Stay Tuned: Battle for SAG Presidency May Get More Contentious

Call it the battle of the network stars, circa 1978.

With ballots just mailed, the race for president of the Screen Actors Guild is growing more contentious between actresses Melissa Gilbert and Valerie Harper, two of television’s top stars during the 1970s. This week, supporters of each are expected to step up their criticisms as 98,577 actors begin voting in balloting that will last until Oct. 31.

Harper and Gilbert are arguably the highest-profile actors ever to go head-to-head for the top office at the 68-year-old guild. Until recently, SAG elections have been more like coronations than competitions, with presidents often running unopposed.

More important, the election comes at a pivotal time for SAG, which has been divided into hostile camps of hard-liners and moderates for two years and whose organization is so dysfunctional it was labeled “schizophrenic” by a management consultant the union hired.

Although no contract talks are scheduled during the next president’s two-year term, SAG faces a host of important issues.

They include bolstering finances and a health plan weakened by last year’s six-month strike against advertisers, streamlining SAG’s bureaucracy, stemming the flight of TV and film production to foreign countries and negotiating an agreement with talent agencies demanding the freedom to attract outside investors.

“This is a very important election,” said Alan Brunswick, a labor relations attorney with the Los Angeles law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips.

On Sunday, SAG announced one step it is taking toward dealing with its bloated bureaucracy. Under a governance plan that will go into effect next year, the number of people in SAG’s board meetings will be trimmed from a staggering 107 to 69 members, its president and a secretary-treasurer. But only 62 votes will count because of a complicated mathematical formula aimed at giving more weight to SAG’s Los Angeles and New York factions. The new plan doesn’t go as far as an earlier recommendation by management consulting firm Towers Perrin that the guild reduce its board to 40.

In addition to Gilbert and Harper, two other candidates are running, although both are longshots because they aren’t well-known. Eugene Boggs is a background actor who teaches law, and actress Angeltompkins is a longtime SAG activist who has unsuccessfully run for president four times. Election results are expected to be announced early next month.

Harper, 61, is best known for playing Rhoda Morgenstern during the 1970s on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and the hit spinoff “Rhoda.” Although she has not run for office before, Harper is something of a de facto incumbent, having been handpicked by supporters of current SAG President William Daniels, who chose not to run for a second two-year term.

Daniels headed a slate two years ago that ousted incumbent SAG President Richard Masur by promising to be tougher with studios and advertisers in contract talks.

Harper is an unapologetic supporter of Daniels and his regime, which she believes invigorated a moribund union and stood tough during last year’s strike against advertisers while negotiating a new three-year TV and film contract with studios.

“Bill Daniels has been a real breath of fresh air coming through the union,” Harper said.

Gilbert, 37, who gained fame in the 1970s as a child playing Laura Ingalls in the Michael Landon series “Little House on the Prairie,” thinks the Daniels election was a disaster. She believes it ushered in a power-hungry slate that stifles dissent and led members through a disastrous strike that was badly handled and dragged on too long at a cost of at least $100 million to members.

“The whole purpose of this leadership has been toughness for toughness’ sake. The commercials strike was a perfect indication of that,” Gilbert said.

Both candidates have lined up stars as supporters.

Running with Gilbert for a top vice presidential spot is former “MASH” star Mike Farrell, who says he is running for many of the same reasons Gilbert chose to run.

“The strike went on far too long and did too much harm. There were a lot of heavy-handed, angry tactics that exaggerated the tensions and kept it from being resolved,” Farrell said. Also running on Gilbert’s ticket is Shelley Fabares.

Gilbert’s other supporters include actors Tobey Maguire, Debra Messing, Elizabeth Taylor, Rob Lowe, John Spencer and former SAG President Patty Duke.

Harper’s supporters include Martin Sheen, Gregory Peck, Sarah Jessica Parker and former SAG President Charlton Heston. Her candidate slate includes Elliott Gould, Anne-Marie Johnson, Esai Morales and Tess Harper.

