Writers Guild OKs Proposal for Interim Pact

Striking members of the Writers Guild of America voted approval of an interim contract proposal intended to split the ranks of Hollywood producers, union officials announced Thursday, but the guild strategy suffered a blow as two independent producers who had earlier accepted the terms moved to retreat from the agreement.

Kings Road Entertainment and Carolco Pictures--believed to be the largest of the first 13 companies to accept the new contract--issued statements Thursday distancing themselves from the interim agreement after the major studios and television networks made it clear that they would refuse to do business with companies that made separate agreements with the guild.

Although the guild said both companies have signed interim agreements, Carolco said it was re-examining its position and Kings Road said it had decided not to hire any writers for the duration of the strike.

Neither company belongs to the 200-member Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the main target of the writers walkout.

Program Boycott

CBS on Thursday joined NBC, ABC and the Fox television network in saying it would not buy programs from companies that signed the interim agreement.

“We do not believe it is in the best interest of any producer to sign the interim agreement the WGA is offering,” the network stated. “In support of that position, we will not enter into new agreements for products produced under the interim WGA agreement.”

Separately, top executives of 20th Century Fox, Walt Disney Pictures and Paramount Pictures said in a response to a reporter’s questions that they would not accept movies and television shows from any production companies that signed independently with the guild.

“If you have a project, don’t produce it, because we won’t accept it,” said Barry Diller, chairman of Fox Inc., which owns both the Fox network and the Fox studio.

The warning posed a dilemma for small producers, many of whom serve as suppliers to the big studios and depend on them for financing and distribution of their films and television programs. Some small producers had hoped to sign interim agreements, get movies and television shows into production and then sell them to the studios. Now they’ve been told the studios and networks won’t buy.

Movies distributed by the major companies, many of them produced by smaller independents, account for about 90% of U.S. box office sales. Television shows produced by fewer than a dozen big companies make up about 40 hours of 57 hours of prime time programming on the three major networks.

18th Week

Thursday’s maneuvers came as the strike, pitting the 9,000-member guild against the alliance, neared the end of its 18th week. The walkout has prevented new scripts from going into production, delayed the beginning of the fall television season and forced layoffs throughout Hollywood. Negotiations have stalled largely over the issues of all foreign residuals and domestic residuals for one-hour television programs.

The guild has sought to divide the producers’ alliance by offering contracts to individual companies. By the guild’s count, 137 companies, most of them small and not members of the alliance, have signed either the new contract or an earlier contract. Most companies that signed earlier are expected to exchange their agreement for the new contract, which contains “favored nations” provisions promising any producer terms at least as favorable as those ultimately agreed to by the alliance.

Guild members voted 1,652 to 212 in Los Angeles and New York Wednesday night in favor of the new contract proposal to independents. In announcing the vote at a press conference Thursday, Brian Walton, chief negotiator for the guild, said he believes that companies were bringing “enormous pressure” and conducting “psychological warfare” in an effort to keep producers from breaking ranks.

Asked whether he saw anti-trust implications in the move, Walton said “yes.” He would not elaborate.

Company executives interviewed stressed that they are taking their positions against the independent contracts on an individual basis. “I believe the law is on our side,” Diller said.

In a statement, Carolco said it is “currently considering whether or not to suspend its feature film development activities on a voluntary basis in support of” the alliance--despite having signed an interim contract in recent days. The statement continued: “Carolco is in the process of examining the various legal ramifications of such a suspension.”

The company, which recently produced “Rambo III” and “Red Heat,” has revenues of about $100 million a year.

A source familiar with the company’s decision said that Carolco had been “requested not to proceed” with its movie projects during the strike. The source declined to say whether the request had been made by one of the major studios.

Kings Road Chairman Stephen J. Friedman said his company had not received any direct warnings from the big studios, but tried to back out of the interim agreement on Wednesday because of a policy decision by its directors.

“They decided we really are part of the industry,” Friedman said.

Guild negotiator Walton said that Kings Road already had signed the agreement. But Friedman said, “Whether or not we are entitled to withdraw, and we feel we are, is irrelevant. . . . We decided not to hire any writers until the end of the strike.”