Writers’ Strike
One can’t live in Hollywood and ignore the writers’ strike. When I was working as an extra, the shuttle bus carried me every morning from the massive parking garage off the Avenue of the Stars deep into the land of Fox Studios, and past pockets of picketing penmen. (Sorry, couldn’t resist the urge to try to wring one more word out of that alliteration opportunity.)
They are wearing red, mostly, and carrying signs. A crew member on the set of The Journeyman commented that some of those writers are earning up to $12,000 per weekly episode, and it seemed to him that with a little judicious budgeting, one could live on that pretty well even in Beverly Hills. But many people, such as Michael Cieply of The New York Times, sympathize with the writers, noting that the bulk of the money tends to go to top actors, directors, and producers.
“It all begins with a script,” is the phrase I’ve heard often here in Hollywood as I, too, try to get doors to open. Such phrases are lip service, however. Jokes are more revealing. One common joke is that of a starlet telling her friend that she’s sure to land the lead in such-n-such film because “I’m sleeping with the writer!” (Insert guffaw here, because when the process actually begins, the writer is apparently only one notch above the girl who makes the coffee.)
It’s hard for me to pick a side. I am a writer myself. But I’ve seen what passes for writing on some of these TV shows and I have to say, $12,000 seems a little steep for exchanges that require a laughtrack.
