Tag Archives: prekindergarten

Late Night Talk Show Hosts Talk Return and “Sex and the City” Girls Talk Trilogy

Are you sick of Leno, Letterman, and O’Brien reruns yet? Well, here’s some good news–it appears the late-night talk show hosts could soon be returning with fresh laughs. According to Variety, four major late night hosts (Leno, Letterman, O’Brien and Craig Ferguson) are considering a return despite the ongoing Hollywood writer’s strike. No surprise, ratings for the late-night talk shows (which have been airing reruns since the mass work stoppage began two months ago) have taken a nosedive and network execs want the hosts to get back on the air ASAP. But who will be first to cross the line? … Continue reading →

The Writers Strike and Late-Night Talk Shows—THE BACKLASH!

Did you watch “Last Call” last night? If so you witnessed the first fresh episode of late-night talk since the writer’s strike began more than four weeks ago. After host Carson Daly cracked jokes about his applause sign still working and shared pictures of what he and his staff did in the last month he finally explained why his NBC show became the first late-night chatfest to return to the air with fresh material since members of the Writers Guild of America took to the picket lines more than a month ago. “We ran out of repeats,” Daly cracked. “A … Continue reading →

Striking Writers Temporarily Shut Down Picket Lines

It took a Hollywood legend to get striking Writers Guild of America picketers to briefly put down their signs. Elizabeth Taylor apparently hasn’t lost her magic touch given her affect on determined writers who began their work stoppage more than a month ago. But, don’t look for the great dame’s spell to last very long, strikers will be back on the front lines first thing tomorrow morning—their temporary break instituted in honor of Taylor and World AIDS Day. Taylor returned to the stage last night, but not until striking TV and film writers put down their signs. The 75-year-old screen … Continue reading →

Conan the Saint?

Well, he does kind of look like a young Kris Kringle… As the Writers Guild of America strike drags into the end of its fourth week, Conan O’Brien is making like St. Nick to bring holiday cheer to his late-night talk show staff. The comedian has pledged to cover the salaries of his non-writing production workers (nearly 80 in all) for the foreseeable future. According to Variety, the 44-year-old talk show host’s generous offer (he’s paying the salaries out of his own pocket) will kick in on December 1st, that’s when NBC said it would be forced to lay off … Continue reading →

Food Network BAMS Emeril and Carson Crosses the Line

One of my dad’s favorite TV shows is getting sliced, diced and dumped from the Food Network. “Emeril Live,” which has been a mainstay on the all-cooking channel for more than a decade will cease production on December 11th. However, according to network execs, the show’s star celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse, is still under contract with Food Network. Which means you’ll still see the effervescent cook BAM-ing, basting and butterflying chicken breasts, but it won’t be on the show that made him a household name. (Though, the network says reruns of “Emeril Live” will air at least until the end … Continue reading →

Writers Strike—Is There an End in Sight?

We should know by the end of the day. Later this morning writers and Hollywood producers will resume talks regarding contract negotiations. It’s the first time since the Writers Guild of America work stoppage began on November 5th that the two sides have agreed to return to the bargaining table. In the meantime, picketing by some of TV biggest stars and writers continues in Los Angeles and New York. The sign-toting strikers say they don’t plan to back down on their demand over payment for work aired on the Web. Writers want more money when TV shows and films are … Continue reading →

Hollywood Writers’ Strike—Week 3: Movie Alert

It’s week three of the Hollywood writers’ strike and despite the announcement that both sides are headed back to the bargaining table after Thanksgiving, things don’t appear to be improving for the TV or movie industry. In fact, Variety is now reporting that the film industry saw its first group of flicks go up in smoke (hopefully not permanently). According to the new report, “Angels & Demons,” the prequel to the box office hit “The Da Vinci Code,” reuniting Tom Hanks and director, Ron Howard, has been put on hold due to script problems. The thriller was scheduled for a … Continue reading →

Writers Strike Update—-How Many New Episodes Are Left?

In my previous blog I shared the good news that representatives from the Writers Guild of America and Hollywood producers are set to head back to the bargaining table later this month to hopefully end the two-week-old strike. Since the strike began November 5th, late night talk shows and several sitcoms have gone to reruns. Other series are now precariously close to running out of new episodes. Frankly, I found the news rather surprising given all the talk that preceded the strike. Prior to the writers hitting the picket lines industry analysts were flapping their lips on various cable channel … Continue reading →

Back to the Bargaining Table

Could an end to both the Broadway stagehands and the Writers Guild of America strikes be in sight? In just a few hours striking stagehands and Broadway producers are going back to the bargaining table, exactly one week after the work stoppage began and less than a week before the start of the lucrative Thanksgiving holiday weekend when most plays and musicals rake in millions of dollars. According to representatives from both sides, negotiations will resume this weekend “at an undisclosed place and time.” The good news even prompted New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg to weigh in about the move. … Continue reading →

Writers’ Strike—-Producers Hit Back

It’s been exactly one week since Writers Guild of America members hit the picket lines and it doesn’t look like they will be leaving anytime soon. But, as the numbers of celebrities joining the strike’s front lines grows, producers (the other half of the warring factions) displayed some defensive moves by taking out full-page ads in today’s trade papers to state their case. Ads with the headline “Setting the Record Straight,” which appeared in “Variety” and “The Hollywood Reporter,” emphasized that writers already get paid when TV episodes and films are downloaded from Internet stores such as Apple iTunes. What’s … Continue reading →