TV Actors Guild Splits from SAG

Pact bumps pay 3.5% but nixes bucks for online reruns

(NEWSER) - A two-year contract narrowly approved by the board of the Screen Actors Guild board would boost pay 3.5% a year, but dodges payment for most online reruns. The pact, which would cover film and TV actors, was passed by just 53% of the newly elected moderate board, and now faces a full membership vote, the Los Angeles Times reports. The issue over Internet residuals has split the membership, but the contract is expected to pass. More»

Actors' contract talks with studios shut down on bitter note

(NEWSER) - Fears of another big Hollywood strike mounted yesterday after strained talks between the studios and the Screen Actors Guild ended without a deal, the Los Angeles Times reports. Negotiations closed on a bitter note after studio representatives walked away, calling the actors' demands unreasonable. "We wanted to stay in the room and make a deal and our pleas were ignored," said SAG's president. More»

Post-strike surge doesn't materialize, so execs tap books, mags

(NEWSER) - Movie execs counting on a flood of scripts after the writers strike wrapped up in February are snug and dry and turning to books and magazine articles instead, Variety reports. Plump with new fiscal-year budgets, studios are snatching up literary pieces faster than in years past; prison escapes, sunken-ship salvage, and offshore drilling are likely subjects of upcoming flicks. More»

Roger Corman, Gordon Willis, John Calley share the spotlight

(NEWSER) - A mere 65 years after her unforgettable screen debut, Lauren Bacall has won an Academy Award. The honorary Oscar was a high point of a ceremony last night in Los Angeles that also celebrated the careers of filmmaker Roger Corman, cinematographer Gordon Willis, and producer John Calley. "I can't believe it, a man at last!" the 85-year-old Bacall joked as she hoisted her new hardware. More»

(NEWSER) - The Screen Actors Guild overwhelmingly approved a new contract tonight with the big Hollywood studios, ending an impasse that raised the threat of another strike in the entertainment industry, reports the LA Times. The approval, pushed by a group of top-tier actors such as George Clooney and Tom Hanks, comes a year after the previous contract expired. More»