Writers Strike Over

Now that's a title I've been dying to post. On Tuesday members of the Writers Guild of America voted by a 92.5% margin to lift the restraining order that was invoked on November 5th, ending the 100-day strike that cost the entertainment industry $1.9 billion.

That means the writers are going back to work today to try to salvage as much of the TV season as possible. The Academy Awards ceremony scheduled for Sunday, February 24th will go ahead as originally planned. ABC will air the live telecast.

Tina Fey-hosted "Saturday Night Live" will be the first show back on the air on Saturday, February 23. NBC is hoping to air another 10-12 new installments of the program this season, with the first 4 airing for four straight weeks.

Unless they have additional unaired pre-strike episodes in the can (e.g. "Smallville"), the earliest time we get to see our shows back will be mid March, when a handful of sitcoms - three-camera shows shot on tape, including CBS' "Two and a Half Men" - are expected to return.

Most of the broadcast network shows however (including single-camera film sitcoms like "The Office") will restart their current seasons in the middle of April and run through the end of May sweeps.

Cable shows will also be affected by the strike as new seasons of TNT's "The Closer," HBO's "Entourage" or Lifetime's "Army Wives" will be somewhat delayed. AMC's "Mad Men" are expected to return on schedule as the studio that produces the show reached a separate deal with the WGA last month.

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Post-Strike Update: When TV Shows Return (Tuesday UPDATE)

The latest rumors on the post-strike return of "Private Practice," "Prison Break," "House," "Gossip Girl" "Bones," "Women's Murder Club" and many other shows.

PRIVATE PRACTICE: The freshman medical drama is not expected to return with new episodes this spring. The Kate Walsh-fronted series will however be back with at least 13 new episodes next season, as will the rest of ABC's Wednesday night line-up ("Pushing Daisies" and "Dirty Sexy Money"). Surprisingly, "Women's Murder Club" may get canceled.

PRISON BREAK: Hollywood press reports FOX won't be ordering additional episodes of "Prison Break" this season - next Monday the drama concludes its current 13-episode arc. The show has gone down over 15% in the ratings this year.

HOUSE/BONES: Furthermore, the network now appears to be inching towards not ordering additional episodes of "House" this season (which has already run out of fresh installments) and "Bones" (the procedural has 4 episodes left in the can).

SMALLVILLE: The CW's veteran drama is now critical to survival of the young network. Following a series of flops and declining ratings, "Smallville" has become CW's top rated scripted hour, keeping eyeballs tuned into the struggling network on lucrative Thursday nights.

The show will have 3-5 new episodes beyond the original 15 pre-strike episodes, increasing the season total to 18-20 episodes. 3-5 new episodes are also expected for its lead-out "Supernatural" which filmed 12 pre-strike episodes, so its season total will be 15-17 episodes.


BLOCKBUSTER TV DRAMAS/DRAMEDIES: Tube's greatest hits like "Grey's Anatomy" and "Desperate Housewives," will be coming back with at least 4-7 new episodes this spring.

CSI and other CBS procedurals: Hit CBS crime dramas are expected to follow the same pattern of other blockbuster TV series - they will be back this spring with 4-7 new episodes.

These shows help keep the Eye network on the top of the ratings (in total viewers, not among adults 18-49, that is), so expect to see more of "CSI," "CSI: Miami," "CSI: New York," "Without a Trace," "NCIS," "Numb3rs," "Criminal Minds" and "Cold Case."

HEROES: NBC's sci-fi drama from the producer Tim Kring was originally planning to open a new arc titled "Villains" in early 2008. Since the studio would probably not be able to film more than 3 new episodes this season, NBC is expected to delay the return of the drama till September, when season 3 launches. Next season may however contain more than the standard 22-23 episodes.


UGLY BETTY: ABC's sophomore comedy would come back this spring for 4 additional episodes, bringing the season total to 17. Executive producer Silvio Horta has said to Entertainment Weekly the writers would however have to tweak the planned storylines as they were originally mapped out for a 23-episode season. 13 episodes have aired thus far.

GOSSIP GIRL: The CW's teen drama based on the series of bestselling books is expected to return in late April with the at least 6 more episodes. Under that scenario, the struggling network may extend its official TV season into the summer. "Gossip Girl" was the first freshman drama to receive a full-season pickup last October.

HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER: Given its half-hour format and well-established production, CBS' flashback-laden comedy might (along with the network's top sitcom "Two and a Half Men" and its lead-out "The Big Bang Theory") return for as many as 7 new installments this spring. 11 episodes of "How I Met Your Mother" have aired so far.

24: This is a really tricky one. As you may have heard, 8 episodes had been filmed prior to the strike. Since bringing the show back for an abbreviated season is impossible due to its 24-hour format, the drama will most probably return in January 2009, which means the strike may have cost both fans and people who produce the series an entire season.

SAMANTHA WHO: The single-camera comedy starring Christina Applegate is expected to return March 24, following a new cycle of "Dancing with the Stars." 12 episodes have been filmed, 9 have aired through early December, the remaining 3 episodes will kick off the new batch. As many as 6 new episodes could be filmed this spring, bringing the season total to 18.

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS: The second season of "Friday Night Lights" (including last week's 15th episode) will be released on DVD April 22, and would therefore have no additional episodes. The show's future remains up in the air.

TO GET CANCELED: Shows like "Bionic Woman," "Journeyman" and "Big Shots" are not coming back with new episodes this spring and they are expected to get canceled when the new fall grids are announced in May.

The post will be updated/corrected when more information becomes available.

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"Dirty Sexy Money": Second Season?

The remaining 3 pre-strike episodes of "Dirty Sexy Money" will air as part of a second season, launching in September 2008. The show (and a number of other promising freshman shows) would however initially be renewed for only 13 episodes, reports TV Guide.

Under normal circumstances, TV shows get a 13 episode order. If they do well in the ratings, the networks order the "back 9 episodes" increasing the episode total to standard 22.

If the show is then renewed for another season, the networks immediately order a full second season of 22 episodes. Because of the writers' strike that will not be the case for many new shows that launched last fall.

Although the strike is yet to be called off and decisions on the future of freshman shows are yet to be made, insiders say those shows that got a full season 1 order last fall (say "Pushing Daisies") will initially return for only 13 new episodes in their second season.

That means, the fans of these shows will have to go through the same type of "do we get a full season or not" uncertainty all over again.

The final all-new episode of "Dirty Sexy Money" aired on December 5. That means by the time the show is relaunched in September 2008, it will have been off air for over 9 months.

That is providing the actors union (SAG) doesn't call a strike of their own come summer and postpone the beginning of the next TV season.

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Writers Strike Update: Will Actors Strike, Too?

So what is actually happening right now? Is the strike over or not? And if so, when can we expect the shows that ran out of fresh episodes back on the schedule?

The strike is not over yet, because the WGA leadership is now preparing a draft of the breakthrough agreement which needs to be approved by the Guild members who are expected to vote on it by the end of the week.

Normally, the strike would be called off only once the approved deal was fully ratified, but since everyone is in a hurry to get back to work and save as much of the season as they can, they are expected to call off the strike as soon as it is approved.

In the worst case scenario, the deal will be rejected and the strike will continue until a new proposal is made (something similar happened during the writers' strike in 1960 which lasted almost 5 months).

The producers are also anxious to see the strike end so the Oscars ceremony, scheduled for February 24, could go ahead. The Oscars are normally the second highest rated TV event of the year (after the Super Bowl).

If the strike ends, the sitcoms would need at least 4 weeks to get back on air, while the hour-long dramas would take at least 6 weeks.

Of course, they could take even more time, depending on the complexity of the production and whether any scripts have already been outlined or the writers would have start from scratch.

So which of the shows are coming back this spring? There is no doubt that smash hits like "Desperate Housewives" or "Grey's Anatomy" would return for at least 4-5 episodes.

Serialized shows like "Heroes" and new dramas like "Pushing Daisies" will however most likely get a new season order and return in the fall (in case of "Heroes" possibly with more episodes).

Some insiders however say, the studios might want to begin production on all shows this spring, even if they decide not to air some of them till fall, because the SAG contract expires at the end of June and unless that union reaches an agreement with the AMPTP, the actors would go on strike, too.

The timing of that strike would also be very inconvenient as the fall shows normally begin production the week after Independence Day.

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Writers' Strike Almost Over; Hit TV Shows to Return in April/May

This is the news we've all been waiting for. The writers' strike is almost over and our beloved shows are coming back in the spring. Unfortunately, it's a little too late for some of the shows we've come to love.

According to the latest reports, the Writers Guild and the AMPTP are about to reach an agreement settling the 3-month strike that crippled TV and film production in Hollywood.

That means the writers will be going back to work ASAP to bring back the most popular shows like "Desperate Housewives," "Grey's Anatomy," "Brothers & Sisters," "Ugly Betty," "CSI," "House" and others on air by April or May.

Unfortunately, the shows launched last fall that did get a full season order like "Pushing Daisies" or "Dirty Sexy Money" will most probably not be returning this season.

Instead the networks will go back into production over the summer and relaunch the shows next fall with a massive marketing campaign. Since most of them are still building momentum, brining them back in the spring for only 4-5 episodes would simply make little business sense.

In the coming days/weeks we expect to hear exactly which shows are coming back this spring (and for how many episodes), and which shows will be returning in September. Given the very poor performance of a number of new shows, expect to see some of them gone for good.

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Is The End of Writers' Strike Closer?

The deal between the Directors' Guild and the AMPTP reached on Thursday, including big gains in the new media, has given new hope that we may be getting a little closer to the end of the writers' strike. Could this TV season still be salvaged after all?

The DGA deal alters the calculation of residuals for "electronic sell-through," or paid download-to-own sales of film and TV shows via online platforms such as iTunes, putting more money into directors' pockets.

It is believed the deal could be used as a template for negotiations between the WGA and the AMPTP. Furthermore, in their statement on Thursday, the producers appear to be open to restarting negotiations.

Why the sudden breakthrough? The studios may have waited until now in order to exercise the "force majeure" clause in their writers' contracts (as Disney did last Friday and other studios followed suit on Monday) to "clean the house," which they were now legally allowed to given the length of the strike.

The move allowed studios to axe a number of development deals including the 2-year seven-figure deals of Hugh Jackman ("Viva Laughlin," CBS), Jon Robin Baitz ("Brothers & Sisters," ABC) and Peter Horton ("Dirty Sexy Money," ABC).

If a new deal with the WGA is reached by Valentine's Day, and especially if the networks would be willing to extend the TV season into June or possibly even July, most hit shows would still be able to produce most of the episodes ordered.

A deal reached within a month would also ensure the return of hit shows like "Grey's Anatomy" by the spring. The studios would probably try to get as many episodes of those shows as possible.

Lower rated sitcoms and dramas would probably have their episode orders cut in favor of reality shows that have now been able to flex their Nielsen muscles because of the strike.

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Writers' Strike Effects: $1.4 Billion Lost?

EW reports today that the writers' strike has cost WGA members and below-the-line workers a total of $1.4 billion in lost wages. And there is still no end in sight.

According to the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation's chief economist Jack Kyser there is about $70-80 million at stake just with the cancellation of the Golden Globes (NBC should lose about $15 million in ad revenues).

If the same happens to the Academy Awards which are supposed to be held on Sunday, February 24, the economic impact of that event is in the neighborhood of $130 million.

Obviously things have changed since the last writers' strike in 1988 which lasted for 22 weeks and is said to have cost the industry (as well as the local businesses depending on Hollywood production) about half a billion.

Once the strike is resolved I will be very curious to see how much the writers will have gained and compare that to the losses the industry will have endured.

