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Captain Archer defended Nausicaans in "Fortunate Son" to prevent a conflict and save the Fortunate Son and its crew. Jean-Luc Picard was stabbed by Nausicaans and needed an artificial heart in "Samaritan Snare" and "Tapestry." Picard's artificial heart no longer matters as he now has a synthetic and positronic body in Star Trek: Picard seasons 2 and 3.

Star Trek: Enterprise's Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) actually defended the same aliens who stabbed Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) though the heart in Star Trek: The Next Generation. About 200 years separate the pioneering 22nd-century voyages of Captain Archer's Nx-01 Enterprise and the 24th-century explorations of Captain Jean-Luc Picard's USS Enterprise-d. But one thing both Captains of the Enterprise have in common is encountering the Nausicaans, only with very different results.

In Star Trek: Enterprise season 1, episode 10, "Fortunate Son," Captain Archer's Nx-01 is diverted to help the Ecs Fortunate Son, a cargo ship that was raided by Nausicaan pirates.

In "Those Old Scientists," the latest episode of "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds," a magical time portal is discovered in the late 24th century by the characters from "Star Trek: Lower Decks." Ensigns Boimler (Jack Quaid) and Mariner (Tawney Newsome) accidentally activate the portal and are thrown back in time 120 years to where Captain Pike (Anson Mount) and his crew discover them. For the sake of retaining timeline purity, everyone agrees that Boimler and Mariner need to be sent back to the future. The issue is that no one knows how to activate the portal in the 23rd century, as it requires a rare element that is near-impossible to manufacture, and it is emblazoned with symbols that even the talented Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) cannot translate. 

Mariner seeks to help Uhura by offering a break and a drink to cool off her brain. They retire to the mess hall where...

Washington, Apr.13: Charlton Heston recently got his own postage stamp that was unveiled at a ceremony at the historic Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.

The 'Ben Hur' star's image for the stamp has reportedly been taken from a photo that was shot by his widow, Lydia Clarke Heston, the Hollywood Reporter reported.

Ned Vaughn, the founding executive VP of SAG-aftra said that the late actor fundamentally personified a dedication to fight for what he valued, no matter where or when he was needed.

Michael Levine, the actor's publicist for 21 years, who launched his effort to put Heston's image on a stamp, said that.

Ned Vaughn, who quit as the No. 2 national-ranking officer at SAG-aftra in order to run for assemblyman in California as a Republican, has withdrawn from the race. In an email to supporters on Friday, Vaughn said that his role as husband and father to his five children are a priority and that campaigning for office, in addition to his professional life as an actor, was too heavy a commitment on his time. Vaughn, whose credits include Apollo 13, The Hunt for Red October and dozens of TV shows, said he intends to remain politically active, though not

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New York Local President Mike Hodge entered the race for SAG-AFTRA's executive vice presidency Friday and has some prominent union officials in his corner. In fact, Ken Howard, the union's national president, is backing Hodge for the position, as is former Evp Ned Vaughn, who resigned from the post in August and entered the race for a Los Angeles-area state Assembly seat. "Mike Hodge is someone I've counted on for strong, steady leadership from the very start of my union service, and he has never failed to deliver. I’m tremendously impressed with the way he’s handled things in NewYork, and it's important that our national union have leadership that reflects our national footprint," said Howard in a statement. Still, Howard noted Hodge is on a collision course with Gabrielle Carteris, who entered the Evp race earlier this week, but insisted he was the best man for the job.

Gabrielle Carteris will run for executive vice president of SAG-aftra, the former “Beverly Hills 90210″ star said last weekend. The actress, who was on the boards of both SAG and AFTRA prior to their merger in 2012, stressed her decades of involvement in the actors union as her qualifications for the leadership post. Also read: Former SAG-aftra Leader Ned Vaughn Doesn’t Mind the Ronald Reagan Comparisons “Serving on five negotiating committees with members from across the country drove home the importance of unity in confronting the changing landscape of our industry,” said Carteris. “Merger was the first step towards that unity,...

Original Beverly Hills 90210 actress and former SAG-AFTRA La Local co-President Gabrielle Carteris is running for the union’s powerful Executive Vice-President job, the actress announced tonight. “As National Executive Vice President of SAG-AFTRA I will work with President Ken Howard, my fellow union leaders and members to help SAG‑AFTRA find its strong common voice,” Carteris said in a statement Sunday. The Evp election will take place at SAG-AFTRA’s inaugural convention, which is in La from September 26 to 29. And it looks like former National co-President Roberta Reardon won’t be seeking the Evp gig as was widely expected. Instead, Reardon has endorsed Carteris. “As we approach the 2014 negotiations, we need Gabrielle’s steady hand and steely determination to help guide our union,” she said on Sunday. Reardon narrowly lost a bid to become President of the NYC Local in the union’s recent national election, its...

He’s a Republican and a former Screen Actors Guild leader, so when actor Ned Vaughn decided to move into politics, he knew the comparisons with President Ronald Reagan, were inevitable – if more than a little premature. “I should only do so well,” laughed Vaughn, who announced earlier this month that he would be a candidate for California’s 66th State Assembly District, representing L.A. County’s South Bay region that includes Palos Verdes and several beach cities. “Ronald Reagan was an icon. Not everyone agreed with all of his positions, but nobody can take away from the fact that he was.

Ned Vaughn has resigned from his post as SAG-AFTRA's executive vice president and announced he's running for a Los Angeles-area state Assembly seat. The Alabama-born actor, who helped cement the SAG-AFTRA merger, had earlier announced his plan not to seek reelection but indicated he would see out the remainder of his term, which expires at the convention in September. "Exciting day! Announced I'll be running for CA Assembly in the 66th District to represent L.A.'s beautiful South Bay," Vaughn tweeted Thursday. Vaughn is a Republican and boasts the support of Congressman Kevin McCarthy, the Majority Whip in the House, on his website. In a statement, SAG-AFTRA said the Evp's duties and responsibilities will be assumed by Secretary-Treasurer Amy Aquino until an election for the position is held next month. SAG-AFTRA President Ken Howard wished his fellow Unite For Strength leader well. "Ned has been...

Actor Ned Vaughn, a key architect of the merger of Hollywood's two largest labor unions, resigned Wednesday as executive vice-president of SAG-aftra so that he can run for a seat in California's Assembly. Vaughn, a Republican, is expected to announce officially Wednesday that he will seek the seat in the 66th District, which was recently created by a redistricting panel. The district includes Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach and other areas. Vaughn lives in Rancho Palos Verdes. Also read: SAG-aftra Election: President Ken Howard Re-Elected (Updated) Vaughn is a longtime union member.

So that’s the reason Ned Vaughn opted out of the recent SAG-aftra elections – he’s aiming for Sacramento. The union executive VP resigned Tuesday in anticipation of an announcement today to seek the Republican nomination for the California State Assembly’s 66th District. In fact, the actor has already added a “Ned Vaughn for California Assembly” badge to his Twitter page and has a campaign website. And the rare Republican in a heavily Democratic town has got the lingo down too. “I refuse to sit back while a complacent majority sends California down the path to mediocrity,” Vaughn says on the site about his Democratic Party rivals who hold power in the state capitol. Before dropping out of this year’s election in the late spring, Vaughn, who joined the Hollywood board in 2008 and was elected 1stVP of SAG in 2010, was a big booster of the 2012 merger of the...

Actor Ned Vaughn, the No. 2-ranking national officer of SAG-aftra, has resigned as executive vice president of the powerful entertainment industry union in order to run for assemblyman in California as a Republican. Vaughn’s credits include roles in The Hunt for Red October, Apollo 13 and dozens of TV shows. In the fourth season of the Fox hit 24, his character killed the fictional president. He acknowledges his political leanings are at odds with the prevailing wisdom in Hollywood, perhaps especially at SAG-aftra. Though decades ago, another former union officer, Ronald Reagan, did well in California state

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It’s mission accomplished for Ned Vaughn, the outgoing executive vice president of SAG-aftra. The Alabama-born Vaughn, who helped cement the SAG-aftra merger, is leaving union leadership in September. In an interview with Backstage, Vaughn said he was stepping down with a sense of satisfaction, which he believes union voters will share when they cast their ballots in the coming weeks. “The job I came to do is done,” he said, “but of course the i’s are never finally dotted, the t’s are never finally crossed. Future leaders will have to address different challenges.” Vaughn had a long career in film and television before being elected to the Screen Actors Guild board in 2008. He was the founding leader of the Unite for Strength group, which was instrumental in pushing through the merger of SAG and AFTRA in March 2012. “We made something happen that people had attempted in various ways for about 60 years,...

Unite For Strength officially unveiled its full slate of candidates Thursday, almost a week after SAG-AFTRA published the names of those standing in the union’s first post-merger election. The group is fielding a slate of 52 candidates running for SAG-AFTRA National and Los Angeles Local Boards and more than 100 candidates vying for positions as delegates to the first SAG-AFTRA National Convention in September. Thursday's announcement didn't mention Ned Vaughn, the union’s outgoing executive vice president, who isn't seeking reelection but is running as a delegate on the Ufs slate. "I'm urging all members who want strong contracts, quicker residual payments and safe merger of our benefits to join me in voting for the entire Unite for Strength team," Ken Howard, SAG-AFTRA co-president, said in a statement. "Without a doubt, Clyde Kusatsu and Ufs are the leaders who will keep us on the right path. They've...

