The Writers: A History of American Screenwriters and Their Guild

The Writers

The Writers

A History of American Screenwriters and Their Guild

MIRANDA J. BANKS

RUTGERS UNIVERSITY PRESS

NEW BRUNSWICK, NEW JERSEY, AND LONDON

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

Banks, Miranda J., 1972–

The writers : a history of American screenwriters and their Guild / Miranda J. Banks.

   pages    cm

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978–0–8135–7139–3 (hardcover : alk. paper) — ISBN 978–0–8135–7138–6 (pbk. : alk. paper) — ISBN 978–0–8135–7140–9 (e-book)

1. Motion picture authorship—United States—History.   2. Writers Guild of America—History.   3. Motion picture industry—Employees—Labor unions—United States.   4. Television broadcasting—Employees—Labor unions—United States.   5. Screenwriters—United States—Interviews.   I. Title.

PN1996.B382   2015

812'.0309—dc23

2014014280

A British Cataloging-in-Publication record for this book is available from the British Library.

Material used in
chapter 5
was originally published in a much abbreviated form in “The Picket Line Online: Creative Labor, Digital Activism, and the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America Strike,” in
Popular Communication
8 (2010): 20–33. Small portions of the Introduction were published in “Oral History and Media Industries,” in
Cultural Studies
8 no. 4 (2014).

Copyright © 2015 by Miranda J. Banks

All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. Please contact Rutgers University Press, 106 Somerset Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08901. The only exception to this prohibition is “fair use” as defined by U.S. copyright law.

Visit our website:
http://rutgerspress.rutgers.edu

Visit the author’s website:
http://www.mirandabanks.tv

Manufactured in the United States of America

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Abbreviations Used in the Text

Introduction

1
. The Artist Employee

2
. Two Front Lines

3
. The Infant Prodigy

4
. Mavericks

5
. Confederation

Conclusion

Appendix A: Screenwriters and Selected Credits

Appendix B: Methodology

Notes

Bibliography

Index

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This book is a labor of love. At every point in this process I have been astonished by the support and generosity that I have received along the way. I am grateful to the wise and witty writers whom I interviewed, as well as to those who sat for interviews in 1978 for the Writers Guild Oral History Project. Every writer I approached agreed to be interviewed. I am not sure whether I am just incredibly lucky or have found the ideal subjects for research—probably both. The Writers Guild of America, both East and West Boards, and current and former employees have been wonderful resources. I am indebted to Geoff Betts for his help early on in securing interviews. The Writers Guild Foundation (WGF) is an invaluable resource, and it has become my home away from home the past five years. When I told Karen Pedersen, then the director of the Foundation’s Shavelson-Webb Library, about my book project, she said, “Thank goodness someone is writing this book,” and readily opened the vaults to me. The WGF Executive Board and Executive Director Katie Buckland have indulged my many requests. WGF Director of the Archive Joanne Lammers has been a dream partner as we combed through the archives, searching for and sharing the treasures we found. Javier Barrios and Idene Field steered me through boxes of documents, and Kevin Ott, Chris Kartje, Sandy Allyn, and Eva Gross kept me laughing during those many hours of research. Further thanks go to the WEA and WGF, as well, for granting me access to photographs from its collection for use in this book, including the two photographs on the cover.

John Caldwell continues to be my best guide to what it means to be a scholar and a professor. I am in my second decade of membership in the Cult of Caldwell, and my affection for him as a researcher, as a teacher, and as a human being continues to grow. His unwavering support through the years defines the meaning of mentorship. Jim Hosney was the first teacher who
fostered my love of film and film analysis. His intellectual zeal for cinema ignited my own. I remember the day that I went to Anne Friedberg and Howard A. Rodman and told them my idea of writing a history of the Writers Guild. Anne is this book’s guardian angel, and Howard has been her counterpart on the ground, willingly opening doors and mentoring me through this project.

The Writers
started when I was a visiting assistant professor at the University of Southern California in the School of Cinematic Arts. There I found a wonderful mentor and friend, Ellen Seiter. Early conversations and research with her were instrumental in forming this book project. I continued to develop this research for the Nordic Media Festival and the DigiCult conference; thanks to Helle Sjøvaag and Jostein Gripsrud, respectively, for their early interest in this work. I am lucky to have found amazing support at Emerson College, in particular from Amy Ansell, Kristin Lieb, Peter Flynn, Linda Reisman, Eric Gordon, Jean Stawarz, Jim Macak, Jane Shattuc, Matt Finn, Bob Fleming, Donna Heiland, the Emerson Engagement Lab, and my VM402 seminar students. This research was funded in part by grants from the Emerson College Faculty Advancement Fund. A number of scholars offered valuable insight along the way, in particular Thomas Schatz, Vicki Mayer, Deborah Jaramillo, Alisa Perren, Allison Perlman, Bridget Conor, Nina Huntemann, Suzanne Leonard, Bambi Haggins, and Jennifer Holt. I learned a great deal from the faculty fellowships I was awarded through the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the National Association of Television Producers and Executives, as well as from the access I was granted by Rob Owen to the 2007 Television Critics Association press tour.

Leslie Mitchner has been the ideal editor for this book. She immediately understood the project and helped usher it through the review and publication process with enthusiasm and sage advice. I owe great thanks to the editorial board and staff at Rutgers University Press. My anonymous readers revealed themselves along the way. Many thanks to Andrew Horton for his thoughtful evaluation. Charles Wolfe was the perfect reader for this project; with his detailed notes, it has become a stronger book. I’m so grateful to Aidan O’Donohue, a talented artist and art director, who designed my cover.

Three gifted writers assisted me with this project. Gabrielle Banks was a phenomenal researcher and editor, providing essential help at critical junctures. Mojie Crigler not only transcribed dozens of interviews for me, but also devoted hours to discussing the insights we gathered from these tapes.
Alexandra Sear came late to this project, but was integral to finalizing the manuscript. I could not have dreamed of a better support team.

My friends have kept me sane, healthy, and laughing during the many years of researching and writing. In particular, I want to thank Andrea Crossan, Melissa Silverman, Joe Epstein, Jennifer Holt, Rodolfo Fernández, Claudia Bestor, Kirstin Henninger, Matt Ackley, Eloise Lawrence, Marisa Milanese, Max Brooks, and Roberta Chávez. Melissa Clark and Abbie Schiller have not only been dear friends for many years, but they also put their reputations on the line to help me with this project. Surviving the writing process was made easier through the help of Beverly Moy, Kerry Reynolds, Michelle Specht, Shannon MacDonald, Lara Traeger, and Susan Gorton. I would also like to thank Alvin Sargent, who wisely told me during my interview with him to keep getting my check-ups.

This book is dedicated to my family: Sherry Banks instilled in me a love of brilliant writers, great characters, fabulous stories, and the written word. Jeff Banks still makes me laugh more than the great comedy writers I interviewed. My grandmother, Geraldine Janis, was the first person to delight me with stories of old Hollywood. Julia and Benjamin Rosenfeld and Jonah and Gracie Banks make my time away from work much more fun. Barry Gittelson, Gavriel Rosenfeld, and Sharmon Goodman continually have encouraged my love of Los Angeles as a cultural and historic city. Erika Banks and Gabrielle Banks continue to guide me, inspire me, and ground me.

ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THE TEXT

The Writers

Introduction