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Joshua had a Millennium question. Cool!
There was an episode where a woman is drugged, and we get this whole hallucinating dream of hers before she dies, set to a song, and it lasted at least six, seven minutes. As long as the song!
And it was far out, dude. It totally freaked me out, and was by far one of the best things I'd seen on television, definitely the most risky, because she wasn't going through something pleasant, but whoa.
I remember thinking at the time - Whoever chose to do that has got some serious sack!
So now for my question.
What was the episode, what was the song it was set to, and how was that particular creative choice made, was it the writer, the creative producer, etc?
Serious sack. Heh. The episode was the season two finale, "The Time Is Now." Lara Means, a visionary like Frank Black, goes insane for an entire act to Patti Smith's "Horses." This was not a spur-of-the-moment decision, either; this was planned out earlier. I know because we chose a Patti Smith song for an earlier episode and Glen Morgan said he was going to make Lara go insane to "Horses." Go here for a bit more on it. I loved the sequence. The whole episode showed the world of Millennium just falling apart. I thought it was quite a risk; the kind you don't see very much on TV these days. Glad it stuck with you!
A comment from Crystal:
I didn't know that Huckabee snuck in. Thanks for telling me. I'm just happy that my candidate proved that he was the friend to unions he says he is... former Senator John Edwards, who joined the picket line at NBC Universal in LA, and in NY... and from what I was told by someone on the line, John had appeared at the picket lines more than the twice I knew about.
A friend of mine, who's a Democrat more than for a specific candidate yet, I think, came out with me to the John Edwards-attended rally, but she was telling later about a trip Obama made afterwards -- and I said, did he come out to the picket line? Her excuse was that he was only there for a day. Well, for me, coming for your fundraisers and not coming out to the writers on the line says something to me and my vote.
Interesting the difference between Huckabee sneaking in and a debate being cancelled because Edwards said he wouldn't cross the picket line and then Obama and Clinton echoed him.
It's funny how low the bar is now. If a candidate doesn't sneak past a picket line to appear on a talk show, he should be a front-runner. I'm right there with you on Edwards, although I'm afraid that the best he can do is to probably be a king-maker. As for the Huck, his recent statement about changing the Constitution to reflect the "word of God" made me wonder if he's just fucking with everyone.
AJ:
2.) That commentary on the NetGen'ers is one of the smartest things I have ever read, bar none.
I'm so glad to hear that! This is something I really believe in. Maybe one day, when I'm a rich, powerful fuck, I can make some internet TeeVee and put this into practice.
DG:
Of course if you asked most of the moguls, they would identify themselves as liberals.
They would, indeed. We've seen them proudly driving their Priuses. Makes me want to flip one over, with Katzenberg in it. I suppose we must describe them as socially liberal and fiscally conservative, although I know people like that and they would never treat people the way the moguls are treating all of Hollywood.
Cameron, thanks very much! I appreciate it. Hold the line, and hopefully we'll all come out okay.
As for Maher, Mazin, Leno, Carson Daly, and all the rest of those secret scab writers to cowardly to pull a Ridley, I hope they all rot in Hell.
Apparently, people don't like it when the "free speech" shoe is on the other foot. More on that below. But I'll clarify the issue I have with the people who are speaking out. My problem isn't that they disagree with the leadership, or think things should have been done differently, or think that there are witch hunts within the guild that are attempting to quash dissent. They are members of the guild, speaking out in public during a seriously delicate time. They do not believe that this requires sensitivity, or that this should be a discussion best had amongst guild members. The insinuation that inevitably follows is that those of us who aren't speaking out, or who wish they were keeping it in the family, were led astray by the Big Bad Leadership. The extrapolation is that they know best, and the rest of us are fucking idiots who need to be taught. Having gotten that from virulent right-wingers, I recognize the tactic and I don't appreciate it. This isn't a question of being found right or wrong at the end of all of this. The ONLY issue is that the WGA get a fair deal.
I've been accused of being too angry, too threatening, too violent. There have been some pretty nasty, insensitive comments lately, and I know that there has been a peculiar outside focus on this blog as of late. I'm not inviting it, and I don't like it. Unlike others, I have no agenda other than to speak my mind. If you don't like it, go start your own blog. A blog is as fluid as, say, a labor movement. Think of it as a journal. I write what I feel and think at the time. It's easy to go back, read something and go, "Huh. Did I REALLY think that?" But that's a part of blogging, if you're honest about it. I'm not about being calculating here, or anticipating how somebody's going to react. Because obviously, why on Earth would I welcome these comments?
I'm not part of a faction, or a cabal, or any other evil secret society that's out to undermine the "opposition," whatever THAT is. I'm not trying to make any statement here, aside from what I'm thinking and feeling and seeing. I don't give a shit about the politics. I'm nobody's patsy. There are more important things at stake here, and there are a lot of people who are becoming enmeshed in petty squabbles and are losing sight of the goal. Which, if it's slipped your mind, is a fair deal.
It's no secret that I support what we're trying to achieve, and I support the leadership. If you're confused as to why, it's because I strongly believe that their only goal is to get us a fair deal. If I see somebody undermining that, either on purpose or not, it's going to piss me the fuck off. And I'm going to say so. Why is it okay for these dissenters to speak out and say the rest of us drank the Koolaid, but it's not okay for me to get everloving pissed about basically being called a cult member? And when you come off the picket line at nine in the morning, after fucking freezing for three hours, there is going to be a reaction to this shit.
Just in case the above is too wordy for some, I'll boil it down. I am obviously NOT going to punch anybody in the heart. Because REALLY. It would hurt. I'm not a Mayan shaman. I don't have super shaman powers. And you'd think that writers, of all people, would get down with a little hyperbole. But ironies never cease, I suppose.
We all have our own interpretation of this strike. Most of us sacrifice, and we all do it differently. I'm detailing my own experience, and you don't have the right to tell me otherwise. If your experience is different, then that's how it is for you. I'm not going to get bogged down in semantics. I don't read Nikki Finke or Craig Mazin, but snippets of their blogs (and they are BLOGS, not NEWS SOURCES, for Christ's sake) keep showing up elsewhere. If what they say bothers me, then it does. And I won't apologize for it. If I complain about someone here and they're hurt by that, or just fucking pissed off, they should let me know. If you post something on a public site, people are gonna read it. They will either like what you say, or they will disagree. If you act like you're the king of everything, I suppose it stands to reason that when people disagree with you, that's gonna bring you up short. But that's not my problem.
But this site wasn't intended as a bully pulpit for or against the strike. It just happens to be what's for dinner now. But like I said in another post, I'd like to talk about other things, too.
So I won't be responding to any more comments having to do with what an asshat I'm being about the strike. It's boring for everybody reading. Besides, I'm the one on strike, so nobody has the right to tell me how I should behave or what I should think. I already know how to behave -- like me, not like somebody's mouthpiece. Anonymi, that means you. Tim, that means you, too. Think whatever the fuck you want. Post whatever the fuck you want. I'll approve the comment. But I won't respond to it. This does not, by the way, mean that anyone else who wants to take the assholes on in comments shouldn't do so. By all means, feel free.
There's nothing more irritating and maddening than a concern troll going, "There's so much anger here. Everybody needs to calm down." You know what? You're just talking to yourselves, hepcats. So I invite you to be honest. Go ahead and say you're frustrated, and angry, and scared. Let's bond over that feeling of uncertainty, regardless of you feel about the leadership or the way the strike has gone. It's a lot healthier than faking a concern troll, isn't it?
Jake:
I've said this over and over again, and I've had people slam me for it, but I don't care if or what deal the DGA gets. Unless it's a good deal (and it'll probably be different from what I personally want) for the WGA as a whole, then fuck it they shouldn't sign.
It seems simple, doesn't it?
I'm sure that by now, everybody has seen the tentative DGA deal. You may have seen the John Wells letter. Before the deal was announced, does anyone remember the hue and cry from the concern trolls? "Let's look at it first. We can't make any decisions until we see it. YOU RADICALS WHO EXIST EVEN THOUGH I CAN'T PROVE IT, YOU'RE RUINING EVERYTHING!" Remember that? Now that the deal has been announced, these self-same folks are declaring that it's a great deal and we should take it. With no sense of irony or shame whatsoever, I might add.
Now the groups are mobilizing!! Factions are forming!! The showrunners are pissed and want the deal! Those out of work want to stay on strike!! The feature writers want to make their movies! Except for a few of them! They want to stay on strike because they can afford it! The directors gave away the internet!! No, no -- IT'S A GREAT DEAL! We can revisit the internet later!! Are you high?? No we can't! THEY'RE LYING TO US! Shut up! They are not!! Yes they are. What about the free streaming?
etc.
Here's the reality, gentle readers.
1. This is not our deal. It's the DGA deal. The DGA hasn't even presented it to their membership.
2. The WGA NegComm hasn't even looked at it yet. They are making no recommendations until that time.
3. It may be a decent deal. It may suck. But it's never going to be the perfect deal we wanted. It's also not going to be the perfect deal the AMPTP wanted. Why? IT'S A NEGOTIATION.
4. Because this isn't our deal, there are elements of a WGA contract that aren't gonna be in a DGA contract.
5. Nothing anybody says at this point is going to make a Goddam bit of difference. Why? See #2.
Calling for the WGA to accept or reject a deal that ISN'T EVEN OURS is laughable. So here's a thought: take the fucking weekend OFF. Everybody. Just go do something else. There's nothing you can do. I understand where we all are right now. This is actual information, which we haven't had in weeks. There's something to chew on and by God, we're gonna chew on it. It would be lovely if we could chew on it in private, but hey, apparently I am the only person who feels that way.
I am not commenting on this deal one way or the other until I hear from the NegComm. And I don't know if I'll "drink the Koolaid," as a "moderate" so helpfully put it. There are things I'll look for, and then I'll weigh those things against the bleeding obvious -- do I think this is the best deal we can get? It really comes down to just that.
I have one thing in this world that I want right now -- to make a living doing the thing I love. For the slow ponies in the field, that would be writing. This has become a lot fucking harder lately, and the strike made it even more difficult. I get to be pissed off. I get to worry about whether or not there will even be television after all of this, and then whether or not I'll fit into the new paradigm. There are, hopefully, going to be great opportunities in other arenas. So maybe next time, I'll muse about the thing I suck at more than anything else -- creativity in self-promotion. Seriously. You have no idea how much I suck at that.
Or maybe I won't, because that's just too depressing to talk about. There are other comments I'm going to get to in another post because once again, look how LONG this is!
And lemme know if y'all like the new format.
np - Hope of the States, "The Lost Riots." Of course.
15 comments:
Kay,
I thought I've been pretty civil here, especially towards you, which took some restraint considering not everyone practiced that same restraint. Most of my comments in the last post were not directed at you, and I thought it was obvious. If not, I apologize. To call me a concern troll, however, is bullshit and insulting. I was reading and posting here well before the strike because I thought your blog was informative and well written. If you don't understand why I'm posting what I am, then ask, don't fucking insult me and stick some sort of label on me to make it easier to ignore what I'm saying. I notice your country is fucking great at that. Call someone a liberal, neo-con, whatever, and suddenly what they say has absolutely no meaning to you. Good job. Way to marginalize. Pretty soon you won't have to listen to ANY opinions that are in opposition to your own. That's fucking healthy.
I have nothing against you personally, Kay, but that attitude of yours sucks and some of you need to look in the fucking mirror once in a while. You might be shocked and a little horrified by what you see. I hope this strike ends soon because I shudder to think what a few more months of this is going to do to some of you.
I don't give a shit whether you post this or not. I just hope you actually read it yourself.
Totally off-topic but did you hear or see the word "anonymi" somewhere else or was it an off the cuff improvisation? I'm somewhat curious because it makes perfect sense to use in an Internet context (blogs, discussion groups, etc). There's some discussion of it at http://www.painintheenglish.com/post.php?id=560 . The more anal-retentive types seem to believe that because anonymous is an adjective there's no plural form or that the plural form is the same. I have to admit that the word certainly fills in an online gap.
I can’t recall having ever been so disgusted with the surrender monkey crowd since this began. You wrote something that struck a familiar chord with me: “And you'd think that writers, of all people, would get down with a little hyperbole. But ironies never cease, I suppose.”
