Monday, January 14, 2008

The Latest

The rumor that seems to be making the rounds is that the AMPTP and the DGA have already hammered out the main points of a deal and that they're just cleaning up language and addressing some minor points that need to be addressed. This may not be so but it's what people are saying and it at least feels likely. As I said the other day, it's always been unlikely that the DGA wouldn't be able to arrive at a deal. How good a one? And is it something that would work as well for writers and actors as it does for directors? That remains to be seen.

It may be seen quite soon. I suspect the AMPTP has something they think they can prove here; that this whole catastrophic strike wouldn't have happened if the WGA had just behaved like the DGA. I don't believe that for a minute. I think the studios thought they could steamroll over one union at a time starting with us and now that they know they can't, they're looking to make a deal and get their business back but to blame organized labor for their own refusal to negotiate. In any case, it's in their best interest to get a DGA deal done as quickly as possible, preferably while Nikki Finke is on vacation.

• Posted at 7:07 PM · LINK

Recommended Reading

Fred Kaplan with comments on George W. Bush's dismissal of the National Intelligence Estimate on Iran. This is all quite worrisome. Either all our nation's intelligence agencies are wrong or Bush is. Neither situation fills one with confidence about our nation's defense and foreign policies, does it?

• Posted at 4:00 PM · LINK

Today's Political Posting

If you're following the Presidential Primaries — and I could sure understand if you weren't — you might be interested in this list of when the upcoming ones occur and how many delegates are up for grabs in each. I have no opinions and no projections, other than to say it might be interesting if no one locked up their party's nomination before Convention Time and we had some months of brokering and dickering and dealing to get each low finisher to throw his or her support to someone within striking range. John Edwards might not be able to become the Democratic nominee but he might be able to decide who would be.

I really don't know who I like. No one very much. I'm still nursing the fantasy of other choices getting into the race but it sure doesn't look like that's going to happen.

• Posted at 11:58 AM · LINK

Monday Morning

A number of folks seem to think a deal between the AMPTP and the DGA could be announced as soon as today. That seems too quick to me but I'm sure it's possible. It's not likely that the Directors Guild is raising any issues that take the studios by surprise or which they haven't already mentioned in informal discussions. Anyway, stay tuned on that front.

• Posted at 11:35 AM · LINK

Today's Video Link

Here in two parts, we have a little less than twenty minutes of highlights from the 1999 Broadway revival of Annie, Get Your Gun, which starred Bernadette Peters. Carolyn and I saw this shortly after it opened and I believe we took along our pal Rick Scheckman. A guy I know got me tickets and assured me they were "great seats"...and I guess they were if you like being in the front row. That's a little too close to really enjoy the show. On the other hand, we could sit there and marvel at the fact that up close, Ms. Peters looked like she was about 26 years old.

This was a nice, fun production of a show that I usually find rather boring — a couple of great, hummable tunes livening up a story no one much cares about. I am told that as fine as Bernadette was in the role (and she was terrific), the whole show got even better when she was replaced by Reba McEntire. Not that Ms. McEntire is a better stage actress but she was "righter" for the part and gave it an amazing energy...or so they said. I didn't get to see it with her in it. Here's a look at Bernadette's version. The male lead is Tom Wopat...

• Posted at 12:07 AM · LINK