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 »

Hollywood Writers on Strike

Writers demanding bigger share of DVD profits; studios slam 'irresponsible' strike

By Jane Yager,  Newser Staff

Posted Nov 5, 2007 6:08 AM CST
Email

(Newser) – The first Hollywood writers strike since 1988 began early this morning when union representatives walked out on talks with studio negotiators after 11 hours at the bargaining table. Both sides expect the strike to be long, expensive and debilitating. "Once it starts, it's going to get ugly," a writer told the Los Angeles Times.

Late-night programs dependent on current events, such as "The Tonight Show" and "The Daily Show," will immediately switch to reruns or be replaced. Soaps and daytime talk shows, which have about a week of material stockpiled, will be hit next. The 22-week walkout by writers in 1988 cost the entertainment industry an estimated $500 million. Writers are demanding a bigger share of DVD and new-media profits.

Picket signs lie in a van at the Writers Guild of America headquarters Sunday, Nov. 4, 2007, in Los Angeles. Hollywood writers were back at the bargaining table Sunday in a last-minute push to avoid a strike against TV networks and movie studios over writers' share of profits from DVDs...
Picket signs lie in a van at the Writers Guild of America headquarters Sunday, Nov. 4, 2007, in Los Angeles. Hollywood writers were back at the bargaining table Sunday in a last-minute push to avoid a...   (Associated Press)
People load picket signs into vans at the Writers Guild of America headquarters Sunday, Nov. 4, 2007, in Los Angeles. Hollywood writers were back at the bargaining table Sunday in a last-minute push to avoid a strike against TV networks and movie studios over writers' share of profits from DVDs...
People load picket signs into vans at the Writers Guild of America headquarters Sunday, Nov. 4, 2007, in Los Angeles. Hollywood writers were back at the bargaining table Sunday in a last-minute push to...   (Associated Press)
Writers Guild of America members Lowell Cauffiel, bottom left, and Monique Matthews, bottom right, talk before attending a WGA meeting at the 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...
Writers Guild of America members Lowell Cauffiel, bottom left, and Monique Matthews, bottom right, talk before attending a WGA meeting at the the Los Angeles Convention Center to discuss contract negotiations,...   (Associated Press)
People load picket signs into vans at the Writers Guild of America headquarters Sunday, Nov. 4, 2007, in Los Angeles. Hollywood writers were back at the bargaining table Sunday in a last-minute push to avoid a strike against TV networks and movie studios over writers' share of profits from DVDs...
People load picket signs into vans at the Writers Guild of America headquarters Sunday, Nov. 4, 2007, in Los Angeles. Hollywood writers were back at the bargaining table Sunday in a last-minute push to...   (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.

Writers begin strike as talks break off
New York Times

Hollywood writers begin strike after talks collapse
Reuters

WGA strike on as talks with producers collapse
Hollywood Reporter

Writers on the picket line would feel a varying pinch
New York Times

 
Hollywood • DVD • The Daily Show • Tonight Show • The Colbert Report • Writers Guild of America • Hollywood writers' strike

More Newser Stories

Stewart, Colbert Return to Late Night

Sandler to Conan: NBC Fired Me, Too

Logical Next Stop for Conan: Comedy Central

Leno Scabbed on Own Show During Writers Strike: Union

Worries Rising Over Looming Actors' Strike
NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne