SAG-AFTRA Buys New Headquarters in North Hollywood for $46 Million

Prince Harry is gearing up to fly back to the UK from America for the coronation of his father, King Charles III next week.The Duke of Sussex's relationship with the King is understood to be difficult at the moment after he and his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, moved to California in an effort to distance themselves from the British Royal family - and later made various accusations criticising the way Senior Royals had treated them over the years. But the most Senior Royal of all, the late Queen Elizabeth II, had a close relationship with Prince Harry - and certainly, he'll be feeling mixed emotions when he returns to Westminster Abbey for his father's coronation, the same Abbey where the Queen's funeral was held last September.The Queen sadly passed away just a week before the Duke of Sussex's 38th birthday in September, 2022 - so Prince Harry never received a Happy Birthday message from her on the day.

On the eve of a threatened writers’ strike, SAG-AFTRA is advising its members that they should “continue to work” in the event of a writers’ strike, which could come as soon as Monday night at midnight.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Here we are at the precipice of an uncertain yet familiar place. The question of whether the TV and film industry will be shut down by labor action will be answered one way or another by the time Monday ends on the West Coast. In broad strokes, the Writers Guild of America and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers face one of three basic outcomes as the WGA contract expires at midnight PST. Behind Door No. 1 – the sides reach a tentative agreement. Door No. 2 — they agree on a short-term extension, which is unlikely but could be anything from 12 hours to 12 days, or more. Door No. 3 – the talks are called off by one side or the other — or both — and picketing ensues in Los Angeles and New York on May 2.

SAG-AFTRA has once again – and for the last time – extended its dues-relief program for members experiencing Covid-related financial hardship. The union first began offering Covid dues relief in March 2020 during the earliest days of the pandemic. All along, however, it has encouraged members who can pay on time to do so.

SAG-AFTRA and the Joint Policy Committee of the advertising industry have agreed to end their Covid safety protocols for commercial productions effective May 11.

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Celebrating the 10 th anniversary of her hit “Brave,” Sara Bareilles has announced the “Brave Gowns Collection,” a series of garments for children’s hospitals in partnership with the California-based company of the same name, started by Summer Germann, who lost her own younger brother to cancer.  The collection includes a line of colorful hospital gowns for children intended to provide an alternative to traditional patient wardrobe. Dupporters can gift these gowns to children in hospitals across the United States or contribute a donation of any amount. Head here for more information. Bareilles said, “Over the years, I have seen healthcare communities adopt ‘Brave’ as an anthem — weaving my song into all kinds of stories of patients and their families as they face different challenges and continue to meet each moment with resilience and grace. I am so inspired by the very difficult work being done on the front lines by our health care facilitators and hospital staff and especially by the young patients in hospitals all over the country showing up every single day, even when it’s hard, with bravery and strength. This collection is meant to remind them all HOW BIG THEIR BRAVE IS and how much we love them!”

began on March 20 with several issues that needed to be addressed. At the top of the list was the issue of compensation for streaming TV shows and films and the abuse of mini-rooms in which studios require writers with a TV show pitch to assemble a writers’ room at scale pay to produce scripts before the pitch is even greenlit.More than 9,000 WGA members voted on April 17 to authorize their leaders to order a strike if a deal was not met and a drastic change was not in the future.

William Earl SAG-AFTRA’s national board has lent its support to the WGA as the latter guild buckles down for a last sprint of negotiations next week in the days leading up to the May 1 expiration of film and TV writers’ master contract with Hollywood’s major employers. “SAG-AFTRA stands strongly in support and solidarity with the members of the Writers Guild of America who are engaged in contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. It is long past time for the studios, streamers, and other employers in the entertainment industry to remove roadblocks to fair and equitable wages and working conditions, and to agree to terms that reflect the unique worth and contribution of creative talent and workers, without whom the industry would not exist,” read a resolution passed Saturday by a unanimous vote of SAG-AFTRA’s national board.

SAG-AFTRA’s National Board voted unanimously today to approve a resolution “strongly in support” of the WGA in its ongoing negotiations for a new film and TV contract. “It is long past time for the studios, streamers, and other employers in the entertainment industry to remove roadblocks to fair and equitable wages and working conditions,” the resolution states, “and to agree to terms that reflect the unique worth and contribution of creative talent and workers, without whom the industry would not exist.”

