The writer’s strike – which shows no end in sight – has led to another round of mass firings, this time by NBC. According to the New York Post, nearly the entire staff of Saturday Night Live has been fired by NBC, including longtime employees. The show immediately ceased production when the strike began – most of its actors started as writers on the show and are members of the Writer’s Guild of America. SNL has had a spotty history in terms of ratings, and hasn’t been doing phenomenally in the last few years. Though they’re certainly not doing their worst, either.

The writers and actors of Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock (a lot of whom are SNL alums) got together this weekend and performed their shows live at the Upright Citizens Brigade theater in Manhattan. Tickets quickly sold out last week, and all the proceeds went to the Writers Guild’s strike fund.

In its first dramatic move since the beginning of the Writers Guild strike, NBC has fired “nearly the entire production staff” of its struggling, late-night staple, “Saturday Night Live,” sources told Page Six. One tipster told us, ” ‘SNL’ laid off all their staff until further notice. Their production staff, even long-term employees, were let go.” Another source confirmed that “90 percent of the ‘SNL’ staff was fired.”

And while The Washington Post reported yesterday that NBC might lay staff off at Jay Leno’s “Tonight” show, “Late Night With Conan O’Brien” and “Last Call With Carson Daly” - all of which immediately went into rerun mode on Nov. 5 - those staffers would at least get paid for two more weeks. But an insider confirmed to us that “SNL” staffers got no severance.

Although no official announcement had been made as of last night about firings at any of NBC’s late-night shows, multiple sources confirmed to us that “SNL” staffers learned of their axing yesterday morning. Reps for NBC declined comment.

[From the New York Post]

I wonder what kind of trickle-down effect the strike could have on other industries. Arnold Schwarzenegger is supposedly working quietly on negotiations and has said that the strike could really impact California’s economy. It seems like most of the talent has squarely lined up behind the writers. A lot of the producers have too – even though the writers are striking against the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers – because a lot of them used to be writers too. According to what’s been reported so far, negotiations this weekend failed to produce any result.

Picture note by Celebitchy: Thanks to the NY Times for these pictures of Saturday Night Live performed this weekend live on stage in Chelsea.

The Writer’s Guild strike really is showing no signs of letting up. The WGA has publicly asked the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers to “meet us halfway.” That doesn’t seem to be happening at all. Instead of ceding to the writer’s very reasonable demands, many studios have chosen to exercise the force majeure clause in their actors’ SAG contracts, which lets the studios suspend the actors for half-pay for up to five weeks if production on their shows shuts down. They can also suspend them with full pay or choose to release the actors from their contracts altogether. If the strike isn’t resolved by the end of the five weeks, it’s likely that they’ll eventually fire thousands of employees, instead of meeting the WGA halfway.

UNIVERSAL
The casts of The Office, 30 Rock, Bionic Woman and Battlestar Galactica were informed Thursday that their contracts have been suspended for the next five weeks, now that Universal Media Studios has opted to exercise what’s known as the force majeure clause in their Screen Actors Guild agreements. Regulars from those NBC and Sci-Fi Channel shows will collect half of their usual salaries. Obviously, this will be less financially painful for some, but it won’t be pleasant for anyone.

SONY
Has suspended the casts of Fox’s Til Death and CBS’ Rules of Engagement without pay—a decision that has both SAG and the American Federation of TV & Radio Artists up in arms because Sony’s move both cuts the actors’ pay and, because it’s not outright terminating the contracts, prevents them from working for another studio.

WARNER BROS.
Joining the worst-case-scenario fray also this week was Warner Bros. TV, which, according to the Hollywood Reporter, circulated a letter to production and facility employees informing them that production on all series will be shutting down within the next six or seven weeks—assuming the WGA strike continues—and that layoffs will probably be necessary. But, labor relations senior VP Hank Lachmund wrote, the studio anticipates that “such layoffs, if they occur, will be temporary and that many employees will be recalled to work at some point after the WGA work stoppage ends.”

[From E! News]

It’s probably looks like I’m very biased towards the writers – which I am to an extent. But more than anything I’m against the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers. They make ridiculous amounts of money off the writers’ talent. They make it off a lot of peoples’ talent. But the writers are the foundation. They generally create the show itself, come up with all the concepts, and decide what’s going to happen with a show. It’s not just about writing dialogue. They provide the building blocks for members of the Alliance to make money. Certainly each needs the other to survive, but I can’t help but root for the comparatively little guy. Let’s hope the strike gets resolved soon so that the paycheck-to-paycheck employees are taken care of.

