Writers: Seeking respect, revolution

Eight months ago, in a contemplative moment, Patric M. Verrone, president of the Writers Guild of America, west, sketched out what could have been a script for the collision that wrecked talks between Hollywood's producers and striking writers on Friday. New York Times in the Daily News.

During an interview in his office here, Verrone described the looming negotiations with employers as a confrontation much grander than a simple fight over pay formulas. This battle would be about respect.

Writers, he said, were looking to restore a sense of leverage and status that had been lost as ever-larger corporations took control of the entertainment business. He described Hollywood as teetering on the brink of a dark age, as far as creative types were concerned. "I think if they could do this business without us, they would, and so making our task as mechanical and simple and low-paying and unartistic as possible," Verrone said.