Exclusive: It was a SAG-aftra coalition that ultimately wasn’t. Roberta Reardon‘s plan to run for both NY Local President and National Executive Vice President came only after coalition talks collapsed, union sources tell me. NY-based Usan and the current SAG-aftra Co-President’s then-unnamed slate were deep in negotiations to form a powerhouse unit for this year’s union national elections. Those talks included current NY Local President Mike Hodge seeking his post again in this summer’s election and Reardon running for the Evp gig when the SAG-aftra national convention meets in September. Initially Reardon wanted Hodge to step aside as NY Local President. But all the principals involved in the coalition negotiations thought that was a bad idea and agreed that the current NY Local President should seek re-election. The grand alliance splintered and folded when Reardon was unable to secure endorsements from the Usan slate for the Evp job.

Mike Hodge is expecting a challenger to emerge as he launches his bid for reelection as SAG-AFTRA New York Local president, a source tells Backstage. Hodge, currently co-president of the local, announced his candidacy June 27 along with the rest of his Unite SAG-AFTRA Nationwide slate. The event coincided with a visit to the New York Local from national Co-President Ken Howard, who is running for the union's unified presidency. Howard was quick to endorse Hodge and the rest of the Usan slate, calling them “leaders I trust.” “Mike Hodge knows what's important to working members because he is one,” Howard said in a written statement. “He knows first-hand the challenges we face and has a no-nonsense approach to getting things done, no matter how tough. I've always counted on Mike's leadership because he comes through for NY members time and again. “Early next year we begin contract talks for film,...

The names of Screen Actors Guild Awards nominees were inadvertently leaked Wednesday morning because of a computer “glitch” hours before their official announcement. The union blamed its web vendor, which allowed some visitors to SAG’s website to discover the nominees in the five film categories and eight television categories before they were announced at an event in Los Angeles featuring SAG-aftra Executive Vice President Ned Vaughn, actors Busy Philipps (“Cougar Town”) and Taye Diggs (“Private Practice”). “We are aware of this matter. There appears to have been a technical glitch with the website uploading process and we are working with our vendor to resolve the problem,” SAG-aftra Spokesperson Pamela Greenwalt said in a statement. Commenters on the Awards Daily website were the first ones to recognize the “glitch” around 4:30 a.m. and begin circulating the leaked nominees. The information became public, according to the Los Angeles Times, after...

“Silver Linings Playbook” and “Lincoln” are each nominated for four awards at this year’s 19th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, leading the list of film and television nominees that was announced Wednesday morning.Introduced by SAG-aftra Executive Vice President Ned Vaughn, actors Busy Philipps (“Cougar Town”) and Taye Diggs (“Private Practice”) announced the nominees in five film categories and eight television categories.Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, and Robert De Niro all earned nods for their “Silver Linings Playbook” performances, which has also been nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. “Lincoln” was recognized for performances by Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, and Tommy Lee Jones, as well as the entire cast. The rest of the nominees for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, which is often a predictor for the Academy Award for Best Picture, are “Argo,” “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” and “Les Miserables.

Nominees for the 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® for outstanding performances in 2012 in five film and eight primetime television categories as well as the SAG Awards honors for outstanding action performances by film and television stunt ensembles were announced this morning in Los Angeles at the Pacific Design Center.s SilverScreen Theater in West Hollywood. Argo, Les MISÉRABLES, Lincoln, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Silver Linings Playbook were the 5 nominees in the Motion Picture category. Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty was absent from this morning’s list, but will most likely be among the Oscar nominated movies when the Academy Awards nods are announced on January 10th.

SAG-aftra Executive Vice President Ned Vaughn introduced Busy Philipps (TBS. .Cougar Town. and the 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® Social Media Ambassador) and Taye Diggs (.Private Practice.) who announced the nominees for this year.s Actors®. SAG Awards® Committee...

Updated: Busy Phillipps of TBS’ Cougar Town, Taye Diggs of ABC’s Private Practice were introduced by SAG-aftra Evp Ned Vaughn to announce nominees for the 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards this morning at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood and telecast live on TNT. The stunt ensemble honors nominations were also unveiled by SAG Awards Committee Vice Chair Daryl Anderson and committee member Woody Schultz. Recipients of the 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards will be announced at ceremonies on Sunday, January 27, simulcast live from the Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Center on TNT and TBS at 8 Pm Et/5 Pm Pt. Recipients of the stunt ensemble honors will be announced from the SAG Awards red carpet webcast. The Screen Actors Guild Award — The Actor — is presented for outstanding performances in motion pictures and primetime television. The nominees for performances in 2012, including the distinctive ensemble awards and the stunt ensemble honors,...

More than eight months after the two unions merged, the Los Angeles Local of SAG-aftra is holding its first membership meeting tonight. As Deadline previously reported, one of the items on the agenda is a report on the melding of SAG and AFTRA’s Health and Pension funds. Only members in good standing are permitted to attend the 7 Pm meeting at Sportsmen’s Lodge in Studio City. Los Angeles co-presidents Gabrielle Carteris and Ned Vaughn will co-chair the meeting and take questions on the benefit plans as well as the 2013 commercials contracts talks. Related: Longtime SAG P&H Plan Manager Exits On October 28, the union’s National Board received the Pension, Health & Retirement Report from the trustees of the SAG-Producers Pension & Health Plans and the AFTRA Health & Retirement Plans. Of course, no details were made public. Earlier in the summer, the National Board passed a motion urging the trustees of...

SAG-aftra’s Los Angeles local will hold its first post-merger general membership meeting Dec. 3 at the Sportsmen’s Lodge in Studio City. The meeting of the union’s largest local is primarily administrative, as co-presidents Gabrielle Carteris and Ned Vaughn look to update members on the rules changes and ongoing issues faced by the new organization. According to an e-mail sent to members, attendees “can ask questions of elected representatives and staff and will hear a report on the SAG and AFTRA benefits plans as well as an update on the 2013 commercials contracts negotiations.” The meeting, which gets underway at 7 p.m., is open only to paid-up SAG-aftra members in good standing, although parents or guardians of performers under 18 years are allowed to attend. The union has been in the process of consolidating its staff following the merger last spring of Screen Actors Guild an the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists,...

SAG-aftra’s Los Angeles local will hold its first post-merger general membership meeting Dec. 3 at the Sportsmen’s Lodge in Studio City. The meeting of the union’s largest local is primarily administrative, as co-presidents Gabrielle Carteris and Ned Vaughn look to update members on the rules changes and ongoing issues faced by the new organization. According to an e-mail sent to members, attendees “can ask questions of elected representatives and staff and will hear a report on the SAG and AFTRA benefits plans as well as an update on the 2013 commercials contracts negotiations.” The meeting, which gets underway at 7 p.m., is open only to paid-up SAG-aftra members in good standing, although parents or guardians of performers under 18 years are allowed to attend. The union has been in the process of consolidating its staff following the merger last spring of Screen Actors Guild an the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists,...

The first SAG-aftra Los Angeles Local membership meeting since the unions’ merger is Monday, December 3 at Sportsmen’s Lodge in Studio City. Registration begins at 6:30 Pm for a 7 Pm start, and all members in good standing are invited. Los Angeles co-presidents Gabrielle Carteris and Ned Vaughn will co-chair the meeting, which will include a report on the benefits plans recently received by the National Board from the trustees of the SAG-Producers Pension & Health Plans and the AFTRA Health & Retirement Plans. Until now, details have not been made public. During the pending merger, no future plans for the two unions’ pension and health plans were revealed or formally studied by SAG and/or AFTRA leaderships. Related: Where Are SAG-aftra Fiscal And Penson & Health Reports? SAG-aftra National Board Consolidates; Pension & Health Plans To Merge...

Don't expect the merger of SAG and AFTRA to give them any added clout when they sit down with the ad industry in the coming months to negotiate a new commercials contract. But it does give them one major advantage: They won't be fighting with each other. That's a major shift for the famously fractious actors guilds that since March 30 have been one union, 165,000 members strong. "There's no possibility of being divided at the bargaining table," SAG-aftra's Executive Vice President Ned Vaughn told TheWrap. "Of course, that makes us stronger." True,...

Actor Anne-Marie Johnson, a SAG-aftra national board member, has some harsh words for the united union, which announced that about 80 employees are departing through a voluntary severance program this week. "I wish there was a more eloquent way to say, 'I told you so,'" said Johnson, who led the Membership First faction of SAG and was a staunch advocate against the merger. "My heart breaks for the legacy of the Screen Actors Guild. You'll definitely see more layoffs." Ned Vaughn, SAG-aftra's executive vice president, called Johnson "out of step" with her fellow members. "Of course Anne-Marie Johnson is entitled to her opinion, but she remains out of step with the overwhelming majority of our members," Vaughn said in a statement to Backstage. "Forcing actors to pay for two separate organizations and staffs to cover the same work never made sense—that's one of many problems the merger fixed.