A long standing gripe of mine. There’s a contingent of our trade who think and behave more like accountants or politicians than writers. They’re sober, serious, “moderate” and fucking dull as shit. Nine times out of ten, it shows in their work. I usually steer clear of Guild politics, because having to deal with people like that makes me antsy and irritable, and I'm a fucking sweetheart normally. But at a time like this, you can’t help but confront them. They’re fucking everywhere. And they’re good at rallying their troops, far better than people like you or me or any of the other - god help us - writers in the damn guild, because we have a tendency to distrust movements and groups. It’s the nature of the work.
But to get back to it - my years of rambling around the net, tweaking morons, I’ve come across all manner of freak - I’ve spent time on Klan boards, Nazi boards, fundie Christian boards, and even a little time hanging around an "adults who like to wear diapers" board (cos man, those cats are fucking strange).... and the only time anyone’s ever seriously threatened me, or made any attempt to “get” me, it’s been writers. Every single time. These fuckers can’t handle hyperbole, Kay. They can’t handle anything that isn’t gift-wrapped and sanitized and filtered through some moderator’s stern and disapproving eye.
Like I said, though - these guys organize well. Mazin has a private, invitation-only site where he runs his rough drafts past his little cabal of weasels before he posts. Can you imagine doing that? And what does that say about the claims that it’s just a blog of one man’s opinions? He swears he has no political ambitions, but all he does is politick. Taking him at his word, he has no intention of running for the board again, but he lives to influence Guild politics. And for anyone who still has doubts, his running of the Wells letter puts the fucking nail in that coffin. Coming from a guy who just a couple days earlier was preaching “patience, morons,” the irony would be exquisite if the move weren’t so repulsively dishonest.
But keep in mind, Kay - he’s not playing to the thinkers out there. He’s not playing to individualists and freaks and creators and fucking WRITERS. He plays to the peanut gallery. He plays to that weird breed of writer who craves order and conformity and the soothing warmth of group membership. People like us don’t organize and plot and scheme. We just do our shit. Which, at a time like this, is a failing, I suppose. Because they have all the experience at whipping up their mob. Plus they own all the pitchforks.
There’s this whole unspoken thing that somehow pointing to the work is a bad thing, but Jesus - it’s what the guy does for a living. The movies the guy’s co-written have made a couple hundred million bucks, and that’s not by playing to the deep thinker crowd, ya know? So it’s natural that his instincts would lead him where he is, and to play the game the way he does. As a mad thinker once said, nobody ever lost a buck underestimating the American public. Craig plays well to dullards, in a way you never will. I know I won't - I don't have the fucking patience.
Normally, that just makes him an egomaniacal asshole who has the presumption to declare himself an “artful writer,” but this time, it’s more. This time it’s a guy doing an end-run around our leadership in an attempt to push his own agenda, one that’s most supported by a group of top earners who have zero in common with working screenwriters (and I’ll cop to it here - I’m one of them. I’ll come out of this strike smelling like a rose no matter what. I’ve never had to rely on a residual check to pay my rent in my life. My own foray into TV was a pleasure jaunt, and I honest to god couldn’t even begin to guess what I got paid for it. But I understand what it means to belong to a guild, to a union, and what responsibilities that entails, whether or not you enjoy it.)
Point being this - like every other half-way sane person without a fucking agenda beyond getting us a good deal, I’m taking a wait and see attitude. I’ve looked at the points of the DGA deal, and I have my views, and I’ve discussed them with friends and associated privately. But for me - or any of us - to seriously opine on a deal that A) we haven’t seen and B) isn’t being offered to us, is fucking absurd. And for a movement to start that’s focussed (make that obsessed) on getting us to “take it” is extreme. I don’t appreciate these guys doing what they’re doing. I don’t appreciate the Wells letter being used to publicly force the issue, and to put us in a position where, if we pass, they get to attack us. I don’t appreciate the private e-mails asking us to hammer the leadership with demands to “take” the deal (They've even written the letter they want you to send). I don’t appreciate people who aren’t my elected representatives taking it upon themselves to bend this situation to their will. Call your reps, absolutely. But politick it to your will? Fuck you.
And the worst thing about it is this - it makes it harder to get it right. Because even if everyone comes to the conclusion that this deal is spectacular, the fact that these motherfuckers have pulled this extreme shit is going to count against it. These are human beings we’re talking here, and I’d wager it’s not going to be a mark in favor of the DGA deal that a small handful of egomaniacal power-freaks who've been hammering, undermining and fucking with them have demanded that we take it.
