Comments on: A Strike In Search Of A Hollywood Ending

While Writers And Producers Are At Impasse, Celebrity Glitz Replaced With Pink Slips

[betsyw4-2009]

As a fan of scripted television, I do indeed care. Overall a good summary of the strike. However, the comment that the writers are looking for a "bigger piece of the pie" was a bit misleading as far as new media is concerned. My understanding is that the writers are asking for 2% of revenue from new media and the AMPTP is offering them 0%. Since the future of television seems to be going in that direction and the industry has a precedent of giving writers, actors and directors residual payments, it seems very reasonable to me. I have no connection to either side but, speaking as a consumer, I believe that the folks who create the product (writers, actors, directors) have a right to receive a percentage of the profits.

[brianbwb-2009]

"The product of Hollywood is mindless fantasy and is not essential to life. If they don''''t get their acts together soon, they''''ll all be forgotten and out of jobs completely."
Posted by rplat

The first part of your statement is technically true, but you don''t consider that it is a multi billion dollar industry that makes up a significant part of the US economy.

The writers only want a fair share of profits, and the producers want to exclude them from the modern revenue streams. It is the same as a record company paying royalties to the content creators only on vinyl discs, even though the money comes in from CDs, DVDs, downloads, and soon Blu-ray, or HD DVDs.

Before you take sides against the "overpaid writers", consider that their struggle is against one of the tricks used by producers to steal money that should rightfully go to the creators, and is indicative of how business nowadays regards the individual.

[hypnotoad72]

Hollywood operates in a mindless fantasy land producing

The product of Hollywood is mindless fantasy and is not essential to life. If they don''''t get their acts together soon, they''''ll all be forgotten and out of jobs completely.

Posted by rplat
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I''ve got to agree. Thanks to the glut of TV shows on the market already, new ones of any worth will be harder to make. Besides, where''s the writing in all those "remakes" of old material? Just buy the original and analyze the plot and not drool over the special effects. Most remakes lose any intellect and gain not only crude pablum, but new effects that will look cheap in 5 years anyway.

[hypnotoad72]

Let it continue. So many sitcoms are not funny. Being funny is not saying "(hygiene product)" 20 times with a laugh track encouraging the dingbats dumb enough to watch it to parrot along right with it. Real comedy and humor depend on wit. Not a word that rhymes with it. (and I submit I was being somewhat crude too. :( )

Why do we have TV shows celebrating criminals?

Why do we have TV shows featuring people humiliating themselves for sums of money? (or double-sleaze like the winner of that "Survivor" show who felt he didn''t have to pay taxes and - uh oh - got caught. What a loser... But I digress.)

Or TV shows that glorify the sexual activities of people and their sordid affairs, especially during sweeps week.

Where are the parents to discern what is socially acceptable and what is not?

It is not "repression" to have a set of standards.

It is not "repression" to hold one''s self back when others'' lives might be involved. (especially when there are children evolved.) I deplore infidelity, and I''ll leave it at that for now.

And it''s better to learn decency younger than when older. Listen to our older generations. Ignore the people who say nobody will listen to them. They''ve seen it all before and often enough have valid points. Except the rules are different today, so maybe they don''t. I surely don''t know. It''s a big mess.

Finally, I am parroting nobody. I''ve observed enough of what''s going on to say all this of my own free will.

[rocketjl]

Oops! The truth behind suing people who ''allegedly download entertainment material illegally'' comes out. All ''those'' folks have contract with agreed-to dollars. Extra income from anywhere appears to only go to the big companies. The big companies refuse to share w/others. I hope the courts are listening. It''s all about money and greed - period.

[mcvet]

Who cares? How much sympathy do they have for other striking workers. I. E. auto workers /Dock workers/ people who have lost jobs because companies have moved
manufacturing overseas where labor costs are cheaper? Who are crying for them? Maybe they will hire writers in India, or Cambodia or elsewhere. Who Knows???


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Posted by az97202 at 09:12 AM : Jan 13, 2008
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What "Sympathy" would you have liked for these folks to have shown. The FEDERAL Law limits them with very stiff fines and jail IF they get involved with those strikes. LOL No wonder you fools fell for the Corporate Game... You don''t seem to understand that THOSE people will inspire those workers who have ELECTED the people who passed the "Free Trade" sellout to vote differently!! BLAMING the loss of all our industry on Workers is about as STUPID as you can get and still breath! You ARE still breathing I hope!! Sieg Heil Bush

[mcvet]

The product of Hollywood is mindless fantasy and is not essential to life. If they don''''t get their acts together soon, they''''ll all be forgotten and out of jobs completely.



Posted by rplat at 09:04 AM : Jan 13, 2008
+ report abuse

You know this is EXACTLY the attitude the German''s had when they turned to Hitler!! It''s about time Union''s and their Members started standing up to these Corporate Thugs. They get rich playing to stupidity like your''s. That is why our standard of living is now ranked LAST in the Industrialized Nation''s. Sieg Heil Bush!!

[rplat]

Hollywood operates in a mindless fantasy land producing




The product of Hollywood is mindless fantasy and is not essential to life. If they don''t get their acts together soon, they''ll all be forgotten and out of jobs completely.