All anyone has been talking about for the last 24 hours here in Hollywood is whether or not the Golden Globes would in fact go on.The discussion, of course, reached its zenith yesterday following a protracted back-and-forth between the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, dick clark prods (the production company producing the ceremony), NBC, and the WGA.
The answer? There will be something on Sunday night that has to do with the Golden Globes, but don't expect any pomp, circumstance, or likely even any acceptance speeches.
When dick clark prods was unable to secure a WGA waiver for the event, the various elements involved in Sunday's award show tried to reach a proposition that would grant them the necessary waiver, one that involved a mix of elements, such as a red carpet pre-show, a press conference/announcement "ceremony," and party-based telecasts.
After the WGA threatened to picket this proposed three-hour block of Golden Globes coverage, the HFPA announced at the end of day yesterday that it has scrapped the entire affair, canceling the televised reception and champagne dinner at the Hilton.
NBC will instead go ahead with a one-hour NBC News magazine-format show that will at least reveal the winners of the 65th Annual Golden Globe awards.
"We are all very disappointed that our traditional awards ceremony will not take place this year and that millions of viewers worldwide will be deprived of seeing many of their favorite stars celebrating 2007's outstanding achievements in motion pictures and television," HFPA president Jorge Camara said in a prepared statement. "We take some comfort, however, in knowing that this year's Golden Globe Award recipients will be announced on the date originally scheduled."
So if you're wondering whether Kiera Knightley will be rewarded for her luminous turn in Atonement, you'll find out one way or another, but don't count on hearing her teary acceptance speech any time soon. Same too for the lovely cast of ABC's brilliant forensic fairy tale Pushing Daisies, which is up for several kudos this year.
And lest you think that, like those violins playing as the Titanic sank, the party will go on, think again. The studio after-parties, those fixtures of the Golden Globes, have also been canceled. So far, NBC Universal-Focus, HBO, and Warner Bros. have all scrapped their soirees, with Fox Searchlight and the Weinstein Co. likely to do so as well.
Meanwhile, all eyes are now on the February 24th date of the Oscars, the next likely awards show showdown. Will the organizers of the Academy Awards be able to secure a WGA waiver in time? My gut says hell no.
Stay tuned.
What's On Tonight
8 pm: NCIS (CBS); The Biggest Loser (NBC; 8-10 pm); One Tree Hill (CW); Just for Laughs/Just for Laughs (ABC); Bones (FOX)
9 pm: People's Choice Awards (CBS; 9-11 pm); One Tree Hill (CW); According to Jim/Carpoolers (ABC); House (FOX)
10 pm: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC); Boston Legal (ABC)
What I'll Be Watching
8 pm: Bones.
On tonight's repeat, here' s the perfect opportunity to jump into Bones with a reairing of the series' pilot, in which forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan (Emily Deschanel) is tasked by the FBI to assist Special Agent Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz) on a murder case involving the body of a missing intern who was involved with a married senator.
9 pm: Life on Mars on BBC America.
Season Two of the brilliant UK import Life on Mars continues tonight with a brand-new episode. On tonight's installment, Sam investigates the murder of an Asian man and finds himself disquieted by Gene's bigoted reaction; meanwhile, Gene is determined to find the source of the heroin trade in Manchester at any cost and Sam receives a shocking message from the future..
Comments
That said, it would seem odd to have this big, extravagant, celebratory event (followed with big, extravegant, celebratory parties) in a strife-ridden town where most of the industry is now unemployed.
But, red carpet or no red carpet, I'll still be rooting for my favorite shows to win.
You gotta hand it to that Jeff Zucker - pretty smart airing under the guise of "news department press conference"
The best part, if Letterman is even half as bad as he was last time, the strike will be over in no time.
I was also ecstatic to hear many writers are getting together with other out-of-work directors and actors to write/produce their own series to be released on the Internet--just as I said they should. (But of course, I'm not so egocentric to think they got the idea from me.) Now, how will we find out where to download/pay for these shows...