All a long way of saying you keep flying your angry freak flag, girl. The fact that some people take extreme umbrage at what you say is an indication that you’re doing it right (to be clear - pissing off just anyone isn’t a sign of anything. But you piss off the right people.)
We’ll get through this thing, and if we can navigate the mine field laid down by the AMPTP (with the help of a small group of assholes), we’ll be okay. We’ll never get what we deserve, it’s way too late for that. But we’ll be all right. And when the dust settles, we can go back to just laughing at the “artful” writer, with the certain knowledge that he is aptly named:
“art·ful [ahrt-fuhl] –adjective - slyly crafty or cunning; deceitful; tricky”
KAy, I like the new format. I don't like the font of the blog name. It looks like some cheesy sign that would hang over a booth at a carnival. I find it offensive. Change it please.
"HORSES!" Of course!
Man, thanks for that, it's been killing me, trying to remember what song that was back then, and I was about three cans into a six pack when the show came to it, too.
Wow. What an ep, truly. That show knocked me out. Thanks for sharing Kay, you find yourself in New York City, I'll buy you a cup of coffee, for real.
Aside to Tim - Chill, dude. Mostly you've hung around and made some comments and arguments, quite a lot of which, in my own small opinion, often didn't hold water. The fact that you didn't kick or scream when you did it doesn't change that previous fact. All Kay seems to be saying is, to me, she ain't gonna respond to specific queries on this subject any longer. Get a fucking grip, dude. Or go hang out at Mazin's place.
Lastly . . .
Brother Olson!
Man dude, miss your voice, man. For real - if you ever want to guest blog, let me know. I love what you've gotta say. I echo it, my man. We know what Ford Fairlaine would say regarding Mazin, right?
LOL!
And hey, I may be out LA way sometime in the late spring, depending on labor issues and the at-home baby issues, and if so and you're not shooting, I owe you a beer or three. I'll let ya know if so . . .
Thanks again, Kay!
The new format works -- much easier to read for those of us with older eyes. Thanks.
Kay,
If I haven't mentioned it lately, you're aces with me.
And to others who may be concerned:
A concern troll isn't just what one is, it is what one *does*. Being snotty and abusive to someone while pleading for one's free speech rights on a blog not one's own? Well, that's just tacky, and shows poor home training, no matter the quality of impolite discourse said troll is responding to.
And, being concerned about someone's self-inflicted harm because of behavior one doesn't like, stated as a passive-aggressive curse? When the sane response to said concern is "like you fucking care"? Classic concern troll stylee. Time to look in the mirror, indeed....
"I have one thing in this world that I want right now -- to make a living doing the thing I love. For the slow ponies in the field, that would be writing. This has become a lot fucking harder lately, and the strike made it even more difficult. I get to be pissed off. I get to worry about whether or not there will even be television after all of this, and then whether or not I'll fit into the new paradigm. There are, hopefully, going to be great opportunities in other arenas."
ow. poor poor you. well, at least you are perceiving that after this strike things are going to be even worse for you. yep. jobs will be shrinking even more.
and if you think that you'll go to write for internet? ah! go ahead. you'll be paid even less. because all those prod are going to be under 300,000. you can be sure of that.
so now, IF you'll get a job -- and you still will have to deal with a FIERCE competition, all the other writers outside the WGA -- you will be paid peanuts.
but hey, you'll have bigger residuals on the internet.
I'm crying laughing.
you all arrogant pricks will get what you deserve. no more. no less.
"you all arrogant pricks will get what you deserve. no more. no less."
Speaking as the most arrogant prick in the world, I just want to say that I usually do. So thanks for the kind wishes.
Well, I gotta admit I have a substantial ego. Arrogant and militant? Well, sometimes. A prick? Rarely.
But I will say, unlike Kay, should I ever run into Anonymous 9:59 am, it's likely I'll be tempted to punch him or her in the heart. And knowing me, I'll likely not have second thoughts about not avoiding temptation.
I'm always amazed that people make these types of comments. I mean, it's okay to be pissed off about missing your favorite TV programs. I know the masses need their fix. What's not okay to me is not having the balls to sign your name to such statements, it's gutless and underscores what I dislike about the internet: it gives an outlet to bullies who otherwise wouldn't have the courage to confront somebody in person lest they get the shit kicked out of them.
