TV, Broadway come to a halt with strikes
By Jen Pontzer, Staff Writer
December 4, 2007 | 11:07 p.m.
Your favorite shows on the small screen and the stage may soon be on hiatus (or might be already) due to strikes by writers and stagehands.
The Writers Strike
The Writers Guild of America went on strike Nov. 5 in an attempt to receive money for Internet viewings of their shows. The studios and the writers have been in talks for at least three months, and while they could come to an agreement on some of their issues, the biggest one couldn’t be solved: how much writers should be paid when their work is sold online. The last time the writers went on strike was in 1988 for 22 weeks. Back then, the big issue was how much writers should be paid for reruns on television. This predated the Internet, and because of that, there is nothing regarding it in their contracts.
The strike not only affects the writers and the producers, but everyone else who works on a stopped show. Makeup artists, costumers, assistants and electricians (among others) are also now unemployed. The entertainment industry represents about seven percent of Hollywood’s economy. The Writers Guild of America West has a $13 million fund that will provide loans to “members who face financial hardship because their income is demonstrably affected” by the strike.
“I am unemployed thanks to both sides not wanting to lose face,” said Meredith Buyrucu in an interview with the New York Times, a costumer on “Grey’s Anatomy” on ABC. “Yes, they have families, too, but they’re making the choice. We don’t have a choice.”
“It is a major topic around town,” said Beth Holley in an interview with the New York Times, the office administrator at Global Effects Inc., a prop shop in North Hollywood. “I don’t think there are very many people who have not been affected directly or know someone affected.”
The strike will affect the viewers with reruns and more reality television. "Heroes" only has two more episodes scheduled to air, and unless the strike is resolved and more episodes are aired, season two will be 13 episodes shorter than season one. Other shows will likely follow this pattern as soon as the shows that have already been written ahead of time run out.
Hopefully the strike will be resolved soon. Talks were scheduled to begin again on Nov. 26, according to statements issued Nov. 16 by WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
The Stagehand Strike
Stagehands – the people backstage who install and operate sets, lights and props – have been working on Broadway without a contract since July. The dispute between Local One, the stagehand union and the League of American Theaters and Producers is over work rules that the producers feel are out of date. The rules govern how many stagehands must be called for work, how long they work, and what kind of tasks they can perform. The producers don’t want to pay stagehands that aren’t doing anything, and feel the rules are too stringent.
28 shows have been affected by the strike, including big hits like “Wicked,” “Hairspray” and “The Phantom of the Opera.” Eight shows aren’t affected by the strike, among them “Young Frankenstein” and “Mary Poppins,” because they play in theaters that aren’t covered by the expired contract.
The show must go on for one lucky musical. “Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical” is back up and running after State Supreme Court Justice Helen Freedman said the show should resume. “The Grinch” was the first show that the stagehands picked to strike, but the stagehands employed by the show had agreed to continue working even with the strike. Justice Freedman granted an injunction sought by the show's producers against the shutdown "for the sake of this city."
The strikes on Broadway ended after 19 days on Nov. 28 late at night. The two sides were able to come up with a tentative agreement and now it's curtains up for all of Broadway. New York’s biggest tourist attraction is lost millions of dollars because of the strike.
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