"I see dead people. I see dead people in Hollywood."
Posted on 05/23/2008 5:25:23 AM PDT by bert
Hollywood is once again on the brink of war. This time the big movie studios and TV networks are skirmishing with their actors, whose union contracts expire next month. Unless both sides can agree on how to split future Internet revenues, the industry faces the terrifying prospect of its second prolonged talent strike of the year. Peter Chernin vows it won’t happen.
Snip…..
As that strike dragged into February, Chernin took action. One morning he and Disney Chief Robert Iger showed up at the negotiations at L.A.’s secluded Luxe Hotel bearing a crucial concession: The studios would give writers a cut of any money they took in streaming movies and television shows on the Internet
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
It is long but very pertinent to the media death archives
Dinosaur media ping
I think I left off part of the ping list after caipirabob.
If SAG strikes, Hollywood will collapse altogether within 18 months. The writers strike crippled them to a degree not yet widely acknowledged by the Drive-Bys.
How do you know?
How do you know?
"I see dead people. I see dead people in Hollywood."
Maybe it’s time they collasped.
If you read the article in the entirety, they seem to be suceeding where others are not. Murdoch has a boss who seems to think things out and act accordingly without the constraints and baggage other media executives seem to have.
There is very strong emphasis on the next, but not completely known step of utilizing the Internet. They are making strong and expensive exploratory effort.
Keep in mind the article is in Forbes. There is definite synergy between News Corp and Forbes. I think Murdoch tried to buy Forbes but was turned down with a counter offer of a joint venture. That is now operational with a Saturday morning Forbes on Fox and we don't know hoe there is cooperation on the Fox Business network.
Audience drives advertising which drives revenues...
A network or two has already decided to guarantee audience, or refund advert $$$.
Likewise, the networks are starting to premiere new shows, and begin "seasons" throughout the year, rather than just the Fall, in an effort to attract and keep viewers.
Thanks bert; looks interesting. Given its length, will have to check it out this evening...
I have always thought that the big question about News Corp. is what happens when Murdoch dies? No question that he has been a very sharp cookie, and has seldom made any significant mistakes.
Sure enough, here’s the key quote, IMHO: “The 76-year-old Murdoch makes no secret of his desire to one day elevate one of his children to the top of News Corp. When that happens, there is no assurance that Chernin will continue to run his own show.”
I keep thinking about families like the Rockefellers or the Sulzbergers. Inevitably you will run out of steam in the second, third, or fourth generation. There are already some signs that Murdoch Jr. is more liberal than his father. Not that the old man is conservative if it will cost him any money, but at least he is sensible enough to know that you can’t make money if your first priority is crazed liberal ideology.
The early Sulzbergers were liberal, but smart and flexible. Pinch is too dumb to understand why he is killing his own business. Sooner or later the same thing is likely to happen to the Murdoch empire.
Murdoch IS the Boss.
.....Murdoch IS the Boss.....
To rephrase, Murdoch has a chief executive..... That would be Peter Chernin the subject of the artticle and News Corp boss.
.....I keep thinking about families like the Rockefellers or the Sulzbergers.....
You make a good point and I won’t deny the possibility of a next generation Murdoch wrecking the train.
It seems to me that Rupert has hired and is allowing a very good man to seek out paths into an unknown and difficulty frought future. That seems out of the pattern for those we read about here daily that seem to want to stay pretty much in their comfortable ruts.
A while back, I became afraid for my well being when Malcom Forbes, a man I implicitly trusted, died. This great Capitalist, journalist,motorcycle gang leader, interviewer/ confident of world leaders, left the company to his sons. Steve has Forbes magazine and the other sons have lesser pieces All are still part of the whole. They have done well. Steve it turns out was present with his dad and actually knew the leaders, the mtorcycle types, the company staff. He has done well and I continue to trust Forbes above all others.
Thanks Bert. Much appreciated.
Yes. I didn’t mean to sound pessimistic. History suggests that a powerful family of that kind can last several generations, before it fades away. So, it’s something to keep an eye on, but hopefully Murdoch’s son will be fine.
We can certainly use at least one major organization that hasn’t drunk the liberal koolaid, which gives people who don’t listen to talk radio or visit places like FR at least some conservative perspectives.
I think both AMPTP and SAG will have a new deal in place by mid-June 2008. There’s good reason for this: given the financial fiasco of the WGAe/WGAw strike, they don’t want a repeat that could doom a smaller network like CW and could send a number of entertainment companies into insolvency.
It is my considered opinion that the outcome you suggest will occur regardless of what AMPTP or SAG do. I detect a whiff of panic in news articles and blogs from Hollywood over the past couple of months. Nikki Finke has been telling of Capitol Films' money troubles in several of her posts. And witness the near-hysterical sales pitch by ALL of Big Media for the new Indiana Jones movie. The TV networks' upfronts have shrunk to a shadow of themselves.
I think Hollywood's money is drying up fast. And it will accelerate over the next year. And there's nothing they can do about it.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i79d689a151cb745af6d111eef518058c
Another financial hit for ‘Nailed’
IATSE shutters production over financial troubles
By Leslie Simmons
May 23, 2008, 08:37 PM
Capitol Films hopes to ink a deal with lenders Tuesday after IATSE for a second time shuttered production on David O. Russell’s politically charged romantic comedy “Nailed” over financial squabbles.
The company’s head of business affairs, Ray Reyes, said a high-profile commercial bank and bond company were on board Friday, working “feverishly” to close the deal.
Last week’s work stoppage in South Carolina was at least the third time a union has stopped production on the film, which stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Jessica Biel, over payroll issues. IATSE and SAG previously suspended work on the indie film this month until both unions were assured financing was in place.
Production is expected to resume Thursday.
Reyes said the financial problems are a result of a financing deal that fell through. He declined to say who those parties were because Capitol could file claims against the company for the “falling out on deals and leaving us out in a lurch.
“Obviously, five weeks into production was not how we planned to do this,” he said. “Things didn’t work out as originally planned with what we were doing and we had to fall back on a contingency plan. The whole chapter will come to a close, thank goodness, when we close our loan.”
Despite the setbacks, Reyes said the project has only lost a few days and while a shutdown was not expected, he said it comes at a time where the producers were rearranging the production schedule anyway.
A source close to the production said it already was planned to start a Thursday-Monday production schedule — rather than Monday-Friday — following the Memorial Day holiday because many of the scenes being filmed are in public buildings, including the state capital.
The film’s stars have not been part of the financial woes. Capitol fully escrowed their salaries.
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