Chapter 220 - The Great Strike

"The sound of his cell phone vibrating made Lin Ming Yang want to cover his ears with a pillow. This is already the third phone call this morning, the first two were hung up by Lin Ming Yang in a daze, this time the phone kept ringing, finally waking him up.

Lin Ming Yang did not even bother to look at it, flipped out the cell phone directly to his ear, before the other party opened his mouth, he first complained: "Ecks, today is Sunday, okay!"

Other than Ecks, Lin Ming Yang could no longer think of anyone else who would call him at this time.

Ecks on the other end of the phone ignored Lin Ming Yang's complaints and instead told him the bad news: "At the request of the Writers Guild of America, the writers of Gossip Girl have officially declared a strike today."

"And then?" After hearing this news, lying in bed Lin Ming Yang still looked like he hadn't woken up. The Hollywood writers' strike that he remembered happening at the end of '07 had finally broken out, only a month later than he remembered.

The Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of American Film and Television Producers on improving the treatment of screenwriters in the last negotiation was declared a breakdown, the Hollywood playwrights who are usually locked up in their homes to climb the grid, and rarely show their faces, began a collective strike after Christmas. They gathered outside the studios of the eight major studios, including Warner Brothers, Paramount Studios, Fox, and Disney headquarters, holding placards claiming that the strike against the Motion Picture and Television Producers Alliance would be a protracted and costly one.

Lin Mingyang had a premonition of the writers' strike, and in order to keep the shooting of Gossip Girl on schedule, he had already asked the crew to stock up on scripts in advance, so that with the episodes they have in their hands, the writers will still be able to shoot Gossip Girl as usual when they go on strike.

It is because of this reason, "Gossip Girl" writers group in support of the Writers Guild of America strike has been very inactive, and the plot of "Gossip Girl" are based on the original novels for adaptation, once they announced a strike, MGM side is likely to change, other people take over as usual can write a script, they do this is the same as is to lose their rice bowls.

Strike so began, have to marvel at Hollywood screenwriters this time the determination is so firm, "Gossip Girl" screenwriters in the see peers have taken to the streets, this time even if they do not do this time, MGM temporarily can not find other screenwriters to replace them, so also follow the trend of joining the street protest army.

The deadliest impact of the writers' strike on Hollywood hasn't been the studios - they've stockpiled enough scripts to supply them until at least early 2008 - and the real victims will be the major TV networks. The most directly affected by the strike will be the daily talk shows, which tend to be based on current events and rely heavily on the instant creativity of the writers. As a result of the strike, all such shows will be temporarily canceled and reruns of previous programs will be shown instead.

Indirectly affected are the ongoing dramas. Since many TV series are written and filmed as they go along, if the writers go on strike, there will be no sequels to follow. Most of the TV stations were well aware that this strike was going to happen, but they had previously thought that such a strike wouldn't last long before it ended. They had stockpiled some dramas in order to cope with the strike, but as long as the writers went on strike for more than a month, those dramas would still be unable to escape the fate of being cut off from broadcasting.

Eckles is not worried about the production of "Gossip Girl" will be cut off, he is now worried about the future of Hollywood, because it is directly related to the future development of MGM. The last "Playwrights Guild of America" strike was in 1988 and lasted for six months, resulting in a loss of half a billion dollars for the entertainment industry. The annual profit of Hollywood entertainment industry is 30 billion dollars, according to this calculation, the collective strike of Hollywood screenwriters to Hollywood will bring the economic loss of up to 80 million dollars a day, which is an astronomical figure.

"Now that the strike has begun, but no one knows what day it will take to end, it will be a devastating disaster for Hollywood!"

Lin Ming Yang yawned, "But I don't know how long this strike will last, could it be that you woke me up early in the morning just to tell me this?"

"A protracted strike will cause great damage to the entire industry, history has taught us that both sides will have to make concessions for this dispute to end, but in the end no one can be the winner." Eckels said worriedly over the phone, "Aren't you at all worried about this?"

Lin Ming Yang turned his head sideways and clamped the phone with his shoulder, lifting his pants while talking to Ecks on the phone, "I don't think this strike will last too long...after the strike the writers won't have an economic source, but they always have to eat, right?"

Ecks frowned on the other end of the phone, the big companies in Hollywood were probably all thinking the same thing as Lin Ming Yang, but Ecks felt that this time the Writers Guild of America might surprise those who underestimated them.

"For this strike, aren't your estimates too optimistic?"

"But I think I've been very conservative!" Lin Mingyang tucked in the sleeping Megan as he left the bedroom, and after walking to the living room, the voice he had been suppressing to speak finally released.

"If the strike lasts for 1 month, how do you think the Hollywood parties will react?"

Ecks looked a little embarrassed on the phone, "That's not too good to estimate!"

"In my opinion, the situation will be like this: the writers gather in bars to make impassioned and impassioned speeches, and they all say that they are determined not to return to work; the stars are happy to finally have a break, and they all go out of town for a vacation; the stations desperately try to broadcast variety shows, and their ratings drop wildly; the Directors' Association and the Actors' Union will both show solidarity with the Screenwriters' Association...the big companies start to get anxious, and the Viewers have nothing to do."

Eckles asked rhetorically, "Doesn't that seem bad to you?"

"For us, this happens to be good news!" Lin Ming Yang shrugged, "I think this writers' strike can last for at least a month or more, and with 'Man of Steel' being released just at that time, the viewers lost from in front of the TV will flock to the movie theaters in large numbers, and maybe this film can bring us a new box office record."

"And what if the strike lasts forever?"

Lin Mingyang hummed softly, "If the strike lasts for three months, the screenwriters will remain tough verbally, but privately they will look for acquaintances to introduce them to other jobs; the stars will have nothing to do, and there will be endless news of drunken driving and all-night partying; the TV stations will begin to show old classic plays from the past, and invite those old stars who are still alive to come out and appear on the programs; the Directors' Association and the Actors' Union will hold consultations with the Motion Picture and Television Producers' Association in private. The Directors Guild and the Screen Actors Guild are privately negotiating with the Motion Picture and Television Producers Guild to explore compromise solutions...Many television programs will be taken off the air because there are no new scripts, and the loss of television viewers will be difficult to regain, while at the same time, advertising revenues will also be lost to other media. The entire Hollywood industry landscape may face a brand new reshuffle, but the ones who will lose the most are the screenwriters, the vast majority of whom will be saying goodbye to the industry forever."

----

On the way to MGM's headquarters, Lin Mingyang encountered a strike procession of screenwriters, who attracted the attention of passersby and tourists every time they arrived, with the word "Strike" on the placards in their hands, which appeared particularly eye-catching. The word "strike" stood out from the placards in their hands, and leaflets were distributed to passers-by in the procession.

In addition to the marches, the writers' union also rallied in front of CBS, Disney, Fox, NBC, Sony, Paramount, Universal, Warner, etc. Members of the Writers Guild were told that striking was an obligation, and were required to spend at least 20 hours a week in front of these companies. Even MGM, which had just been acquired and reorganized, did not escape the fate of being "mobbed".

When Lin Mingyang drove to the company's headquarters, the security personnel at the gate were watching the protesters gathered not far from each other as if they were enemies. There were a lot of media reporters interviewing and taking pictures.

Before his car reached the gate of MGM's headquarters, the license plate number was recognized by sharp-eyed reporters. One bold reporter ran straight to the center of the road, and if Lin Mingyang hadn't braked in time, that dude would probably have been lying under the wheel.

Lin Mingyang was scared out of his wits by this bold reporter, but the guy still didn't change his face. After stopping Lin Ming Yang, he calmly went around to the driver's side of the sports car and politely knocked on the window glass.

Lowering the car window glass, Lin Mingyang angrily took off his sunglasses, looked at the other side in a bad mood and took out his press card, saying, "Don't be silly, you're telling me you're a reporter?"

The other party froze, then looked at Lin Ming Yang with a blank face, "But I am indeed a reporter."

Lin Ming Yang said sarcastically, "Well, Mr. Reporter, given your brave performance just now, I think you should go and become a war correspondent instead of an entertainment reporter."

The reporter smiled awkwardly, "The situation was urgent just now, I acted on impulse, luckily you reacted in time..."

Lin Ming Yang slumped both hands on the steering wheel, after the other party finished he nodded, "So I can go now!"

After saying that he was about to start the car, that reporter rushed to the front of the sports car with an arrow step and stopped Lin Ming Yang's way with open arms.

Helplessly, Lin Ming Yang poked his head out and shouted at the guy, "What exactly do you want?"

"I have a few questions, I just need to delay you for a few minutes..." before that reporter could finish his sentence, Lin Mingyang shrunk his head back.

Without hesitation, he raised the window of the car and the silver sports car slowly backed up. Seeing the car getting farther and farther away from him, that reporter who stopped in the middle of the road was wondering in his heart. The sports car that had stopped backing up suddenly accelerated and sped past the reporter like a gust of wind in a rapid lane change. By the time the reporter reacted, Lin Mingyang's car had already entered MGM's headquarters, and it was too late for him to catch up.

After parking the car, Lin Ming Yang didn't go directly to Eckles' headquarters, but first went to the visual effects working group of Man of Steel to check the progress of the synthesis of the CGI images of the movie. In the end, it was Ecks himself who called and asked if he had arrived yet, and it was only then that Lin Ming Yang remembered that he still had an appointment to meet with Ecks.

When Lin Mingyang went over, Ecks was standing in front of his office with a sulky look on his face. He pointed to his watch, "You're half an hour late!"

"I'm so sorry!" Lin Ming Yang shrugged helplessly, "I actually arrived a long time ago, but I just stayed over at the 'Iron Man' crew for a while... When I came here, I met a psychopath at the door, and that guy actually stopped my car, saying he wanted to interview me, and when he stirred things up, I forgot about the time we had arranged!"

"Even if you're making it up, please make up a slightly more decent reason." Ecks didn't have time to sulk with Lin Ming Yang at this time, he pointed towards his office, "I hired a reporter, about this strike, the media is very concerned about your stance and attitude, asked him to do an interview with you... I'm no longer your agent, but I'm still constantly being called by reporters wanting to book an interview with you, I'm getting annoyed! am getting annoyed to death!"

"So what are you going to say to the media?" Lin Ming Yang didn't expect that Ecks would actually give him such a hard time.

"Dealing with reporters, you've always been more experienced than me." Ecks patted Lin Ming Yang's shoulder and whispered his head into his ear, "As long as I can get those reporters to stop pestering me in the future, you can say whatever you want!"

----

Eckles "coaxed and tricked", finally pulled Lin Mingyang into his office. When he saw the reporter that Eckles had invited, Lin Mingyang froze.

"Surprised, huh?" Ginny, who hadn't been seen for a long time, smiled and stood up, taking the initiative to extend her right hand to Lin Ming Yang.

Today today, she was wearing an OL suit, her face was painted with light makeup, and the whole person looked refined and capable. If it was usual, Lin Ming Yang would definitely speak out to compliment her, this was his common tactic when picking up girls. But today, Lin Ming Yang's gaze was dead set on Ginny's back, or to be precise, the guy standing behind Ginny.

"Why you again!" Lin Ming Yang furrowed his brows and screamed in his heart that he was unlucky.

Ginny looked at Lin Ming Yang in confusion, then at her assistant Saville, "You guys know each other?"

Lin Ming Yang pointed at the man behind Ginny and turned his head to Ecks beside him, "This guy is the psychopath I met at the entrance...he suddenly ran into the middle of the road, if I hadn't braked just in time, he would've knocked me off my feet!"

At first, Ecks thought that Lin Ming Yang was just making up an excuse to "comfort" himself, but he didn't realize that there was really such a thing, while Ginny pulled Saville aside, and after the other party stammered and explained for half a day, she understood the whole story.

Ginny apologized to Lin Mingyang for her colleague's "rashness", "Felix, I think this is a misunderstanding!"

Lin Ming Yang shrugged his shoulders indifferently, this matter was considered to be over, although there was a small accident, but Ginny did not forget her "mission" this time, after the American screenwriters strike, Lin Ming Yang has been silent on this matter. As one of Hollywood's top screenwriters, he has the most say in the matter, and his attitude has become the topic of the media's greatest concern.

Ginny took out her recorder and started to ask questions, but Lin Mingyang was all over the place, asking her about her experiences after graduating from Harvard in one moment, and then asking her about the newspaper she was working for now, anyway, he just didn't answer her questions positively.

Finally Ginny got angry, "Felix, if you don't want to accept my interview, then you can just kick me out directly, do you think it's fun to go around in circles like this?"

"Can I invite you to lunch after the interview?" Lin Ming Yang "shamelessly" made a condition.

Ginny huffed and turned her head, but in her heart, she didn't think of refusing.

Lin Mingyang was a psychology student, how could he not guess Jinni's thoughts at this time. He sat upright and put away the teasing expression on his face, "Alright, we can start now!"

"Which side are you on this collective strike of Hollywood screenwriters?" Ginny didn't treat him politely and asked very directly as soon as she came up.

"I was actually invited by the Screenwriters Guild of America, even though I've never joined this organization...they want me to support this strike with practical actions, but I can't possibly hold up a sign, stand in front of MGM, and make a protest to myself, can I?"

Ginny followed up with, "So you don't intend to support this strike?"

Lin Ming Yang shook his head, "You can't say that either, the current status and income level of screenwriters is too low, and the payoffs are not proportional to the rewards, I am well aware of all these situations. I'm very supportive of Hollywood screenwriters fighting for their status through various legal means, but I'm personally skeptical of what a collective strike can achieve."

"Screenwriting is a highly varied industry, and I know that among the 12,000 members of the Screenwriters Guild of America who earn an average of $200,000 a year, there are TV writers and producers like Shawnda Rhimes who earn $5 million a year, as well as a lot of boyish newbies - who can only make less than $50,000 a year. And according to the Writers Guild, 48 percent of the members of its West Coast chapter are unemployed. Even if the Writers Guild were to compromise on the strike, it would be the higher-paying writers who would really benefit, and it would be difficult to change the situation for the lower-paying or even jobless writers. And because of their participation in the strike, screenwriters who have jobs now will likely be unemployed as well, which I don't think is something people want to see."

"Another indisputable fact is that Hollywood is increasingly favoring non-Screenwriters Guild labor; in the mid-1980s, according to the Guild, 95 percent of screenwriting jobs within the film and television industry were held by union members, and after the 1988 strike, that share is now down to 55 percent as the entertainment industry began to make heavy use of screenwriters from outside the Guild to produce animated films, and live-action shows. Collective strikes will only serve to diminish the influence of the Screenwriters Guild of America, and if this is the only way people expect to solve their problems, then in the near future, by market choice, the Screenwriters Guild of America will eventually cease to exist!"