An eye-catching property that you wouldn't expect to find near Greater Manchester is now on the market - and it is worth a whopping £2,495,000. The brand new five-bed residence resembles a home you would typically see in Hollywood, and it's got all the luxury features to go with it too.

Donald Trump still collects a hefty retirement income from his entertainment-industry past, according to financial disclosure forms that he submitted this week to qualify for the 2024 presidential election.The former president receives between $100,000 and $1 million in yearly pension from the Screen Actor’s Guild. The details were first disclosed on the Citizens for Ethics website on Friday.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer SAG-AFTRA will begin negotiations on a new basic agreement on June 7, the union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers announced on Thursday. The union will be the third to enter bargaining this year, after the Writers Guild of America and the Directors Guild of America. The SAG-AFTRA contract expires on June 30, leaving time for just a few weeks of talks before the deadline. “Both the AMPTP and SAG-AFTRA are approaching this process as an opportunity to engage in thoughtful and interactive conversations that result in a mutually-beneficial deal,” the union and the AMPTP said in a joint statement on Thursday.

SAG-AFTRA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents the studios in labor talks, announced on Thursday that negotiations on a new bargaining agreement will begin on June 7. “Both the AMPTP and SAG-AFTRA are approaching this process as an opportunity to engage in thoughtful and interactive conversations that result in a mutually beneficial deal,” the two sides said in a joint statement.

SAG-AFTRA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have agreed to begin formal contract negotiations on June 7. The guild’s current contract expires June 30.

The Washboard Union recently released the new single “I Run for Country”, and now they’ve unveiled a music video for the hard-driving track with an outlaw country feel.

season 12, was belting out Ed Sheeran's new single, «Eyes Closed,» when the 32-year-old British singer-songwriter surprised Yung and joined in on the performance.«Oh wow!» Yung said as he realized Sheeran had walked up behind him.The two artists hugged and snapped photos together as a camera crew was following Sheeran.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer SAG-AFTRA announced Tuesday that it has bought an office building in North Hollywood for $46.6 million and plans to relocate its headquarters there in the next few years. The performers’ union has been renting its headquarters in the Museum Square building in the mid-Wilshire area. In 2015, the guild extended its lease into 2026. Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union’s executive director, said in a statement that the new building will provide more space and better facilities, and that the union will save money over the long run by owning instead of renting. The new building is at 12020 Chandler Blvd., adjacent to a stop on the Orange Line busway and a few blocks from the NoHo Arts District. The building is currently home to Pilgrim Media Group and Screen Engine/ASI.

SAG-AFTRA has bought an office building in the San Fernando Valley for $46.6 million that will serve as its new national headquarters. Located at 12020 Chandler Blvd. in North Hollywood, the property features more than 118,000 square feet of commercial office space and includes the building on 1.22 acres and a nearby 0.71-acre vacant lot.

class action lawsuit filed in December 2020 by 10 members of the actors guild, including the late former SAG president Ed Asner, who died in 2021.As part of the agreement, SAG-AFTRA will pay $15 million to older members of SAG-AFTRA who lost their coverage in the guild’s health plan due to changes made in 2020 that raised the amount of annual earnings required to qualify for the plan and removing members’ ability to count residuals towards that earnings threshold. The trustees of the health plan at the time said that such changes were necessary to keep the health plan solvent, as the plan’s funds were falling during the COVID-19 pandemic and were projected to run out by 2024.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer The SAG-AFTRA Health Plan announced on Monday that it has agreed to pay $15 million to older performers who lost health coverage due to eligibility changes made in 2020. Under a settlement agreement, the health plan will also pay up to $5.6 million over the next eight years to older performers who no longer qualify for coverage. The settlement resolves a class action lawsuit filed in December 2020 by Ed Asner, a former SAG president, and nine other performers. Asner and the other plaintiffs alleged that the plan had discriminated against older members by raising the earnings floor to qualify for health benefits and excluding residuals from the earnings threshold. The plaintiffs said the change forced nearly 12,000 participants off the plan.