The plaintiffs in the federal lawsuit that sought to enjoin the SAG/AFTRA merger referendum – which passed almost two months ago – have decided to voluntarily dismiss the case, according to a letter from their lawyer, David Casselman. “After careful consideration, largely reflecting on the results of the recent merger election, my clients have reached the conclusion that continued prosecution of the pending litigation would not assist the cause they initially sought to champion,” said the letter, addressed to SAG outside counsel Bob Bush. In response, SAG-aftra executive vice president Ned Vaughn said, “Dropping this frivolous lawsuit is

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SAG-AFTRA, the new performers' union that was formed on March 30 with the merger of the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, has taken its first official action by establishing an initial 24-member executive committee. The panel was announced on on Wednesday, Variety reported.The committee is composed of a dozen national officers, and SAG-AFTRA co-presidents Ken Howard and Roberta Reardon have each appointed six additional members. Per the merger agreement, Howard and Reardon will chair the SAG-AFTRA executive committee.The officers are Ned Vaughn, executive VP; Amy Aquino and Matthew Kimbrough, co-secretary-treasurers; Gabrielle Carteris, Los Angeles VP; Mike Hodge, New York VP; Craig Dellimore, mid-sized locals VP; David Hartley-Margolin, small locals VP; Michael O'Keefe, actor/performer VP; Catherine Brown, broadcaster VP; and Jim Ferguson, recording artist VP.The appointed members are David Browde, Assaf Cohen, Rebecca Damon, Denise Dal Vera,...

Update, 8:56 Am Friday: Today’s press conference will be live-streamed at sagaftra.org. Previous, Wednesday Pm: SAG national president Ken Howard, AFTRA national president Roberta Reardon, SAG secretary-treasurer Amy Aquino, AFTRA treasurer Matt Kimbrough, SAG 1st national VP Ned Vaughn, AFTRA 2nd national VP Gabrielle Carteris, SAG 2nd national VP Mike Hodge, AFTRA national executive director Kim Roberts Hedgpeth and SAG national executive director David White will be in attendance to answer questions. The briefing is set for 1 Pm Pt in the James Cagney Boardroom of SAG’s Hollywood headquarters on Wilshire Boulevard.

Federal Judge James Otero has canceled the scheduled March 26 hearing in the lawsuit seeking to preemptively void the SAG/AFTRA merger vote. His decision will be based on the legal papers filed to date, and could come at any time.The court’s docket entry says that the matter is “Taken Under Submission. Accordingly, the hearing date is Vacated.”The vote count is scheduled for March 30, unless the court rules in favor of the plaintiffs. Taking the matter off calendar does not signal the judge's decision, but may mean that he has reached one already.Defendants in the suit are SAG, guild president Ken Howard, secretary-treasurer Amy Aquino and vice-presidents Ned Vaughn, Mike Hodge and David Hartley-Margolin. In addition, national executive director David White is listed in the caption (i.e., title) of the case, but omitted from the list of defendants in the body of the document.The plaintiffs are Martin Sheen,...

It was a blast from the past Thursday – a fiery one – when former SAG president Alan Rosenberg stopped by an anti-merger protest in front of SAG and AFTRA headquarters in Los Angeles and charged that the effort to merge the two unions “is being accomplished by liars.” “These people are lying about their intentions,” he continued, stating a moment later that he was referring in particular to current guild president Ken Howard and first vp Ned Vaughn. “Their goal is to make sure no one in this town will strike,” he said, arguing that

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Shape the Future of Your Union: Learn More about the Proposed Merger of SAG and AFTRA Featuring SAG National President Ken Howard, AFTRA National President Roberta Reardon, SAG Secretary-Treasurer Amy Aquino, SAG 1st VP Ned Vaughn, AFTRA 2nd Vice President Gabrielle Carteris and AFTRA National Treasurer Matt Kimbrough … All paid-up SAG and AFTRA members in good standing are urged to attend an important educational/informational meeting in Los Angeles to learn the facts and impact of the merger. On January 27 and 28, the national boards of SAG and AFTRA overwhelmingly approved the merger agreement to form one union. Now the decision is in your hands. Ballots will be mailed on February 27 to all eligible AFTRA and SAG members to vote on this historic change for your union. Learn the facts, so that you can cast an informed vote. What: SAG and AFTRA informational meeting to discuss the terms of the proposed SAG-AFTRA new union.

