Posted on 11/09/2004 10:32:28 AM PST by freepatriot32
Dan Glickman, in his first address to a Hollywood crowd since becoming Motion Picture Assn. of America prexy, said the perception in Washington, D.C., that the movie industry is uniformly Democratic is hurting biz interests.
Movie industry lobbyists have had difficulty getting things done this year in Congress, where Republicans are steamed about both the large number of celebrities who were outspoken in favor of John Kerry (news - web sites) as well as the MPAA's decision to hire Glickman, a Democrat, to succeed Jack Valenti.
"A congressperson told me, first iit was Whoopi Goldberg (news), then it was Dan Rather, and now there's Dan Glickman," he said.
He said his job in D.C. is to underline that "the business of Hollywood is nonpartisan. I can't do my job and the studios can't do their job if we are perceived as partisan."
'Culture Vulture'
Luncheon was hosted by the L.A. World Affairs Council at the Beverly Hills Hotel on Monday. Glickman, who was most recently the Secretary of Agriculture in the Clinton Administration, used the opportunity to introduce himself to the crowd, underlining that his cabinet post largely dealt with international trade matters.
"Soybeans and Spielberg are both big export items for America," he said.
He also passed on his wife's advice to him on how to soothe worries that his resume has no previous entertainment experience: "Tell them the biggest part of the word 'agriculture' is 'culture.'"
'Moral Victory'
Speech outlined the studio trade org's strategy to fight piracy, including the move to sue individual downloaders of films, and weighing the implications of the "moral values" vote in last week's election.
In a Q&A afterward, Glickman was asked whether the high number of voters who cited "moral values" as their most important issue in last week's presidential election presaged more culturally conservative criticism of Hollywood entertainment.
"I think it's a good question," he said, "but it's one I think I have to be a little vague on."
Referencing his work primarily in "the reddest of the red states" as agriculture secretary and his nearly two decades as a Democratic Congressman from Kansas, he added, "I think I can be a good bridge builder. But I don't know where they are going to go, or how long they are going to be."
'Piracy Issues'
On piracy, Glickman said the MPAA's current strategy is to use lawsuits against individuals to enforce the law, to promote the idea that piracy is theft, and foster legal movie services that satisfy consumer demand.
"The truth is we would much rather pull people into theaters than drag them into courtrooms," he said. But the MPAA wanted to battle online movie piracy before technology makes it as common as music piracy has become.
"Our big fear," he said, "is that it becomes mainstream behavior and then there is no way to stop it."
In addition to lawsuits and ad campaigns, Glickman said another way to fight piracy is to encourage more indigenous film industries in foreign countries so that other countries feel they have more of a stake in protecting entertainment intellectual property rights.
Well I dont know where we would get the paranoid notion that hollywood was partisen dumacrat. I mean after the air of conservatism they have been projecting this entire campaign season you would have to be toally stupid to think they were anything other then middle of the road red state values traditional america.
Uh, yeah. Good luck with that.
A really good way to show your nonpartisanship would be to nominated Fahrenheit 911 for any Oscar category whatsoever.
A "little vague" on moral values, yet the pirates are "stealing"...oh, the irony...
LOL! I think I know who said this.
The Motion Picture Association is done. Stick a fork in it. They had the opportunity to hire a Republican and went with Glickman instead.
Bad decision.
The "no Golden Globe for Moore" kerfuffle still shows Hollywood as fairly clueless. They aren't considering the picture because the Golden Globes are not awarded to "Documentaries".
I would rather that Fahrenheit 911 was treated the same way The Blair Witch Project was treated - a fake documentary that some people thought was real when it was first released, which lost its appeal when people realized it was full of crap.
Who said Hollyweirdos weren't believers (smirk)?
THE HOLLYWOOD CREED
Christians are evil.
Women are to be valued only for their cleavage.
The traditional family is archaic, constricting, with no redeeming value.
Parents that try to guide their children's choices are restrictive. Kids need to be "free".
Extreme movie violence and explicit sex for the thrill of it is good because it is profitable.
Hollywood firmly believes that 24/7 of the sexually salacious and violent TV, movies and music we produce are not harming kids and the culture.
OTOH, we also believe----with the religious fervor of Tammy Faye Baker---- that a single 15-sec commercial will compel tens of millions of Americans into thousands of stores to buy billions of dollars worth of soap, soup, breakfast cereal and cars.
In a recent tax bill, movie companies watched while, at the last minute, House Republicans stripped the studios of about $1 billion worth of tax credits because the industry is so closely identified with the Democratic Party and had just hired Dan Glickman, a Clinton loyalist, to head its lobbying group.
Clinton loyalist, Dan Glickman, Hollywood's lobbyist?
Man, this is gonna be more fun than we thought. Dan, let me be the first to welcome you to Jesusland in DC.
Just a helpful note, Dan. You'll find walking the halls of Congress may take on a new flavor.......what with Ten Commandments monuments, 10" crosses, and Christmas creches all over the place.
And, Dan, please feel free to drop in at the 24/7 prayer vigils in the Capitol rotunda. Looking forward to seeing ya, Dan (snicker).
Prexy? Jeez, that went out in the '40s or something.
The stupidity of the left is astonishing -- "Gimme money! I wanna spit on your shoe!"
Is there a Darwin Award for businesses?
lol thats genius you've just broken down every liberal slogan for the past 40 years into one sentence :-)
Don't worry about it. The left's tendency to self-destruct is a warm, reassuring thought at times like this.
Actually I appreciate their honesty in hiring a Dem; I would be more steamed if they insulted my intelligence by hiring a Republican as window dressing.
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