything we have left over from our costs will go into the Union Solidarity Fund, which was created to help non-WGA members affected by the strike.

So who are these “media moguls”?
They are the six men who run the multi-media conglomerates, the companies that control almost everything you see on tv or in the movies. These individual CEOs have the power and influence to make a fair deal and end the strike, if they choose.

Leslie Moonves, President, CEO
CBS Corporation
51 West 52nd Street
New York, NY 10019
www.cbscorporation.com

Jeffrey Immelt, CEO
General Electric (NBC/Universal)
100 Universal City Plaza
Universal City, CA 91608
www.nbcuni.com

Rupert Murdoch, Chairman, CEO
News Corporation (Fox)
1211 Avenue of the Americas
8th floor
New York, NY 10036
www.newscorp.com

Jeffrey L. Bewkes, President, COO
Time Warner Inc. (Warner Brothers)
1 Time Warner Center
New York, NY 10019
www.timewarner.com

Robert Iger, President, CEO
Walt Disney Company
500 South Buena Vista Street
Burbank, CA 91521
corporate.disney.go.com

Sumner Redstone, Chairman
Viacom
1515 Broadway
New York, NY 10036
www.viacom.com

Why can’t I just buy some pencils and mail them myself?
You can! We just wanted to take our fans' great idea and make it easier. We’re taking a leaf from the Jericho campaign in which fans contracted with one vendor who could pool all their purchases together. That way, instead of individual bags of nuts, fans sent truckloads of nuts to CBS.

We’ve contracted with a single vendor to buy all the pencils for the same reason. We can deliver all of them in bulk, a truckload at a time, so the impact will be (we hope) greater.

You can mail pencils yourself if you want to, but joining together seems to have a better chance of getting noticed. It’s worked in the past.

If you do decide to mail pencils yourself, just make sure they’re not sharpened. And please be polite. (We know how hard that is. Trust us.)

How come it’s a buck a box?
That price covers purchase and delivery of 12 pencils. (They’ll probably be packed by pallets instead of in individual boxes.)

And did we mention the “sustainably forested” thing?

All right, responsible pencils, I get it. But in the end, what are you trying to accomplish here?

We want the media moguls to start negotiating in good faith. We want the strike to end with a fair deal for both sides.

If we get a fair deal, it helps the actors, the directors, and the below-the-line crew members. Their deals are directly tied to ours.

Click to send a message to the moguls: It’s time to make a fair deal. We’re all on the same page.

Friday is Impromtu Fan Day

(From fans4writers.com:)

Fans should gather at Universal Studios beginning at 11:00 AM. We have a customizable picket sign (pdf) you can use. Mingle with other fans, wave your signs, experience the thumbs-up and honking car horns of passing drivers.

Then, when the time comes, head to NBC Burbank, where many striking writers will be headed, in time for a larger strike rally to be visited by presidential candidate John Edwards beginning at 1:45 PM.

This is a relatively last-minute event, so spread the word far and wide. And keep an eye out here for future developments, because preliminary discussions are underway for a much larger Fan Day event to show the Companies just how much fans support the writers have.

Update: Some more specifics. Bear with us, since this isn’t a Fans4Writers-organized event, and we’re gathering the details as quickly as we can. Some new information has come out as to which shows will be picketing outside Universal (along Lankersham) during tomorrow’s impromptu Fan Day.

Main Gate: Battlestar Galactica
Gate 1: Desperate Housewives
Gate 2: CSI, King of the Hill, Friday Night Lights
Gate 3: Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, The Office (optional event for them)
Gate 5: Ghost Whisperer, Bionic Woman, Carpoolers

This does not, of course, mean that only fans of these shows should show up for this event. And there remains the real possibility that other writers will be there as well.

(For further updates please keep checking fans4writers.com.)

Battlestar Galactica Correction

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA,
originally uploaded by edowney9.

Seamus Kevin Fahey, the strike captain for BSG, emailed us that the earlier announcement from the Guild about a Battlestar picket on Friday was incorrect.

"[T]here is a nearby convention at BURBANK (which only about 500 people max. attend, and it starts at 3pm on Friday) so we are trying to do a little damage control because even Deadline Hollywood has picked up the story (3 thousand fans!?)"

So please spread the word: NO official BSG picket at Universal. There's talk of a new theme picket for Friday, but I don't have confirmation. We apologize for the frak up.