L A B O R R E L A T I O N S
Fran Drescher Says Studio Execs Had a ‘Come to Jesus Moment’ During Strikes: ‘They Didn’t See This Coming. They Didn’t See Me Coming’
SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher was a model of fearlessness last year during the union’s 118-day strike — the longest in its history — facing down the leaders of the major studios, while maintaining membership solidarity on the picket lines. But she’s quick to admit that the “unrelenting stress” took its toll. Two months after the union ratified its new contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, her body is still paying her back for what her brain put it through. Recently recovered from a “cold from hell” she brought back to Los Angeles from New York, she’s now dealing with a torn meniscus in her knee.
“I try to be a superwoman, but sometimes my body reminds me that I’m not,” says Drescher. My 2011 Q&A
with writer-producer/WGA president John
Wells (E.R., The Company Men, etc.) is only available online to Hollywood Reporter subscribers, but
you can read the entirety of my more in-depth 2010 feature with Wells
exploring the fallout of the contentious 2007-2008 WGA strike here
and find out what happened to the guy who dreamed up St. Elmo's Fire while you're at it.
Since the Screen Actors Guild officially
rejected the AMPTP's "final
offer" last July, SAG president Alan
Rosenberg has been a man under
siege, enduring an endless barrage of attacks on his character and his
competence. He's lost weight and many hours of sleep.
Click here to read the article from The Hollywood Reporter. |
New Mexico Ex-IATSE Official Accused of Sexual Harassment Still Casts Long Shadow
I take a peek into a seemingly bottomless pit of corruption in New Mexico. There's a lot more to be detail yet to be revealed, and I hope to shine a light into every crooked nook and cranny in a future article.
The #MeToo movement has derailed the careers of big-name stars and studio execs right and left, but the impact isn’t limited to the rich and famous ... Check out my 2010 Q&A with director/DGA president Taylor
Hackford from The Hollywood
Reporter, in which he discusses take-control
attitude of his guild, which called a strike only once, in 1987, and it
lasted slightly more than three hours
in the east and a mere five minutes in the west.
Stunt Coordinator Conrad Palmisano.
The Good Fight
Stunt performers are gaining ground and respect at SAG. If you're an aspiring movie daredevil looking to join the Stunt Persons Union, don't waste your time: It doesn't exist. While there are fraternal organizations, such as Brand X, the Stuntmen's Association, Stunts Unlimited, the Stuntwomen's Association and the United Stuntwomen's Association, that provide members with status and a sense of community, it is the Screen Actors Guild that negotiates their contracts with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Don't feel embarrassed if you weren't aware of this fact. Two decades ago, when stunt coordinator Conrad Palmisano ("Rush Hour 2," "Lethal Weapon 4") showed up at a SAG meeting to discuss stunt-community concerns, he found similar ignorance in the leadership of his own guild. "They told us to go to our own union," recalls Palmisano, who currently serves as president of the Stuntmen's Association. "From that time to this time, there's been tremendous improvement (in our relationship with SAG), but it's a project that's never really finished. You just have to keep working on it, inching forward." Click here to read the entire article from The Hollywood Reporter. |