Patric Verrone, Betsy Thomas Re-Elected to WGA West Board

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentLess than two months after Beirut was blasted by one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions ever recorded, director Nadine Labaki has taken to the streets of the Lebanese capital with her camera. “I don’t know where it’s going to lead, or if it will ever lead anywhere,” says Labaki, whose latest film, the Oscar-nominated “Capernaum,” shed light on Beirut’s preexisting desperation.

Jordan Moreau Thomas Jefferson Byrd, an actor in several of Spike Lee’s films, was killed in Atlanta on Saturday, the Atlanta Police Department confirmed to Variety.On Saturday, Atlanta police officers were dispatched to 2259 Belvedere Ave., responding to a call about an injured person at 1:45 a.m. Upon arrival, officers located Byrd lying unresponsive at the location.

David Robb Labor EditorSaying that the entertainment industry is — and long has been — “operating in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act,” Catherine Clinch, chair of the WGA West’s Career Longevity Committee, has penned a scathing open letter to the industry on behalf of her committee demanding “inclusion and equity” for older writers.“It is a violation of Federal law to discriminate against anyone on the basis of age.

Did John Brown, the infamous abolitionist who led the 1859 raid on Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, really take a cross-dressing teenage slave under his wing and name him Onion? No, not at all. “The Good Lord Bird,” which never purports itself as a true retelling, opens each episode with the tagline “All of this is true.

David Robb Labor EditorMichael Schur, creator of The Good Place and Parks and Recreation, is urging his fellow writers to donate to the WGA West’s political action committee to help “flip the Senate and bring in bold leaders who will check the power of the Supreme Court.”“You undoubtedly already know how far Mitch McConnell and the party of Trump will go to enshrine their far-right agenda,” he said in a message sent out today to the guild’s members.

David Robb Labor EditorThey didn’t get Election Day as a paid holiday in their recent contract negotiations, but the WGA West board of directors is calling on “all networks and production companies to give every member of cast and crew a paid day off on November 3rd.”Here is the guild’s message to members:“As writers, we get to make our voices heard on the page.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- A teenage singer from Lebanon this week became the latest to join a global pop band formed by Simon Fuller, the man behind the Spice Girls and “American Idol,” which aims to transform young unknowns into internet superstars.That may seem a grandiose ambition during a global pandemic.

If you talk to your Grandma or someone who doesn’t know a Jedi from a Klingon, the idea that there is a deep-rooted feud between fandoms of “Star Wars” and “Star Trek” is obviously silly. They are completely different franchises with different themes, different stories, and very different goals.

Amid a standoff with two major talent agencies, the Writers Guild of America West unveiled the results of its annual election for its leadership on Monday. Candidates that have been elected to two-year terms to the guild's board of directors include Betsy Thomas, Deric A.

The Writers Guild of America West announced on Monday the results of its 2020 Board of Directors Election, with seven of the race’s eight incumbents being re-elected.The 2020 Board members are Betsy Thomas, Deric A. Hughes, Ashley Gable, Patti Carr, David Slack, Travis Donnelly, Patric M.

Greg Evans Associate Editor/Broadway CriticWriters Guild of America West has announced the results of its 2020 Board of Directors election, with eight members elected for two-year terms.Of the eight, only one – Eric Haywood – is a non-incumbent.The elected members include Haywood, Betsy Thomas, Deric A. Hughes, Ashley Gable, Patti Carr, David Slack, Travis Donnelly and Patric M.