Back Stage recently spoke with Screen Actors Guild 1st Vice President and La Board Chairman Ned Vaughn and national board candidates David Joliffe and William Mapother about their plans for the upcoming election.Interview with Ned VaughnSAG 1st Vice President and La Board Chairman talks about television production in La , the SAG-aftra merger, and his re-election plans.Interview with David Joliffe and William MapotherScreen Actors Guild National Board Candidates David Joliffe and William Mapother share their views on the SAG-aftra merger.

SAG Unveils Candidate Lists For National Elections Los Angeles, (August 4, 2011) – Unite for Strength today announced that Screen Actors Guild President Ken Howard and Secretary Treasurer Amy Aquino will seek re-election as the Guild’s top national officers. The group will also field a slate of 34 candidates to run for positions on SAG’s National and Hollywood Boards of Directors. The Ufs slate features 27 incumbent or returning candidates, including SAG 1st Vice President Ned Vaughn and sitting board member Adam Arkin, and 7 first-time candidates, including Tony Shalhoub (Monk), Stephen Collins (No Ordinary Family), Kate Flannery (The Office), Lisa Vidal (The Event), and Iqbal Theba (Glee). Ballots will be mailed to SAG members on August 23 and will be tabulated on September 22. “I’m proud to be running with these candidates,” said Ken Howard, who was elected as SAG President on the Unite for Strength ticket in 2009. “Two years ago, I promised members...

SAG sources have dropped a couple of interesting details regarding their thinking on merger with AFTRA. One relates to pension and health; the other to timing.

As an initial matter, it should be emphasized that these are unofficial remarks. SAG hasn’t taken an official position on the two issues, and AFTRA’s thinking is unknown.

On pension and health, SAG 1st national VP Ned Vaughn, writing in the SAG Hollywood Division’s latest “Call Sheet” newsletter, says that merger “would give us an unparalleled opportunity to urge pension and health trustees to form a single plan.”

This is the first time a SAG official has publicly indicated that the union may wish to defer merging the P&H plans until after the unions themselves merge. The plans are run by separate boards of trustees composed of equal numbers of management and union representatives.

Merging the plans presents difficult legal,...

Ned Vaughn was elected 1st vice president of the Screen Actors Guild and president of the guild's Hollywood division Monday night. Vaughn, co-founder of SAG's moderate Unite for Strength party, succeeds Anne-Marie Johnson, whose rival faction MembershipFirst suffered heavy losses last month in guild elections. "I am honored to serve Screen Actors Guild as 1st vice president and privileged to represent the members here in Hollywood," Vaughn said in a statement released by SAG. "Our recent board election made it clear: Hollywood members overwhelmingly want performers in one union, not divided in two. I'll work hard to advance that goal and to make progress in every aspect of protecting our members." Vaughn, who was elected last month as an alternate to SAG's national board, was also appointed by the Hollywood directors to take the seat of outgoing national board member Amy Brenneman, who stepped down.The New York division re-elected...

Unite For Strength's Ned Vaughn replaced Membership First's Anne-Marie Johnson who chose not to run for re-election when her party lost control of SAG's Hollywood Division (Anne-Marie Johnson Ends SAG Hollywood Term: Bemoans Guild's "Fading Legacy"): Los Angeles (Oct. 18, 2010) - The Screen Actors Guild Hollywood Division Board of Directors and New York Division Board of Directors today elected the union’s 1st vice president and 2nd vice president. The Hollywood Division Board elected Ned Vaughn to the position of 1st vice president of Screen Actors Guild. The 1st vice president also serves as chair of the Hollywood Division Board. The New York Division Board re-elected Division President Mike Hodge to the position of Screen Actors Guild 2nd vice president. 1st Vice President Ned Vaughn said, “I am honored to serve Screen Actors Guild as 1st vice president and privileged to represent the members here in Hollywood. Our recent board...

In a Screen Actors Guild election that was widely considered a referendum on merger with the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, proponents of that idea emerged with a clear mandate.When the results of SAG's 2010 national board of directors election were announced Sept. 23, MembershipFirst, the SAG faction that emerged from the group of actors who helped scuttle merger in 2003, lost the fight for all 13 Hollywood-based national seats up for grabs to its rival faction, the pro-merger Unite for Strength. MembershipFirst partisans had held all 13 of those seats. The loss hands the coalition of Hollywood, New York, and regional moderates who had held a slim majority of the national seats—and who have been vocal in support of merger—a commanding boardroom advantage.Even more striking is MembershipFirst's loss of its majority on the Hollywood board. Unite for Strength won an overwhelming 33 of 35 open seats. Ufs, formed in...