Picture note by Jaybird: Here’s Sarah Silverman picketing at Universal Studios on Wednesday. Header image of Matthew Perry picketing. Images thanks to Splash Photos.

In the wake of NBC’s decision to fire all non-writing employees on its late night schedule, David Letterman has decided to personally look out for his staff members. He will be paying for their salaries through his company, Worldwide Pants. A few other people (like Jon Stewart) have said that they will cover the salaries for their writers, but Letterman is the first to say that he’ll make sure his non-writing staff is taken care of.

Strike or not, employees of the “Late Show With David Letterman” and the “The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson” will be paid through year’s end. Both are produced by Letterman’s Worldwide Pants banner, which notified employees in New York and Los Angeles that they will be paid regardless of whether the shows return. It would make Worldwide Pants the first known company to guarantee its staff a paycheck during the writers strike.

It doesn’t mean, however, that there will be no work on “Late Show.” Decisions are being made week-to-week on whether the show will return to the air in some form.

[From Reuters]

NBC can make more decisions for “The Tonight Show” than CBS can for the “Late Show” because NBC owns their show. David Letterman owns the “Tonight Show” – CBS pays a licensing fee to Worldwide Pants to air the show. They of course have stopped paying, since the show isn’t in production.

Deadline Hollywood reports: “Dave’s not doing this to get good press, which is why it hasn’t been reported for almost two days,” a source tells me. “This is really significant because, as opposed to all of the other shows, this money comes out of Dave’s own pocket.”

It’s great that big-name stars with equally big paychecks are looking out for their employees. It must be a good way to encourage morale, and make sure that when everyone comes back to work, there won’t be as many hard feelings.

Not surprisingly (and yet still a little shockingly), it turns out NBC wasn’t bluffing when they said they’d start firing the staffs of shows that weren’t filming due to the strike. They originally said they’d fire the non-writing staff of “The Tonight Show” and “Late Night” if Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien didn’t cross the picket lines and return to work. Perhaps to show they mean business, NBC has fired 102 crew members from “The Office” – which shut down filming last week after Steve Carell wouldn’t cross the picket lines. About half the actors on the show are also writers and members of the WGA (along with Carell). I doubt the show could have continued filming since all the writer/actors were striking, but Steve Carell is the one that got all the press, since he’s the lead actor and the biggest name.

Dale Alexander, a key grip on “The Office” wrote an email to the Los Angeles Times explaining what happened and his point of view, which helps balance the writers’ perspective.

“Our show was shut down and we were all laid off this week. I’ve been watching the news since the WGA strike was announced and I have yet to see any coverage dedicated to the effect that this strike will have on the below the line employees.

“I respect the WGA’s position. They probably do deserve a larger percentage of profit participation, but a lengthy strike will affect more than just the writers and studios. On my show we had 14 writers. There were also 2 cameramen, 2 camera assistants, 4 hair stylists, 4 makeup artists, 7 wardrobe people, 4 grips, 4 electricians, 2 craft service, 4 props people, 6 construction, 1 medic, 3 art department, 5 set dressers, 3 sound men, 3 stand-ins, 2 set PAs, 4 assistant directors, 1 DGA trainee, 1 unit manager, 6 production office personnel, 3 casting people, 4 writers assistants, 1 script supervisor, 2 editors, 2 editors assistants, 3 post production personnel, 1 facilities manager, 8 drivers, 2 location managers, 3 accountants, 4 caterers and a producer who’s not a writer. All 102 of us are now out of work.

“I have been in the motion picture business for 33 years and have survived three major strikes. None of which have been by any of the below the line unions. During the 1988 WGA strike many of my friends lost their homes, cars and even spouses. Many actors are publicly backing the writers, some have even said that they would find a way to help pay bills for the striking writers. When the networks run out of new shows and they air repeats the writers will be paid residuals. The lowest paid writer in television makes roughly twice the salary than the below the line crewmember makes. Everyone should be paid their fair share, but does it have to be at the expense of the other 90% of the crewmembers. Nobody ever recoups from a strike, lost wages are just that, lost.