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The End of Writers' Strike 1988

On August 8, 1988, by a vote of 2,111 to 412, members of the Writers Guild of America ratified a new four-year contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers ending the longest Writers Guild strike in Hollywood history, which surpassed by one day the Writers Guild strike of 1960.

As a result of the 22-week strike, the writers had gained extremely modest financial gain when one-hour television shows were sold to stations abroad.

The old formula for foreign residuals paid a writer a maximum of about $4,400 for a one-hour show.

Under the new plan, the writers would have the option of the existing formula, or a new plan that would pay them 1.2 percent of the producer's foreign sales.

The latter option would apply as long as the payment was not less than 85 percent of the current residual.

But the writers were forced to accept a sliding formula for when episodes of one-hour shows were syndicated to American television stations after their network runs.

That meant that instead of earning a maximum of $16,920 in residual payments for six broadcasts of each episode of a series like "Knots Landing," a writer could receive as little as $8,460 per episode for six showings or, if the market changed, as much as $25,380.

A number of Guild members however remained unsatisfied with the outcome. There was however no clear-cut winner.

The new 1988/1989 season had to be delayed as many shows struggled to premiere in November.

Episode orders for a number of shows were cut from the standard 22-24 to 20 or fewer. Ratings plunged 9% on average as opposed to the previous year.

Of course, the writers themselves as well as production workers, caterers, shipping services and a host of other industries that depended on film and television for their business were out of work for almost half a year causing losses of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Many however hoped the industry learned its lesson and would not let a lengthy strike cripple the television business again.

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Writers Strike 1988: Carson & Letterman Return

In 1988 it took David Letterman one month longer to strike a special deal with the WGA and return to air than it did in 2008. Johnny Carson whose "Tonight" show had also reached an agreement with the Guild however crossed the picket lines weeks before as the legendary host began to write his own monologues.

In late May 1988, it was reported that the Writers Guild of America had approved a special contract with over 70 independent producers (non-members of the AMPTP that the WGA was battling at the bargaining table).

The breakthrough allowed companies that produced NBC's "Tonight Show" as well as hit sitcoms "The Cosby Show" and "ALF" to go back into production as their writers were allowed to work for those companies.

Unlike Johnny Carson, David Letterman vowed not to go back on air without his writers and waited for the approval of the contract. His "Late Show," then broadcast on NBC after Carson's "Tonight Show," went back on air in early June.

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Writers' Strike 1988: Writerproof Schedule

"Come hell or high water, we'll have original programming this fall," vowed late President of NBC Entertainment Brandon Tartikoff in June 1988, just before the writers' strike was about to enter its fifth month.

What NBC management had in mind was an emergency fall schedule of "writerproof" programs, including foreign shows, variety programs and old series remakes.

Having won the 1987/1988 season, the Peacock network was possibly best prepared for the fall 1988 as it was about to launch a new season with the live telecast of the Summer Olympics in Seoul (NBC acquired the broadcast rights for the event for $300 million).

Also, some of the companies supplying prime-time programming had already made independent agreements with the Writers' Guild (e.g. "The Cosby Show").

NBC was also planning to introduce reality programming, as well as produce existing scripts that hadn't been filmed in the past. Also, there was talk of filming foreign shows with American actors.

But many observers dismissed this NBC plan saying filming old or foreign scripts would still require rewrites.

Furthermore, the network was planning to use the Olympics (as well as the World Series which also aired on NBC at the time) to promote its fall schedule, an opportunity which would have been wasted had the fall season been canceled and shows like "L.A.Law" remained in repeats.

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VIDEO Flashback: "Moonlighting"

Here is now again last month's video post revealing how one of the prime-time shows in 1988 ended the season early acknowledging the very strike that shut its production down.

ABC's romantic drama "Moonlighting" (1985-1989) which launched the career of movie superstar Bruce Willis and made Cybill Shepherd a top TV star was often plagued by costly production delays and had never actually had a full 22-episode season although it lasted for over 4 years. In the spring of 1988 however, the show came to a halt for a different reason.

