The SAG Strike Saga

Paralysis is fast setting in. Just as the scripted TV biz was
starting to get out from under the upheaval caused by the writers
strike, the threat of a work stoppage by actors has studios and nets
making contingency plans for the upcoming season.The majors are putting the brakes on production starts for features and TV pilots for fear that the Screen Actors Guild will call a strike following the June 30 expiration date of its feature-primetime deal.

For now, the landscape's already unsettled in TV - although, in an
unintended result of the writers strike, the work stoppage may have
helped the nets' contingency plans for a potential SAG strike. That's
because some shows weren't brought back in midseason, giving the nets
and studios a jump on fall.As a result, skeins like NBC's
"Heroes" and ABC's "Dirty Sexy Money" were able to start shooting in
early May. Several procedural dramas barely took a break before firing
things back up in May, including "CSI," "Without a Trace" and "Cold
Case." Other shows that never really shut down or didn't power down
cameras for long include "House," "ER," "Brothers & Sisters,"
"Chuck" and "Law & Order." CBS comedy tentpole "Two and a Half
Men," resumed production on Monday, as did the net's "The Big Bang
Theory."

Negotiations between SAG and the Alliance of Motion Picture &
Television Producers entered their 31st day Monday with neither side
commenting, though people close to the bargaining stress that progress
has been elusive. Talks are expected to resume today.AFTRA ballots should be hitting member mailboxes this week. High-profile members endorsing the deal include James Cromwell, Jane Curtin and Sally Field; in addition, AFTRA's been sending automated phone calls to members with Cromwell urging a yes vote.

The head of the Screen Actors Guild doesn't want to hear the s-word as a deadline for contract expiration looms.

"We have taken no steps to initiate a strike authorization vote by the members of Screen Actors Guild," Union President Alan Rosenberg said in a statement Sunday. "Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction."

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers has taken out an advertisement in trade publications calling a strike "harmful and unnecessary." Citing $2.8 billion in lost wages, the ad says "We've completed four equitable and forward-thinking labor agreements. Let's get the fifth done."