Strike Days: Voice Crying in The Wilderness?

Judging by the underwhelming media reaction to an estimated 4,000 marchers (writers, Teamsters, nurses, and service workers) closing down Hollywood Boulevard for a march and rally, complete with current chart-topper Alicia Keys doing two songs and television star Sandra Oh (discussed on this blog yesterday) in the march vanguard and on stage, the revolution will apparently not be televised.

Here's how the writers' go-to web site, United Hollywood, predicted things would go in a post on the morning of the rally:

Hey, CBS, NBC, ABC, KCAL, FOX, We're Over Here

Today, Tuesday, 11/20/07, Los Angeles will experience a labor rally in support of the WGA strike. Marching west on Hollywood Boulevard from Ivar and gathering in front of Grauman's Chinese Theater, thousands upon thousands will join together to celebrate the importance of labor unions in American life.

And how will you know about this momentous occasion? You'll have to be there.

At the last rally in front of Fox Studios, 4,000 writers and their supporters marched and rallied, but when you watched the evening news, you'd never know it . There was plenty of time that night to talk about lost kittens but nothing about the peaceful march that closed down Pico Boulevard and Avenue of the Stars.

In fact, L.A.'s local stations did not completely ignore the sizeable demonstration of solidarity. KCAL-89 News, the CBS affiliate, made it a `featured' local story , lasting 44 seconds, or well less than a piece, per the above prediction, on that day's newscast about a luxury hotel for cats (catnip-laced bubbles are available) in Pasadena. And ABC's KTLA gave it 30 seconds, or about 54 seconds less than the item of the taping of a Victoria's Secret show which, funny thing, was being staged for later airing on their channel. The writers' usual web outlets were also curiously lacking in video, audio and other user-friendly methods of promulgating their cause.

The waggish LAist web site actually had the best, if amateurishly shot, footage of Alicia Keys doing two songs, Go Ahead and No One--the latter boasting the most relevant words:

Go head go on and get up out of here
Go head baby
You knew you was wrong
You knew all along
Must be crazy
If you think I'm gon' fall for this anymore
Everybody say no no no no no
Everybody say no no no no no

Key's album As I Am debuted November 13 as the highest-selling debut ever for a female R&B artist (her fourth consecutive #1 chart debut) and also, interestingly in context of the writers' struggle, set a record for a female's digital album debut with 60,900 downloads in its first week of release (CD units were 742,426). She told the crowd, "I'm a writer. Without words, there are no songs. Without words, there are no stories. I'm here for your cause." After her performance, she added: "Stay strong! I'm supporting you! Let's walk!"

The LAist site also had a photo albumthat seemd to catch what guild bloggers called an exceptionally warm and fervent spirit in the air. Speaker Akiva Goldsman ("...On November 5th, I stopped writing") may have had mixed feelings about seeing the plug pulled on his not quite camera-ready (so said Sony) Angels and Demons this week. (Today brought news that another high-profile project was facing a delay as leading man Brad Pitt pulled out of Universal's State of Play over issues with the script).

Screen Actors Guild worthy Sandra Oh of Grey's Anatomy (see yesterday's post) word for the AMPTP was, "Share," which she amplified with, "One of the many things this strike has taught me is what solidarity means. What consumer power means. How difficult and important it is for all of us to stand together to fight for our livelihood."

WGA west President Patric Verrone exulted that his union as showing "teeth", and also said: "When they ask us what this strike was about, we should quote Robert Towne from Chinatown: 'It's the future, Mr. Gittes.'"

That is the quote, more or less, though perhaps inhabiting John Huston's remorseless and incestuous oligarch (per the following exchange from the film) is miscasting for the supposedly underdog writers:

Jake Gittes: I just want to know what you're worth. Over ten million? Noah Cross: Oh my, yes. Jake Gittes: Why are you doing it? How much better can you eat? What can you buy that you can't already afford? Noah Cross: The future, Mr. Gittes, the future.

With further talks scheduled Monday, the mood heading into the holiday was still was hardly optimistic--although the New York Times changed its morning print edition headline, "Hollywood and Strikers Are Dug In", to the somehow more optimistic, "Hollywood and Strikers Watch Clock".

The article offered some insights from Sun Tzu, apparently an inspiration to union vet and key writers' guild leader David Young (along with every D-boy who ever sent his assistant to buy it for display on his studio bookshelf.) With a continuing stalemate more likely than a settlement, perhaps the relevant passage would be from Chapter X on "Terrain": "Ground equally disadvantageous for both the enemy and ourselves to enter is indecisive. The nature of this ground is such that although tthe enemy holds out a bait, I do not go forth but entice him by marching off. When I have drawn out half his force, I can strike him advantageously."

(Sandra Oh, center, joins march leaders including Akiva Goldsman, left, and Teamster official Leo Reed, secodn from left; photo by Matthew Simmons/Wire Image)