Hollywood Writers' Strike

[CutiePie2000]

Originally Posted by Jen

Girl is crazy.

Word.

Originally Posted by DeltAlum

I'm not a big pro-union person, but I do believe they were necessary when they formed and still have some purpose in trying to keep their members fairly compensated for their work when these new distribution advances come along. Seems to me that if the "management" is going to make money, the "workers" should be allowed to share.

Great post, DA. While I might get annoyed when a strike "inconveniences" me (garbage strike, transit strike, nurses strike, teachers strike etc.), I have remember that those employees are merely trying to fairly compensated for their work (and it's work that I would not want to do). In many ways, I take my hats off to those people who do those jobs, because I sure as h*ll wouldn't want to do those jobs. Dirty garbage? Rude passengers? Crazy patients who isht their pants? Foul mouthed bratty kids? UGH. NO THANK YOU.

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by 33girl

That's the whole point. Steve Carell is just too "cool" in the part for my tastes. But different strokes for different folks.

Oh I get that it's the whole point, but I just can't watch him for hours like I can with the US office. I rented Extras on DVD and it just drives me nuts!

Not to say I don't like it, but I've since fallen for the US office characters and plots in a way that six episode seasons cannot compete with.

Also, since I missed the crazy in this thread, I'm sincerely hope that Taualumna doesn't vote.

After all that right was acquired through the efforts of very UNLADYLIKE women.

The point: Sometimes being proper is not the way to get things done, and will only get you taken advantage of.

[GeekyPenguin]

Originally Posted by Taualumna

Good for Ellen to cross the line. Sorry, not a big union supporter. That's why I never became a teacher or a nurse. Like I said, protesting like this is not the most ladylike/gentlemanly thing to do.

Posts like this make me so happy you are not American.

[CutiePie2000]

I found this one a bit later...it's way better:

[GeekyPenguin]

Originally Posted by CutiePie2000

LOL, that was quite the edit, CP! Don't worry, I like my non-doormat Canadian friends just fine!

[amycat412]

the main point of this strike is over DVD sales. The bulk of the money made is in DVD sales, studios cook their books to guarantee that writers (and actors to a certain degree) don't see any money for this medium.

But that said, last time the contract was negotiated the internet content and dvd arenas were not such a huge factor.

Is only fair for the writers (and actors) to be compensated for their work in all mediums it is distributed in.

[Munchkin03]

Hmmm, $130K seems like a comfortable living, but not in NYC/LA, and ccertainly not when the actors for a show are making that amount per episode!

When the cut that each writer receives of a DVD sale was determined back when VHS was the primary format, it seems inappropriate to keep that same cut now that DVD is the dominant format.

I support the WGA strike--ladylike or not.

[KSUViolet06]

Originally Posted by Taualumna

Like I said, protesting like this is not the most ladylike/gentlemanly thing to do.

So when one feels as though they aren't receiving fair compensation for what they do, what do you suggest they do about it? This is a serious question btw.

[SWTXBelle]

It is ironic this is on Greekchat - so many of our sororities were founded at a time when it was considered "unladylike" to attend college! Our founders were progressive pioneers who weren't content to merely sit by the fire and do needlework. They sought an education, equal to that given to men, ladylike or no.

[adpiucf]

Originally Posted by DolphinChicaDDD

I heard that the producers of Lost might not start the season in Feb 08 as planned, because they want the whole season at once, but in Feb 09 instead. I'll be super pissed if that happens.

I saw some photo of the strike-- one of the LOST writers was picketting. One his sign were the words: Don't you want to know the truth about the island?

LOL-- if that isn't motivation to end the strike, then I don't know what is?

[KDAngel]

Here's an op-ed from the head-writer of Lost from Sunday... I think Kristin on E! announced that ABC IS in fact going to show the eight episodes they have come February though.

[CutiePie2000]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

It is ironic this is on Greekchat - so many of our sororities were founded at a time when it was considered "unladylike" to attend college! Our founders were progressive pioneers who weren't content to merely sit by the fire and do needlework. They sought an education, equal to that given to men, ladylike or no.

An excellent point. Not only that, several GLOs were founded in a protesting reaction to prejudices / incidents of racism. (For example, AOII got started up in response to a Jewish girl getting denied a bid to another GLO, on the basis of religion.)

[mu_agd]

Originally Posted by adpiucf

I saw some photo of the strike-- one of the LOST writers was picketting. One his sign were the words: Don't you want to know the truth about the island?

LOL-- if that isn't motivation to end the strike, then I don't know what is?

I believe that was actually the creator and showrunner that had that sign!

[RACooper]

Originally Posted by Taualumna

If this goes on long enough, we'll be watching movies and hey, maybe even get rights to air non-US shows (though I doubt that will happen, no matter what the Canadian newspapers are saying...Corner Gas (which I don't watch...kinda trashy, IMHO)

Kinda trashy? Like in production values or are you making a "class" judgement here?

[AOII_LB93]

Originally Posted by CutiePie2000

An excellent point. Not only that, several GLOs were founded in a protesting reaction to prejudices / incidents of racism. (For example, AOII got started up in response to a Jewish girl getting denied a bid to another GLO, on the basis of religion.)

No, AOII was not founded because of discrimination. She was founded because all of our founders wanted to be in the same organization as they were friends. It wasn't like, "Oh I'm Jewish and I got denied, let's start our own!"

From our website: "Barnard College, in the late 1890’s, was the first separate college for women to be affiliated with a great men’s university such as Columbia University. AOII’s four Founders were in the class of 1898, young, and unlike most of the women who had entered Barnard in previous years. They were friendly, adventurous, frank and merry, and enthusiastically devoted to each other and to the class of ‘98. Determined to make a democratic, unostentatious society, the four women, Stella George Stern, Helen St. Clair, Elizabeth Heywood, and Jessie Wallace climbed a little winding stair into the stackroom of the old Columbia Library. This little room was rarely used and stored Anglo-Saxon tomes and ancient vellum manuscripts. While the four sat in a deep window seat, pigeons outside and snow lightly falling, they pledged one another at the beginning of the year 1897."

ETA (this post from an old thread on GC in which irishpipes posted): AOII has a connection to Kappa Kappa Gamma. Barnard College (of Columbia University) was founded in 1889. Kappa chartered a chapter there in 1891. The classes were very small, and because the entrance requirements included knowledge of Latin and Greek, in addition to may other rigorous subjects, most students were slightly older than the traditional college students because they had to study after prep school in order to pass the entrance examinations. Since the classes were small, Kappa traditionally admitted to membership the entirety of each class. The class preceding the class of our founders was significantly larger and Kappa could not take everyone. As a result, the College needed a new fraternity. This need, along with other conditions, led to the founding of AOII. Our founders pledged themselves in December 1896 and officially became Alpha chapter of AOII on January 2, 1897.


So no, we were not founded because one of our founders was denied entrance to Kappa.

Back to your regularly scheduled thread...

I guess the strike has stopped affecting me since I've not had TV since we moved to our new house. It's amazing the amount of stuff you find to do instead of watching TV.