Writer's Strike Thread

[stenbeck212]

Updated February 12: http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/

STRIKE OVER: Hollywood Back To Work!

Here's the official WGA announcement to striking writers:

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[Kubla Khan]

I think it's going to happen.

(Of course, we all thought it was going to happen six years ago, but it didn't, so we'll know in November...or January ).

But if there's a strike, daytime is done. It won't survive this.

[Faulkner]

A disturbing quote from the NY Times about what would happen to soaps in the event of a writers' strike:

So instead of hiring scabs or having producers pitch in, the networks would pre-empt soaps altogether for news and sports. It would be like O.J. Part II - and would finally give networks an opportunity to get out of soaps.

I have a tendency to agree.

[YRBB]

Now I'm feeling depressed.

[bellcurve]

This is the scariest thought to me...I assumed since there were scabs i9n the last strike, we would get some this time.

I can't believe they are planning to shut down production altogether! This is suicide! The actors will still get paid for their guarantees, right?! Why are they wasting that money they spent?

If this is the case, the soaps are NEVER gonna get their audience back!

[dragonflies]

I don't think it will happen, this just sounds like it's for dramatic effect. I guess we'll have to wait and see

[TC]

Cross your fingers. I too suspect it is merely sabre-rattling, but if not the effects will be devastating.

I haven't been following this closely so I assumed they would hire scabs, as they have in the past. Bad enough but not completely hopeless. The possible, though unlikely, upside of that would be an injection of the new writing talent so many of us have been asking for.

The thought of all soaps suffering a lengthy absence is chilling. As Faulkner said upthread...

[stenbeck212]

Worst case scenario, the soaps are gone for good

Best case scenario, I'll have my resume ready to go

[TC]

Don't laugh!

I've never been one to support scab labour, but if they must let them hire from the seemingly large pool of talented soap fans. I'd love to see some of the storylines and hypotheticals that have been batted around on the web over the years. And it would be people who love the genre and know it well.

[ChangedBYSon]

Why don't they hire the very best of the "soap FAN-message board soap writers"?

I've perused many of the online "do-it-yourself" soaps that fans write---some of them are GREAT!

To me, this is another example of TPTB not being innovative and being snobbish.

Talent is talent.

These shows could EASILY be kept in motion.

Look at all the very young struggling novelists who can really write, but their books were flops.

Why not SCOOP them up!?

Writers are everywhere! Good ones!

And lets not forget that there are SOME WRITERS who are so devoted and so love the soaps that

they would be willing to quit the WGA and continue writing for their particular favorite soap, especially

if they're already financially stable and have nothing to lose.

The ONLY REASON that daytime is falling apart is because you have these Prod/Exec. who are set in their ways

and think there's only "one way" to do things.

None of them can think out the box.

And unfortunately, age and being rich and having their "clique" is what

keeps them from stepping up and saving this genre.

They're really shitting on the fans, because these shows could be REVITALIZED during a strike if you want

to know the truth.

Half the soap writers they have right now are "burnt out", "fat & lazy" and need to be retired to begin with.

A strike would be the perfect time to bring in buckets of new blood!

They just don't care about or having any respect for soap fans

and that's all there is to it.

Hell give me a show--I'd make up a team just from all these damn soap boards and

we'd turn soaps BACK into real soaps again, and good ones!

That's what we need. People who are hungry, broke and LOVE the art form!

This is the perfect time to clean house and revitalize these damn shows from the

floor up.

[Vee]

Here we go again.

[DaytimeFan]

The only soap which won't really be affected by this is B&B.

B&B tapes 2 episodes a day, thus, the show has twice as many episodes as the other soaps to air so it could last out the strike. Additionally, since Brad Bell is EP and HW I bet he could write a few scripts. Furthermore, Lee Phillip Bell wrote scripts for B&B in its early days so I don't see why, in luxe retirement, she couldn't put pen to paper for a few weeks because that is all this strike will last, it WILL be wrapped up fast.

[TC]

I swear. I didn't mean to (re) start anything.

[bellcurve]

If she's part of the WGA, whether or not she is retired, isn't that still considered crossing the picket line? And I read another article that says that if a performer also has another role on the same show that they can't do any more work on the show than they did before.

Even thought B&B is on a more accelerated production schedule, it's not the way it was with PORT CHARLES, where they tape a year of shows in six months. I know they speed up productions before holiday breaks, but they are probably, at best, a month ahead of schedule.

And if ATWT, GL, and Y&R get yanked for sports and news, it won't really matter how many episodes B&B has in the can, because it will get yanked for news and sports as well.

The scariest thought to me is, hypothetically, this DOES happen...soaps are replaced with sports/news/reality/game until the strike is resolved. What if that type of programming lures in more viewers than the actual daytime soaps?!

Remember when Lskreet posted the Thanksgiving numbers for a Dog Show, which actually got a higher daily rating than DAYS/PASSIONS?!

I don't want to imagine B&B being replaced with "The CBS Midday News with Katie Couric." Homegirl is bad enough with the one newscast that she can't anchor.

Its crazy that they Producers aren't even considering scabs as an option.

[bellcurve]

I wish I shared your optimism...but it seems like almost every year there's a threat of a strike, it has taken effect. And residuals(something that sounds like a huge sticking point in the negotiations) are something people, especially writers, are not willing to back down from.