“We all know that the strike will be resolved. Eventually both sides will return to the bargaining table and make a deal. The only uncertainty is how many of our houses, livelihoods, college educations and retirement funds will pay for it.”

[From the Los Angeles Times]

A lot of people (myself included) were fairly critical of Ellen DeGeneres for crossing the picket lines and continuing to film her show. This puts the dilemma in a larger context. I’m not sure that it still excuses crossing the picket lines – especially if you were or are a writer like Ellen is. But it does accurately show how many people are negatively impacted by the strike. Sure a lot of the actors can get out there and picket with the writers, because their livelihoods aren’t going to be so drastically impacted. A lot of the crews make regular – and sometimes very little – money. They’re not raking it in, and they rarely go home to multi-million dollar mansions. It’s a noble cause, but some people who have nothing to gain are losing everything.

I think the fault ultimately lies with NBC – it’s inexcusable to fire crews. You can’t fire striking workers (generally speaking) and they shouldn’t. But to punish these poor people that have nothing to do with it is unconscionable. Especially after just five days of striking. It’s not like we’re talking about months on end (at this point) and the networks are losing so much money they have no choice. They very much have a choice at this point, and they aren’t firing people to save money. They’re doing it to prove a point, and keep as much of their profits for themselves. Talk about hardball.

There are a lot of things I would trust Arnold Schwarzenegger to do, and do well. I would trust him to snap a pencil in half with his thumb. I would trust him to snap a third-grader in half with his thumb. And for some reason, I would trust him to catch a bullet with his teeth, because something tells me he’s awesomely coordinated like that. I would not, however, trust him in the finer points of contract negotiations, anything involving money or numbers in general, and anything getting a ton of press. But Arnold is a little slicker than I thought – not only is he trying to mediate the dispute between the Writer’s Guild and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, but he’s trying to do it quietly behind the scenes. He’s a better politician than I thought.

In talks unbeknown to even his top aides, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has spoken to representatives on both sides in this week’s Writers Guild of America strike against the studios and networks. Schwarzenegger, whose lengthy, successful career in the film business before coming into office in 2003 gives him a certain cachet in the matter, has been speaking with WGA members as well as studio execs heading the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.

In addition to his own words of advice, the governor has had staff members reach out to both sides, as well as to the federal mediator trying to get them to hammer out a deal about future residuals and other issues. “We’re interested in helping both sides resolve this issue any way we can,” says a member of Schwarzenegger’s team. With the federal mediator involved, there is not much sway the governor has over actual negotiations, however.

[From Politico.com]

Arnold actually makes a lot of sense as a negotiator, in terms of his history. I wouldn’t exactly call him a skilled politician, but once in a while he’ll do something really impressive and surprise me. I wouldn’t rule him out. There really hasn’t been any good news coming out about negotiations – all we’re really hearing is that more and more people are joining the strike. The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers is being pretty quiet. Something tells me we’ll be re-watching old episodes of Seinfeld for a good chunk of 2008.

Jay Leno is one of many entertainers who is refusing to cross picket lines while the Writer’s Guild is on strike. NBC has essentially stated that if Leno doesn’t cross the lines and return to work, they will lay off the rest of the “Tonight Show” non-writing staff. NBC making it clear that they’re more than willing to save some money by firing long-time employees that have nothing to do with the strike. It also seems like they’re doing some really dirty dealing and putting completely unethical pressure on Leno to return to work to save his staff’s jobs. The other alternative is for the “Tonight Show” to use guest hosts – certainly there are entertainers out there that are willing to cross the lines. NBC has also said the same thing to Conan O’Brian’s staff.

NBC informed the nonwriting staff of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno that it will be laid off at the end of next week in the wake of the show shutting down for the writers’ strike. And with Leno still refusing to cross the picket line, the show is looking at coming back on the air Nov. 19 with guest hosts so that it can save the jobs of the nonwriters. “All sorts of things are being discussed, including guest hosts,” Tonight Show executive producer Debbie Vickers said. “Our preference is that we return to production of The Tonight Show with Jay as host as soon as possible.”

