Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Hot on Facebook
Guy Buys $123 Safe on eBay, Finds $26,000 Inside Seller tries to get half the cash back, fails »

Writers to Hit Picket Lines

Guild wants to negotiate this weekend, but film and TV companies are livid

By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff

Posted Nov 2, 2007 8:00 PM CDT

(Newser) – Hollywood scribes vow to strike on Monday if they can't reach an accord with film and TV companies first. "We don't want to strike," a Writers Guild of America rep said today. "What we really want to do is negotiate." But the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers reacted by blasting the guild for "falsehoods, misstatements and inaccuracies. We are very disappointed with their press conference and the action they took."

Guild toppers made the announcement today, urging execs to reconsider upping writers' residuals for DVDs and Internet downloads, Variety reports. They also told all 12,000 guild members to stop writing at 12:01 a.m. Monday. Topical shows will get hurt first, says CNN, while soaps can last about 30 days and most prime time shows can make it until year's end.

Writers Guild of America members Lowell Cauffiel, bottom left, and Monique Matthews, bottom right, talk before attending a WGA meeting at the Los Angeles Convention Center to discuss contract negotiations, Thursday, Nov. 1, 2007. The guild was on the verge of calling its first strike in nearly 20 years after...
Writers Guild of America members Lowell Cauffiel, bottom left, and Monique Matthews, bottom right, talk before attending a WGA meeting at the Los Angeles Convention Center to discuss contract negotiations,...   (Associated Press)
Film writer Benjamin St. Gremais, a member of the Writers Guild of America East, hands out informational leaflets outside Rockefeller Plaza Friday, Nov. 2, 2007 in New York. Movie and television writers were set to strike  for the first time since 1988. (AP Photo/Gary He)
Film writer Benjamin St. Gremais, a member of the Writers Guild of America East, hands out informational leaflets outside Rockefeller Plaza Friday, Nov. 2, 2007 in New York. Movie and television writers...   (Associated Press)
Daily Show writer Rob Kutner, a member of the Writers Guild of America East, hands out informational leaflets outside Rockefeller Plaza Friday, Nov. 2, 2007 in New York. Movie and television writers were set to strike for the first time since 1988. (AP Photo/Gary He)
Daily Show writer Rob Kutner, a member of the Writers Guild of America East, hands out informational leaflets outside Rockefeller Plaza Friday, Nov. 2, 2007 in New York. Movie and television writers were...   (Associated Press)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Be the first to comment on this story.

More Newser Stories

Daily Show No. 1, Beats Leno, Letterman

Sandler to Conan: NBC Fired Me, Too

Freelance Jokesters Pen Late-Night Laughs

It's No Joke: Colbert Boosts Democracy

Late-Night Hosts at a Loss for Words


NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne