Tim Willert
GLENDALE -- Freelance writer Paul Chitlik knows what it's like to do
without.
"We're used to the ups and downs of show business," Chitlik said
Tuesday afternoon from his Burbank home. "So for some of us, a few months
without work is not all that abnormal."
But even Chitlik admits that a strike by members of the Writers Guild
of America could have long-lasting effects on those who work for the
movie and television industry, from extras to grips.
"I have a mortgage to pay, alimony, child support, car payments and
vet bills," he said. "It's not going to be a pleasant thing."
Negotiators for Hollywood writers and producers, though, were expected
to resume talks on Wednesday, even though the Writers Guild contract
expired at midnight Tuesday.
"The likelihood is that they talk at least up until the deadline and
the deadline will likely be extended," said Chitlik, recently nominated
for a writing award by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation
for his work on the Spanish-language sitcom "Los Beltran."
"They have not taken a strike vote, so there is obviously not going to
be a strike this week."
Writers are seeking an overall compensation package valued at about
$100 million, which would include a 11.3% increase in residual payments.
But, because of a news blackout imposed by the writers union and the
Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, it is unclear how
far apart the two sides are on a new three-year contract.
"We know what we're asking for and we know what they were offering at
one time, but we don't know what the movement has been," Chitlik said.
"But it appears that both sides are still talking, still negotiating."
While there are close to 200 Writers Guild members living in Glendale
and Burbank, the entertainment industry provides an estimated 40,000 to
50,000 jobs in the cities of Glendale, Burbank and La Canada Flintridge
according to labor market and union officials.
Glendale officials aren't sure what kind of effect a writer's strike
would have on the city and surrounding businesses.
"There's really been no surveys or studies done along these lines,"
said Ritch Wells, the city's public information officer. "They really
don't have any idea how its going to impact the city."
Members of the Screen Actors Guild, whose contract expires June 30,
have threatened to join forces with writers to virtually shut down
television and film production. There are nearly 3,000 SAG members living
in Glendale and Burbank.
An all-out strike could put nearly 82,000 people out of workand take a
$6.9-billion toll on Southern California's economy, according to study
commissioned by Mayor Richard Riordan, who has been trying to avert such
a work stoppage.