But Vickers also wants to save the jobs of her nonwriting staffers. “We want to protect the staff, who have been loyal to this show for decades, in the same way that Johnny Carson reluctantly returned without his writers in 1988,” she said. Late-night shows have gone into repeats since the strike began Monday as the hosts walked out in solidarity with their writing staffs. With the shows shut down, networks can cut costs by laying off most of the rest of the staff.

And Leno’s chief writer doesn’t expect Leno back anytime soon. “I talk to Jay every day, and he will not be the first [late-night host] to cross the picket line,” said Tonight Show head writer Joe Medeiros, also a strike captain for the Writers Guild of America. “So they are looking at guest hosts as one possibility so all those people don’t have to lose their jobs.”

[From Broadcasting & Cable]

That is really low of NBC. CBS and FOX have both tried to put similar pressure on many of their employees, by telling people that are producers/writers that they still have to honor their producing contracts and go to work each day, despite the strike. Since most of those people started as writers, they have a lot of sympathy for them – and most of them are still members of the Writer’s Guild and can’t work during the strike. So they’re between a rock and a hard place.

I’ve heard a lot about all the things the writers are doing, all the talent that’s lining up behind them, and how long the strike will likely go on. What I haven’t heard much about are the entertainment execs that should be sweating bullets and giving in to their more than reasonable demands.

A lot of famous actors have jumped behind the writers during their strike and refused to cross picket lines, or joined and picketed alongside the lesser-known (but most would argue just as important) workers. Several people have said they think the actors are just doing it to look good and get some good press, but I’m not going to damn them if they do and damn them if they don’t. Whatever their reason, it’s good they’re showing their support – if for no other point than it’s pretty clear that the writers aren’t going to give in, and that means shows won’t get made – so no one will get their money. The producers might as well give in a little on their stake in the massive profits.

Steve Carell effectively shut down production on “The Office” when he refused, and yesterday we mentioned that the cast of “Grey’s Anatomy” had joined the picketers. Eventually the cast of “Desperate Housewives” joined in, after Eva Longoria crossed the picket lines and became the subject of several (quasi-lame) rhymed protest chants. They shut down production soon after. Several producers/writers have refused to work as well, with CBS and FOX threatening legal action against them if they don’t.

It seems like there has been a lot of remarkably mature, principled behavior here, with one notable exception: Ellen DeGeneres. She chose to cross the lines and film her show anyway, because, as she put it, “It’s sweeps.” Yeah it’s sweeps for everyone, and certainly that affects a live show more than a pre-taped show. Still, I think it’s safe to assume that you could always find a couple excuses not to be supportive, and all those other people could too. The writers who aren’t working are generally going without their salaries, and a lot of the other cast and crew are as well. A few days of sweeps are not the end of the world – a lot of show’s numbers are going to be messed up.

Move over Iggy, Ellen DeGeneres is at the center of a brand new controversy. Unlike The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Show with David Letterman, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Ellen is continuing to film during the ongoing strike by the Writers Guild. DeGeneres opened her show Friday sans monologue, instead giving a nod to her writers who she “loves” and explaining the situation to her audience.

“It’s sweeps,” DeGeneres said, “Which is a very important time in television because that’s when you do your best shows, your funniest material. You pull it out and do everything you can because you want everybody watching. And now we’re in the middle of a strike – a writer’s strike.” She conceded, “This is a strange show for me to do … it’s a weird show,” and tried to fill the empty time with extra minutes of her signature dancing.

“I want to say I love my writers. I love them. In honor of them today, I’m not going to do a monologue,” she’s quoted as saying. “[But] people have traveled across the country. They’ve made plans. They’re here. I want to do everything I can to make your trip enjoyable and give you a show.”

[From People]

A lack of a monologue isn’t really a show of support to your writers. It’s the consequence of not having writers. Not crossing picket lines is a show of support to your writers.

In other writer’s strike news, here’s a list of some of the shows that will be affected in the next month or two.

RINGING IN THE NEW YEAR?:
- “House,” with six episodes left, will be fresh through November, with the last few airing in January - one of them following Fox’s broadcast of the Super Bowl.
- “Samantha Who?“, ABC’s new hit comedy, has eight episodes in the can.
- The “Crime Scene Investigation” trio, “NCIS,”"Criminal Minds,”"Without a Trace” and “Cold Case” each have three to six more episodes to run on CBS.