On Sept. 23, the Screen Actors Guild will announce the results of its national board elections. In all likelihood, the earth will not move, and the heavens will probably refrain from parting.Last year's national election saw moderate Ken Howard take the guild's reins from Alan Rosenberg, one of the most combative and divisive figures in SAG's recent history. The previous year saw the national board of directors change hands, from Rosenberg's Hollywood-centric MembershipFirst party to the coalition of Hollywood, New York, and regional moderates from which Howard sprang—a shift that led to the ouster of national executive director and Rosenberg ally Doug Allen and the signing of a new film-and-television contract. This year's election, however, promises no such dramatics.In New York, five national board seats are open. But control of the New York board has for years been held firmly by the moderate United Screen Actors Nationwide party,...

Back Stage obtained the following e-mail exchange between Screen Actors Guild's 1st vice president Anne-Marie Johnson and national board of directors candidate Ned Vaughn. Both Johnson and Vaughn verified the authenticity of the messages, in which Johnson, leader of SAG's MembershipFirst party, and Vaughn, co-founder of the Unite for Strength party, discuss the possibility of a jointly organized campaign event. As of publication, no such event had yet been scheduled.************************From: Anne-Marie JohnsonSent: Friday, August 27, 2010 12:02 PMTo: Ned VaughnCc: Joe d'AngerioSubject: InvitationAugust 27, 2010Dear Ned: We both know how important it is to get accurate information out to our members before they are asked to vote on something as important as our upcoming elections. Because of this, we are inviting you and members of your slate to a taped, unedited 2010 SAG Hollywood Board Seat Election Debate, to be aired on our respective websites. I'm sure you're just as frustrated as we are with the tit-for-tat,...

SAG yesterday released the official list of candidates for its upcoming national board elections. Notably, all of the open seats in La (the Hollywood Division) are held by MembershipFirst members, which means that, as was the case last year, Mf can at best maintain its level of representation on the national board. More likely, it will lose some of its board seats.

On the Hollywood divisional board, Mf could gain or lose, as all division seats are up every year. This contrasts with the national board, where approximately 1/3 of the 69 seats are up in any given year. The president and secretary-treasurer, who are ex officio members of the board, have two-year terms, and are not up for election this year.

Ballots in Hollywood and New York will be mailed on August 24 with a return deadline and tabulation on September 23. Election results are expected to be announced that evening.

The Hollywood...

Jeff Garlin, Ron Perlman, Clark Gregg and Gabrielle Carteris are among the candidates from the Unite for Strength party vying for seats on the Screen Actors Guild's national and Hollywood Division boards.

Ufs announced Wednesday its full slate of 35 candidates, which includes 15 Hollywood board incumbents and a number of first-timers. Ballots go out to Hollywood Division members August 24 and must be returned by Sept. 23, when results will be tallied.

A first round of preliminary discussions with employers for a new TV-theatrical contract begins four days later. That deal expires June 30.

The Ufs party, which is part of a majority coalition that now runs the guild, was founded in 2008 in the midst of inter-union strife and took the hotly contested presidency last fall with its candidate Ken Howard.

"I'm inspired by our candidates," said Howard. "These are smart, dedicated SAG members who are passionate about protecting actors. They represent the diversity...

Thursday’s SAG election was a victory for the moderate coalition. Yet, strangely enough, the leaders of the losing hardline faction will all find seats on the national board, and will continue to be a shadow government within the union’s Hollywood board—a board on which none of the key moderate leaders will be voting members.

Yes, the moderates (Unite for Strength (Ufs) / Usan / Rbd / independents) won the national offices – President and Secretary-Treasurer – and picked up additional national board seats and many on the Hollywood board as well. But with SAG, the story is never simple.

In fact, paradoxically, 1st VP and failed Membership First presidential candidate Anne-Marie Johnson will probably continue as 1st VP, ex-president Alan Rosenberg will almost certainly be back on the national board in a matter of days despite winning only an alternate seat, Mf leader David Joliffe will probably be on the Hollywood board...

In a victory for the SAG moderate coalition (Unite for Strength / Usan / independents), the Ufs candidates for president, Ken Howard, and secretary, Amy Aquino, won the union's national offices.

However, the election was close: Howard's total was slightly less than the two hardline candidates added together (Anne-Marie Johnson and Seymour Cassel) and Aquino's was slightly more than that of incumbent Connie Stevens. So the union is still very divided, and Howard acknowledged that the results were not a landslide and that the union is very divided, while saying that he planned to reach out to Mf supporters.