Both Valerie Harper and Gilbert announced they were running in July.

Gilbert took the offensive early, criticizing Harper for refusing to debate and especially for supporting a petition to investigate whether Canadian production incentives violate trade agreements. Many Hollywood workers who support the petition believe that if violations are found, counter tariffs should be imposed on Canadian productions aimed at U.S. audiences.

The flight of production, especially to Canada, has plagued Hollywood’s unions for nearly 20 years and has emerged as SAG’s top issue. A 1999 study funded by SAG and the Directors Guild of America found shooting in Canada can be about 25% less expensive than in the U.S. because of the weak Canadian dollar, Canadian government incentives and lower labor costs.

Gilbert believes that the petition Harper supports is a waste of time. In the unlikely event counter tariffs are imposed, she contends, they would undermine arguments SAG and other unions are making in Washington to secure tax incentives that might lure some production back to the U.S.

Meanwhile, Harper says she simply endorses a multi-pronged approach to fighting the loss of production jobs. She says she doesn’t necessarily support new tariffs on Canada but believes that every possible remedy should be explored.

Gilbert also criticizes Harper’s decision to join at the hip with the Daniels regime, which she says has overseen a period of deteriorating finances and morale for the union.

Harper counters that her lengthy experience in the business and history of political activism make her the best choice. She says she is ready to carry out a wholesale revamping of SAG recommended by Towers Perrin, which found SAG inefficient and disorganized.

“We’re not a business, but we must run like one. The members deserve it. I don’t want to squander their dues,” Harper said.

In recent weeks, Harper supporters have criticized Gilbert for not walking picket lines during the commercial strike and for a 1989 decision to act in and produce the nonunion film “Ice House,” directed by her former husband. That got her reprimanded by SAG, which required her at the time to attend workshops to become more familiar with SAG and its rules.

Gilbert says she supported last year’s strike, even though she believes it could have been settled much sooner for the same terms. Gilbert says that although she didn’t picket, she refused to shoot commercials for cosmetics giant L’Oreal, with which she was under contract for hair-care products.

As for “Ice House,” Gilbert says she was naive about SAG’s rules then, even though she had been acting since she was a child.

Harper says she doesn’t want to turn the race into a series of personal attacks, although an e-mail she sent to actors Friday blasts Gilbert for her role in “Ice House.” Gilbert says the criticism by Harper and her supporters has been underhanded and obscures what should be an open debate about issues.

Lawyer Brunswick said that, as in the bitter SAG election two years ago, the growing anger of the campaign could make it hard for a new president to bring much-needed unity to SAG.

“People tend to remember the bitterness. It’s going to be hard for whoever wins,” he said.

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Casting the Part of SAG President

The campaign for Screen Actors Guild president features four candidates but boils down to a race between two longtime TV stars, Valerie Harper and Melissa Gilbert.

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Valerie Harper

Age: 61

Bio: Four-time Emmy winner. Best known for playing Rhoda Morgenstern on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and the spinoff “Rhoda.” Supports current administration led by Williams Daniels. Believes that last year’s six-month strike against advertisers was a success.

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Melissa Gilbert

Age: 37

Bio: Best known as a child actress playing Laura Ingalls on “Little House on the Prairie.” Has aggressively criticized current SAG leaders and Harper for supporting them. Argues they have been intolerant of dissent, mishandled finances, allowed relations with agents to deteriorate and let last year’s commercial strike drag on too long.

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In addition, two lesser-known candidates are running. They are:

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Eugene Boggs Jr.

Age: 54

Bio: A lawyer, Boggs has performed as a background actor in “Planet of the Apes.” Believes that the SAG presidency “is not a ceremonial position.”

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Angeltompkins

Age: 57

Bio: Credits include such films as “Murphy’s Law” and “Amazon Women on the Moon.” Former SAG recording secretary. Ran unsuccessfully four previous times for the job.