1. Every time I open your blog, I have the overwhelming urge to say "I have frequently not been on boats."
2. You do rock. You have rocked for me since you responded to my comments way back on the old Millennium forum thingie.
3. I realize that you have probably not been waiting for the appproval of someone else's mom for all these years, but here it is. It is the approval of the mom of a 14 year old MM fan, though! I do have an interesting daughter!
4. I would love to buy you a drink - but here I am in the frozen tundra of northern Illinois - anyplace I can PayPal it to you? Or would you prefer small bills to a p.o. box? Let me know.
5. Whatever happened to Horace La Badie? Now there was a genius.
There are doers and there are complainers. Kay and Josh are definitely doers.
As for the anger... to be frank, I'm concerned that a lot more people aren't a lot more angry about that DGA deal. About folks continually saying shit like, "when the WGA finally goes back to the table." THE FUCKING WGA HAS BEEN AT THE TABLE. THE FUCKING AMPTPTPTPTPT WALKED AWAY FROM THE TABLE.
I'm sick of the skewing. I'm sick of the whiners. I'm sick to death of people like Tim who's all affronted from Canada or wherever. No offense man, but go buy some comprehension, eh?
Yours in ire,
BooM
PS Kay, I like the new look!
"It's funny how low the bar is now. If a candidate doesn't sneak past a picket line to appear on a talk show, he should be a front-runner. I'm right there with you on Edwards, although I'm afraid that the best he can do is to probably be a king-maker."
Just wanted to clarify that I've been a John Edwards supporter for a long time, not just because he didn't sneak past a picket line. What his coming said to me though, is that he puts his body where his mouth is, that he believes in what he says and acts on what he believes... had he not come out, I would have seriously questioned his stance on unions and working people... as I do the others.
And I don't believe that he can only be the king-maker, but I do believe the media is trying hard to make everybody think so, because they are scared of what he represents. I believe that people are waking up -- sooner or later, they are going to wake up and realize you can't vote for the lesser of two evils, you need to vote for the person who represents what you would do.
Anyway, end of political message, I just felt the need to answer that one line of yours about the front-runner.
I enjoy reading your blog, Kay, and I always learn from it and from some of your friends here. Please keep doing it exactly as you have been.
As for those who are blindly pushing a deal nobody has seen the details of, and from what I can determine hasn't even been fleshed out completely let alone voted on, aren't they the ones who have drunk the Kool-aid... as in blindly following something that they haven't taken the time to learn what's in it and whether it will hurt them?
Forgot to say, if anybody's interested, we are having Xena Picket Day at NBC Studios from 11am - 2pm tomorrow, Jan 24th. It's kind of a thank you to the Xena fans who have been supporting the writers at the Disney gates with snacks and water. Since the show, though, was Universal, we're doing it at NBC Burbank, and will have Xena actors and supporting crew there as well as the Xena writers.
One question I bet no one's thought of....
To all the showrunners who've had deals canceled due to studios' force majeure tactics: Are you still valuable enough to your corporations that they still hold insurance policies on your lives?
Corporate-Owned Life Insurance (COLI) is used regularly for key men and women associated with corporations. Should Peter Chernin's lower intestine become so disgusted with all the crap he's spouting that it rises up and strangles him internally, well, Fox would profit handsomely by his death. Oh, of course they'll give a little taste to his beneficiaries, but they can earn a massive amount of cash to use however they see fit.
My question: How many studios hold policies on people on which they no longer hold an insurable interest? Wouldn't a prudent manager of showrunner talent advise the main providers of COLI policies in Hollywood that studios might have made hundreds of policies null and void, without proper notice to the insurers of these changes? Yes, we can assume insurance companies read the trades, but I betcha they're waiting out a grace period in hope that the deals can be restitched, with a quickly resolved union contract.
We know, however, that the studios will act as if no contracts ever existed. The showrunners will be at a disadvantage during renegotiations, because of that convenient amnesia. It should be a matter of consistency to make what the studios say to investors be the same as what they say to the WGA, and make what they say to their insurance agents the same as what they say to their discarded showrunners.
An obscure subject, yes, but if we must fight we should do it on every front....like some screenwriter said, Follow the Money.
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