On the national board, the moderates showed strength as well: They picked up 4 of 11 seats in Hollywood and held all of the NY and regional (Rbd) seats. I estimate that this brings the moderate's board majority to around 60%, vs. 40% for Mf, but that's a very rough calculation and I'm not sure at this point.

In an open conference call today, SAG VP and presidential candidate Anne-Marie Johnson said she will seek a strike authorization next year, before the mandated early negotiations next fall, if she’s elected. She argued that that’s what’s needed to gain bargaining leverage and added that she’s “confident” the SAG membership would vote Yes, especially after the guild conducts an educational outreach campaign during its wages and working conditions (W&W) meetings with members.

Johnson added that some people say her Membership First faction is strike happy. She denied that, but said that union members would feel the impact of new media defects in the existing contract before the negotiations next fall, and added that she thought at least 75% of the board will support a strike authorization. She also argued that the sunset clause in the contract, which calls for blank-slate renegotiation of the new media provisions,...

New York -- SAG's health and pension plans announced significant benefits reductions and premiums increases in a newsletter to members mailed Sept. 8, news that has become a political football in the race to lead the guild.

According to the newsletter, members will face higher health premiums beginning Jan. 1, and senior members who previously did not pay a premium must begin doing so. In addition, the pension-accrual rate will be reduced from 3.5% of covered earnings to 2%.

"This action does not reduce or in any way affect the benefits currently being paid to pensioners and their beneficiaries, nor does it in any way affect the amount of vested benefits accrued prior to January 1, 2010."

Unite for Strength and MembershipFirst partisans were quick to point fingers in the wake of the news.

In an e-mail to supporters, Ned Vaughn, a Unite for Strength Hollywood board candidate, blamed MembershipFirst's resistance to cooperation with AFTRA...

SAG's filing deadline for fall elections came and went Thursday, and it remains unclear who will face each other for the presidency. Only Unite for Strength, formed last year in opposition to the MembershipFirst faction led by SAG president Alan Rosenberg, has gone public with its complete slate.

Ken Howard will lead the charge as Unite for Strength's candidate for president, and Amy Aquino will run for secretary-treasurer. Unite for Strength also will field 33 candidates from the guild's Hollywood Division for seats on the national board of directors.

Months ago, Rosenberg stated provisionally that he will seek a third term, but first national vp Anne-Marie Johnson or another candidate could heed the call to represent MembershipFirst in the elections.

On the eve of MembershipFirst announcing its slate Sunday during a scheduled fundraiser, the Unite for Strength candidates took direct aim at and issue with their political opponents of the past year.

Ballots for SAG's proposed new two-year TV-theatrical contract are due June 9, and the year-long campaigns for and against ratification show no sign of letting up. As videos are posted on the Web and stars and rank-and-file both try to persuade their peers, the leaders of SAG's two opposing internal parties -- Anne-Marie Johnson of MembershipFirst and Ned Vaughn of Unite for Strength -- agreed to answer questions about their personal strain, the jagged rhetorical excesses and what the future might hold for a divided union.

Click for the Q&As:

Anne-Marie Johnson, MembershipFirst

Ned Vaughn, Unite for Strength

More SAG coverage...

SAG and AFTRA announced yesterday that their combined paid-up membership, about 132,000 members, overwhelmingly ratified the contracts between the unions and the advertising industry. The result was expected, as there was no organized opposition. About 28% returned their ballots, about typical. Of those voting, about 94% voted yes. The deals expire March 31, 2012.

The news from the TV/theatrical side is nowhere near as placid. The ballots went out a few days ago—they’re due back June 9—and SAG’s conducting a series of town hall meetings across the country. The first was last night in Hollywood, and the fur flew. About 600 people attended according to a staff count; although the crowd was reportedly 70% composed of hardline Membership First partisans, they didn’t manage to fill the room. That’s a bit surprising. I’d expected an overflow crowd, given their (apparent?) strength in Hollywood.

What they slightly lacked in numbers, they made up in volume and conviction,...

Voting on party lines, a sharply divided SAG board approved the tentative deal with the studios yesterday by a vote of about 53% to 47%. The deal now goes to the membership for ratification, with a bruising fight promised by the hardline MembershipFirst faction. Ratification is nonetheless expected, and will mark an end to an almost ten month Hollywood stalemate. Ballots will go out to the members in early May and will be due back three weeks later. The balloting material will be accompanied by both pro and con statements, and the fight over the deal will be a prelude to SAG's presidential and board elections, which will commence in July and run through September. Current SAG president Alan Rosenberg has come out in opposition to the deal, while Ned Vaughn, leader of the moderate Unite for Strength...