Writer's Blockade

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"I know that the Writers Guild sent out letters to its members telling them to gear up for a strike, not to buy houses," says former Seinfeld scribe Carol Leifer. "It's scared a lot of people. People are panicking, saying it's going to last two or three months or it's going to last six months. It changes weekly."

Much of this may just be posturing, both sides trying to spook the other into blinking first. Even some WGA members believe many of the Guild's "respect" demands will evaporate before negotiations are finished. Still, it's also possible all this maneuvering may take on a momentum of its own, spinning out of control. It's happened before, in 1988, when the last writers' strike shut down Hollywood for more than five months, costing the town a half-billion dollars in lost revenues. "People discovered they could read books or watch videos or just go for a walk," Wolf says, all but shuddering at the memory. "Network television still hasn't recovered from that strike."

If it happens again, the damage could be even more devastating. It could trigger a strike cascade, pushing the Screen Actors Guild onto the picket lines when its contract with the studios expires in June, followed by the Directors Guild when its expires in 2002. Add concern about the soft economy, and it's easy to see why everyone in Hollywood is dreading what the next few months may bring.

Well, almost everyone. "I'm kind of looking forward to the picket lines," Leifer cheerfully offers. "Those signs are going to be the most elaborately written pieces of work. Everyone is looking forward to seeing writers erasing and doing second drafts of their signs." (Additional reporting by Jeff Jensen, Dan Snierson, and Allison Hope Weiner)

Originally posted Feb 16, 2001 Published in issue #582 Feb 16, 2001 Order article reprints

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