Possibly one of the first 'dramedies' on television, "Moonlighting" was known for its irreverent tone, format innovation and a practice of 'breaking the fourth wall', that is, talking to the audience and acknowledging being a TV show.

In the spring 1988, the show was about to conclude an underwhelming 4th season which disappointed the fans because the show stars Shepherd (who just gave birth to twins) and Willis (who just filmed "Die Hard" and was eager to begin a big movie career) were rarely seen although their characters consummated their relationship after three years of romantic tension at the end of season 3.

The lackluster penultimate season was however brought to an abrupt close when the writers' strike shut down production on a number of prime-time series. Here is how "Moonlighting" dealt with the strike in the final, 14th episode of the season (aired March 22, 1988).

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Writers Strike 1988: Scabs to the Rescue

"It's a little as if you leave your children with a trusted sitter for the weekend and return to find them all juvenile delinquents and in jail" - Claire Labine, co-creator of ABC's "Ryan's Hope" on the damage caused by substitute scriptwriters during the 13-week writers' strike in 1981.

Unlike primetime programs, many of which had all of their scripts completed by the time the strike began, daytime soaps are in a completely different game. They are expected to continue churning out fresh episodes throughout the year. So, how did the "Big Three" deal with the sudden departure of soap writers in March 1988?

ABC announced the programming would continue as usual; CBS said the actors would continue to get the scripts; and only NBC admitted that they would be hiring non-guild freelancers. One of the WGA executives sarcastically said at the time the scripts would probably be written by "secretaries, producers and somebody's mother."

Many of the soaps suffered in quality as the strike dragged on, but they had mostly managed to sustain viewer interest. "Santa Barbara" was named that year "Outstanding Daytime Drama Series" (winning 2 out of 8 nominations) winning praise for Eden's rape storyline.



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How Writers' Strike 1988 Cut TV Shows Short

Although many of the hit series in the 1987/1988 season had already had all of their scripts written by the time the writers' strike began, some shows like "Moonlighting," "The Cosby Show," L.A.Law," "Cheers" and "Thritysomething" were brought to an abrupt end.

In 1988 that meant a total of 24 (instead of 26) episodes of "The Cosby Show"; 20 (instead of 22) episodes of "L.A. Law"; 25 (instead of 26) episodes of "Cheers"; and 21 (instead of 24) episodes of "Thirtysomething."

"Moonlighting" was always plagued with production delays. In the 1986/1987 season the Cybill Shephard and Bruce Willis-fronted romantic dramedy produced only 15 episodes, so a total of mere 14 episodes in the strike-affected 1987/1988 season was not a significant setback.

Obviously, the TV industry was in a much better position than it is today when the strike occurred in the middle of the 2007/2008 season, possibly cutting the season orders for most of the prime-time dramas and comedies in half.

But the writers' strike in 1988 did cause some additional trouble for producers of the hour-long dramas as, unlike comedies that have self-contained episodes, they weave their story threads from week to week and many were forced to come to an abrupt end.

Harry Hamlin, the star of "L.A. Law" for example barely appears in the final episodes shot, because he was supposed to be featured heavily in the final 2 episodes that didn't get to be written and produced.

As many shows came to an end in late April or early May (some concluded their seasons as early as March) the TV networks began pumping their line-ups with made-for-TV movies and repeats of mini-series, some of which never would have been scheduled had there not been for the strike.

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Writers' Strike 1988: How and Why It Began

In late February 1988, media reported that contract talks with 9000 movie and television writers, members of the WGA union which, by that time, had already had a history of storming out on strike, were coming down to the wire. Hollywood however didn't seem to care.

The timing of the strike was not very fortunate for the WGA. The contract expired on Monday, February 29, 1988 and the writers hit the picket lines by Wednesday, March 8. By this time, however, many prime-time TV series had already had all their scripts for the 1987/1988 season, few were forced to cut their episode orders.

Although there were several issues of concern, the major sticking point appeared to be residual payments to writers when one-hour television series like "Murder She Wrote" or "Miami Vice" are syndicated after their network runs.

The producers insisted that writers be paid residuals on a sliding scale. The writers however preferred the rule from the 1985 contract that the entire amount owed to the writer as a royalty must be paid when the series is sold in even one city.

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers argued that the market had changed and TV studios could no longer make profit simply by selling a TV show to a TV network. The license fees the networks were willing to pay no longer covered the cost of production and studios ran huge deficits for each episode produced.

A typical one-hour drama would lose about $350,000, although some action-based series like "Hunter" could end up losing as much as $500,000 per episode. The only way a production studio could make a profit was for a show to become a hit and last for at least 4 years, thus putting 100 episodes in the can.

Studios would then be able to sell these 100-episode packages to independent stations (syndication) and finally make profit. In 1988, ratings for one-hour dramas in syndication were very low (compared to half-hour sitcoms like "Three's Company").

Also, for every 100 episode hit the studios were able to make money on, there were many duds canceled before they even ran their original 13-episode orders, thus soaking up profits from other more successful skeins.

The writers, on the other hand, made most of their money on residuals, not the original fee, and such a step back in compensation seemed unacceptable to the Guild. Also, the union claimed only 12 of the 45 hour-long dramas posted significant deficits, whereas the producers said only 3 out of 45 didn't.

Later the focus of the strike shifted to the booming foreign markets. For instance, in many European countries at the time, instead of the official 2 state-run broadcasters, there was suddenly a number of private channels (e.g. Sky in Britain) which heavily relied upon American production. The writers however earned no residuals.

Prior to the 1988 strike, the writers had already gone out on strike for 13 weeks in 1981 over a formula for residuals on original programming made for pay-television (cable). Although the issues appeared important at the time of the strike, the market for original cable programming in the 1980s didn't really take off.

In 1985, the WGA tried to initiate yet another strike over the formula for residuals on movies sold for video cassettes. That strike however collapsed amid dissension within the guild.

The 1988 strike last for 5 months and was the longest strike in the Hollywood history. Will the 2007/2008 strike exceed the record?

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Huckabee to Cross Picket Line on Tonight Show

Republican presidential candidate "I Dislike Mike" Huckabee, will be the first guest on Jay Leno's "Tonight Show," which returns this evening, along with other late night talkers, despite the disapproval of the writers' union which says will picket the taping of the show this afternoon.

Unlike Leno and Comedy Central, David Letterman-owned shows on CBS have made a special agreement with the WGA and will employ the services of their writing staff.

Hollywood's A-lister Robin Williams will be the first guest on "The Late Show with David Letterman" which is expected to express solidarity with the WGA.

Letterman has been a strong supporter of the writers and the agreement with the WGA had been deemed imminent.

Jay Leno, Jon Stewart and Steve Colbert will return sans their writers for which reason their shows are expected to alter the original formula.

As these men return to the air tonight under the watchful eye of the viewers, the media and the WGA, we may finally see if any one them actually posses any comic qualities.

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Writers Union Members Stewart & Colbert to Cross the Picket Line January 7

As you may have noticed I kept my coverage of this wretched writers' strike to minimum over the past month (I do have to abstain from the use of vulgarities that I might have on the matter). This is however too juicy not to post. Prominent Writers' Union members Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert of Comedy Central are going back on air January 7, joining the other late night talk show hosts who announced their return over the past few days.

Given all the hatred directed at Ellen Degeneres and Carson Daly (I genuinely cared only about the former, though) when they decided to "cross the picket line" it will be interesting to see what effect the return of Stewart and Colbert will have on the cause.

All late night hosts who are going back on air will do so without their writers, only David Letterman - who has been 'extremely supportive of the strike' - gets to negotiate a waiver.

In an interesting reversal of fortunes, this also means that not only the production crew gets their jobs back, but the striking writers no longer get to earn residuals for repeats that filled the airwaves when they abandoned their jobs almost 7 weeks ago.