DRYING UP:
- CBS’ comedies (”How I Met Your Mother,”"The Big Bang Theory,”"Two And a Half Men,”"Rules of Engagement“) will run dry by month’s end.
- ABC’s “Ugly Betty,”"Pushing Daisies” and “Grey’s Anatomy” each have four new episodes to go.
- “Desperate Housewives” airs the last of its current stock of new episodes Dec. 2.
- The final new episode of NBC’s “Heroes” airs Dec. 3.

ON THE BRINK:
- “The Office” will head into rerun mode on NBC for the foreseeable future after next week’s episode. Among other things, shooting has stopped because star Steve Carell won’t cross picket lines.
- Despite a report that Fox’s “Family Guy” would air its final new episode this Sunday, the cartoon series will be new through November, the network said.

MIA:
- The planned January return of Fox’s “24” has been postponed indefinitely. Since only some of the series’ 24 episodes have been shot, Fox didn’t want to risk beginning a new season that might be interrupted.

[From the Associated Press]

I sense a lot more reality television in our futures. Fabulous.

Picture note by Jaybird: Here’s ‘Ugly Betty’ actors walking the picket lines today in support of writers. The cast of ‘Ugly Betty’ and other came out to join the striking writers on the picket line at Raleigh Studios. Images thanks to Splash Photos.

Many actors are joining the striking writers on the picket lines. At first it seemed to be filled with writers/actors like Tina Fey and several cast members of “The Office” who are also writers. Jon Stewart has said that his production company will continue to pay the salaries of the striking writers on “The Daily Show” and “The Colbert Report.” Production has ceased on “The Office” after Steve Carell refused to cross the picket line. Now several actors are joining the writers and picketing alongside them, including the cast of “Grey’s Anatomy.” I think all their “Mc” cuteness is really annoying, but I would love to see McSteamy all fired up and holding angry picket signs.

The cast of the top-rated medical drama “Grey’s Anatomy” joined striking Hollywood writers on a picket line Wednesday and said they were shooting scenes for their last scripted episode. Stars Patrick Dempsey, Ellen Pompeo, Sandra Oh and T.R. Knight, who plays Dr. George O’Malley, spent their lunch breaks outside the Prospect Studios, where “Grey’s” is filmed. “We’re supposed to be going until the end of May and right now our last shooting day will be Tuesday or Wednesday,” Knight said. “As actors, we’re paid a different way than the writers, but there’s also the crew to keep in mind. They are out of work as of next Wednesday.”

Said Oh, who plays Dr. Christina Yang: “This matter is way too important not only for our writers, but ultimately everyone who makes movies, everyone who makes entertainment here in this town and again for the rest of the world.” Other cast members included Justin Chambers, James Pickens Jr., Sara Ramirez, Eric Dane and Katherine Heigl, who portrays Dr. “Izzie” Stevens. “You’ve got to have a story,” Heigl said. “You’ve got to have a story in order to perform anything, to have any ideas on where to go and what to do, and where the character, story lines, arcs, everything. They’re everything. We can’t do it without them.”

“It’s really a big tragedy to be out here striking at all,” said Dempsey, who plays Dr. Derek Shepherd. “I think there are going to be a lot of people affected by this, that have families, that live paycheck to paycheck, that upsets me profoundly. But at the same time, I do feel that the writers deserve a better break on the deals they have been getting.”

[From the Associated Press]

The Writers Guild of America strike began Monday when negotiations fell through with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The main sticking point is over how much writers are paid when shows are available on the Internet. Considering how hard they work and how integral they are to the very foundation and success of a show, most writers deserve a lot more than they’re getting. Equally important, though far less principled, (okay so not so equally important) is what happens when writers strike: more reality shows. Remember when all that crap started? You know why? Writer’s strike. You don’t need writers to make someone eat a bunch of bugs while balancing on a bar 300 feet off the ground over a pool of snapping sea turtles. Or whatever it is they do on reality TV. So let’s hope the producers give in soon, for the sake of the writers, the rest of the production staff who aren’t getting paid, and the rest of us who might have to watch incredibly crappy TV. Or we could just read. You would think the writers would like that, too.

Picture note by Jaybird: Here’s Sandra Oh and Katherine Heigl joining the picket lines during their lunch. Header image of Ellen Pompeo.