The sponsor of Hollywood's Golden Globe film and television
awards said on Wednesday it has begun talks with TV writers aimed
at allowing its honors to be broadcast as planned despite the
ongoing screenwriters strike.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association said it began
discussions with the Writers Guild of America on December 29 to get
an "interim agreement" similar to the one David Letterman's
company, Worldwide Pants, reached with the WGA to put "The Late
Show with David Letterman" back on the air.
"We feel that the 'Late Show with David Letterman' agreement is
very reasonable, and hope and expect the WGA will agree to the same
terms," association president Jorge Camara said in a statement.
Robert Lord uses paint to
touch up a sign in the arrivals area during preparations for the
57th annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California in
this January 22, 2000 file photo. (photo: Agencies via China
Daily)
Camara said an "interim agreement" would allow the Golden Globe
Awards to be broadcast on the NBC TV network on January 13, "as
scheduled, without picket lines."
The Golden Globe Awards are one of Hollywood's biggest
ceremonies leading up to the world's top film honors, the Oscars,
which are given out in February.
Top film and TV stars turn out for the Golden Globe Awards, but
this year, with Hollywood's screenwriters on strike, many stars
have been wavering on whether to appear and cross WGA picket lines.
The WGA said last month it would not allow union members to write
material for the ceremony.
The roughly 10,500 WGA members have been on strike against major
film studios and U.S. TV networks since November over issues
including fees paid to them for work that is distributed on DVD and
potential profits made from work appearing on the Internet.
(Agencies via China Daily January 3, 2008)
