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TV and film producer (and ex-agent and manager) Gavin Polone is again drawing attention to himself by making anti-WGA comments on TV while the rest of his ilk stay strategically silent. This time, he’s appeared on CNBC’s Fast Money in a segment called “Trading The Hollywood Strike” warning the writers, “You can’t push around Sumner Redstone and Rupert Murdoch.” But not before urging CNBC listeners to buy media stocks Viacom and CBS. He says WGA support is eroding, thinks the guild doesn’t have much leverage, and believes the writers should take the new AMPTP offer. The last time he did this, a lynch mob of scribes formed. (Well, almost.) “Can’t wait to receive the love from you and your acolytes when it is over,” Gavin emailed me before the segment.
UPDATE: Polone explains himself. ”The reason I’m saying all of this stuff in public, and putting my name to it, is because I think the WGA is mishandling this situation and I do not believe enough members are truly considering much of anything other than what they hear from other members or the leadership. Some do but they are too fearful of being censured by their comrades to speak up. I know this because they send me confidential emails saying so.”
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Isn’t it time for Larry David and Conan O’Brien to denounce Polone’s rhetoric and disassociate themselves from him?
Hey, it’s America. Gavin Polone is allowed to state his opinion.
By the same token, aren’t we writers allowed to come together and make a pact to never work for this guy again?
Sad, isn’t it that only the washed up types like Polone, Mike Ovitz and the will-be-left-behind-when-the-last-helicopter-leaves-the-roof Carson Daley are making anti-WGA comments. I wonder when Omorosa and Carrottop will enter the fray?
You hear John Ridley on NPR Morning Edition Friday? Thought that was pretty uncool.
I’m an independent producer, a dying breed, signatory to the WGA, a “struck company,” getting screwed by this strike and nothing to gain from it, but I’ve never crossed a picket line in my life and think that writers and people who work with writers should keep their mouths shut.
Gavin should be admired for not being any old industry jerkoff, but an exceptional jerkoff among jerkoffs.
I’m sure the AMPTP has made all kinds of promises and inducements to Gavin in exchange for shucking-and-jiving for them, but what writer is going to work with this guy when the strike is over?
So Gavin Pallone deserves the millions he’s made off of everyone else’s backs, including numerous members of the Guild, but writers should have taken the first crappy offer from the AMPTP regardless of how insulting it was. Regardless of how much it shut them out of their own futures.
Gavin’s an extremely successful manager. I can’t imagine that’s how Gavin or any other manager would ever advise one of their clients. Something seems fishy.
One of Gavin Pallone’s top clients is Conan O’Brien. Maybe there’s another agenda here. Conan announced he’s paying his staff NEXT week, but for how long? Until the Carson Daly scandal dies down?
Let’s see how long Conan stays off the air and whether or not he’s the first major host to cross. It looks like NBC is setting the table for his return.
Meanwhile, keep all this in mind as you read comments from Gavin Pallone. Maybe he’s just earning his 10%.
Anonymous
This guy is mental, and inconsequential
He was marginalized after being canned by UTA and knows in the digital age useless parasites like him will be obsolete
He’s clawing for relevance — with his nose pathetically up Redstone’s rear-end, and it’s now a sad spectacle
The studios best pick to bring down the WGA is this tool?
AMPTP is desperate, circling the drain, folks.
Behold how they are pinning hope of victory on the likes of Carson Daly and this polone guy.
Not even worth responding to this guy
The more he speaks, the more he helps WGA.
I’m told by people very close to Gavin that his TV business has collapsed. Where years ago he had 30(!) pilots in production, now he has to implore writers to work with him at all.
So it may be that he’s realized that he has nothing left to lose. He may be angling for a studio or network job. One thing’s for sure: he has an angle somewhere.
Gavin who?
The fact that he appeared in a segment that was basically about how people could make money off the strike should demonstrate pretty clearly where his allegiances lay, and therefore the filter through which to hear anything he has to say about the strike itself.
And what if….nbc uses the strike to break their deal with conan?
are their feet cold or hot about the deal they made with Polone and Conan?
hate jay or love jay it doesn’t matter his numbers are strong. nbc blew it. and everyone knows it. Perhaps ABC will collect on the war spoils.
To SickOfHisCryForAttention:
Agreed. We’ve lost respect for Larry David, being associated with this loser.
To Mr. NoName:
Agreed. However, polone won’t be a player in the coming digital era. Should he manage to squeak up through Rupert Murduch’s butt cheeks though, writers should definitely not work with this guy.
To anotherWGAmember
Agreed. LOL !
Gavin Palone is a parasite. I trust no one is surprised. He knows he can say whatever he wants about writers because there’s lots of them, and few executives who agree to buy TV programs and movies from him. He’s just making sure that the next time he has lunch with them, they believe he acted in their best interest. Let’s be honest, no matter what a writers’ convictions are, no one will not take his phone call if he wants to do business with them.
“You can’t push around Sumner Redstone and Rupert Murdoch.”
No, but apparently you CAN kiss their asses.
It’s funny, because pimps usually try to get the MOST money for their whores, not sell them off cheap.
Conan actually selected this moron to be his rep? I have lost all respect for Conan O’Brien. I will never look at Conan the same way.
Let’s start the list here:
I vow, as a writer of the WGA, to never work for Gavin in any capacity, regardless of how much money or bullshit he throws in my direction.
Anyone else in?
Gavin knows his comments are false — that “morale is low”, that the WGA could have taken the insane deal that was offered on Nov 4 — so it’s not a matter of him simply “shooting from the hip”.
He’s clearly sucking up to the Master, at the price of his own credibility.
How the mighty have fallen.
As lousy as last Thursday’s AMPTP offer was, it was demonstrably better than what they were offering in November. Meaning the strike has already gotten results, and Polone is full of crap, just as he was the last time around. If we had done what he counseled and bent over for the studios in November, we’d be stuck with an even worse framework for Internet and new media compensation for the forseeable future– not that Polone particularly cares.
It doesn’t help things that he’s been absolutely, 100% right so far in terms of predictions.
Not saying I agree with his opinions, but his take on the AMPTP using the talks for PR leverage, and giving us an offer hardly any better than before and not really being stung by the strike at all seem to be on the money, I’m sorry to say.
I just hope his “6 to 9 months” scenario doesn’t play out.
Damn, Gavin, you’ll be sitting down to a second Thanksgiving dinner when you have to eat your words. WGA, forget the viewers and out-of-work employees for a second. Get a great deal fast so you can kick this idiot in the mud.
Why doesn’t the WGA create a petition (a la Pencils Down) of writers who will no longer with Polone once the strike ends?
One ironic consequence of this strike is it has provided a real keyhole into network news and how corrupt and self-serving it is
in a time where network news viewership is plummeting, one wonders why it keeps broadcasting clear propaganda which only alienates viewers
viewers are too sophisticated these days – they spot the propaganda. this is why ratings are down – there are too many other sources for truth online
we know gavin and if these news networks are promoting him as an expert on anything, it casts suspicion on all “experts” who appear on these news channels
Gavin may be right about where things are heading.
But the deal we are being offered is horrendous and it will, over time, destroy the WGA and hurt the quality of life of writers… and actors… and teamsters, for that matter (they depend on residuals for their pension fund).
What kind of coward would accept that without a fight?