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"Monk" & "Pysch" to Air on NBC

They have begun. The networks have begun cherry-picking the best of what their cable siblings have to offer and putting it on scripted content-starved primetime. After adding "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" to the line-up, NBC has now decided to "repurpose" cable's "Monk" and "Psych" from USA Network to Sunday nights, beginning in March.

NBC is the first to follow up on the recent rumors that cable shows may end up on broadcast networks' prime-time schedules to fill the slots vacated by the scripted dramas which were forced into shutting down production due to the writers' strike. CBS prexy Les Moonves said Showtime hits like "Dexter" or "Weeds" may air on CBS.

"Monk" and "Psych," which air back-to-back on USA on Friday nights (9-11 p.m.), regularly lure over 2 million adults 18-49. Some scenes of these shows are however expected to end up on the cutting room floor before airing on NBC, as the Peacock must conform to much stricter standards.

The exact premiere date in March has yet to be confirmed.

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ABC Finished "Grey's" #411 Sans Rhimes

New York Post reports ABC completed episode #411 of "Grey's Anatomy" (the only remaining episode which may air next month) without Shonda Rhimes' input after she dropped her pen and hit the picket lines.

"They [ABC] shot it after we walked out," Rhimes told The Post yesterday while walking the picket line in front of Paramount Studios in L.A. "I've never not been in the editing room," she said. "It's been a very weird transition."

Rhimes also said that although she hasn't written a single line since the strike began she keeps thinking about her characters - they never leave. "They just don't have a place to go," she added.

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"Dexter," "Weeds" Head to CBS?

Although those swinging couples of the 1970s and their orgies ("Swingtown") may never make it to the older-skewing CBS, a serial killer with a heart ("Dexter") and a single mom who makes ends meet by selling pot ("Weeds") may get there instead. Perhaps there's a silver lining in the writers' strike, after all. Or is there?

Speaking at an investor conference yesterday, CBS prexy Les Moonves explained that the Eye network would not go dark in the event of a prolonged strike and was ready to edit some of its cable sibling Showtime's most prized assets and air them as part of its midseason schedule.

Introducing these quality dramas to greater audiences at the expense of butchering them to meet the demands of conservative audiences is not necessarily a plus. The network will however take all necessary measures to protect its bottom line, as airing these shows may generate lower ratings, but also savings from lower costs.

"Swingtown" was originally intended for Showtime, but CBS snatched the provocative drama over, as part of an attempt earlier this year to revamp its older-skewing schedule with more daring 18-49 fare. The network has however filmed only 3 episodes before shutting down production due to writers' strike.

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Carson Daly First to Return to Late Night

Carson Daly will be the first late night talk show host to go back into production since the writers' strike started. Daly will begin taping new episodes of his late night show on NBC this week and they will start airing on Monday next week.

Being the most vulnerable to a writers strike since they heavily rely on their writers to come up with fresh jokes based on the latest events, all late night talk shows went immediately into repeats in early November.

Although some of the hosts like Jay Leno could host an entire show without the help of their writers, they opted not to since they support the effort of the writers union (and are possibly wary of any backlash such a decision could bring about).

TV networks are not too happy about temporarily losing these shows as they are used as a promotional platform for Hollywood studios to advertise their movies and nothing can better sell a movie than an actor's charisma.

There was some talk of hosts going back to production, but since nobody wanted to be the first, the networks were said to be trying to figure out a deal to have all hosts go back to work at the same time.

Although it is not clear why Daly chose to be the first to go back into production, Nikki Finke of Deadline Hollywood Daily reported yesterday that the resuming talks between the writers' union and the producers may have already been fruitful and the end of the strike is in sight.

It is still not clear when the other talk show hosts would go back to work, but if reports about a deal between the WGA and the AMPTP are accurate, it may happen sooner rather than later.

For the time being, the networks are trying to be creative with their repeats - NBC pulled out of their archives vintage episodes of the Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

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