Latest Strike News...

Remember that optimistic post I wrote last week about the writers’ strike ending before the end of the year?

I hope you weren’t holding your breath, because it’s probably not going to happen…

The two sides are apparently making progress, but insiders are still fairly pessimistic. One story I read said the strike may not be over until March…

I think it’s time to start going Jack Bauer on some people…

In other strike news…

Carson Daly has brought his show back on the air, much to the chagrin of the WGA. They are especially upset that he set up a jokeline so that people could call him with jokes to use. During his first show back, Daly, who is not a WGA member, explained his decision by saying he didn’t want 75 people to lose their jobs…

Meanwhile, the non-writing staff at “The Tonight Show” was laid off by NBC last week. Jay Leno, in turn, handed out Christmas bonuses early to help; but after some criticism, Jay has agreed to pay their salaries out of his pocket at least through the end of this week.

The criticism came because Conan O’Brien, who makes less than Jay, had already agreed
to pay his employees’ salaries. Plus, Jay did not say goodbye to the staff in person, because he refused to cross the picket line to go into the production offices…

By the way, when the strike does end, it will take a while to get shows back on the air. Sitcoms could be back in a week and a half, but dramas would need three to five weeks to get going again…