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A&E Greenlights Boston Teamsters Reality Pilot Produced By Mark Wahlberg

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Wednesday March 7, 2012 @ 8:22am PSTTags: A&E, Mark Wahlberg, Teamsters
Nellie Andreeva

Mark Wahlberg Pilot A&EEXCLUSIVE: The world that provided fictional backdrop to such films as The Fighter and The Departed, will come to life in a new unscripted project at A&E executive produced by Departed star and The Fighter star/producer Mark Wahlberg. Tentatively titled Teamsters, the project, which has received a pilot order, features the Teamsters Local 25 in Boston. Wahlberg is executive producing with Stephen Levinson, Kevin Harrison and Bill Thompson. “A&E strives to remain ahead of the curve while delivering first-class auspices to our audience,” said Bob DeBitetto, President and General Manager, A&E and BIO Channel. “We’re so proud to collaborate with this group of producers and offer an authentic point of view from the unique characters this world provides.”

Teamsters – produced by Wahlberg’s Closest to the Hole, Levinson’s Leverage and Harrison’s Transition Prods — provide a first-hand glimpse of the legendary union in the most aggressive and territorial city in America: Boston. Here, the Teamsters Local 25 battle for the rights of their 11,000 members. “We believe A&E is the perfect venue to create a cutting-edge show that promises to be like nothing else on television,” Levinson said. READ MORE »

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UPDATE: Teamsters & IATSE To Picket ’1,000 Ways To Die’ Monday

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Friday February 24, 2012 @ 2:22pm PSTTags: 1000 Ways To Die, IATSE, Original Productions, Spike TV, Teamsters

Unions Plan Strike Against Spike TV’s ’1,000 Ways To Die’

Dominic Patten is a Deadline contributor

UPDATED: Teamsters Local 399 business agent/organizer Steven Dayan said the action is series producer Original Productions’ own fault. “This is a company that has not communicated with us at all,” he told Deadline. “Our understanding is that Original Productions are crewing up again and that they are going to attempt to shoot again.” Production on the Spike TV series, now in its fourth season, came to a halt February 16 when Original fired more than two dozen crew members seeking union protection. Original also produces the reality series Deadliest Catch, Storage Wars and Ice Road Truckers. “This is a company, when it comes to safety, to health benefits, to the people who made their show a success, do not do things the way they should,” Dayan said. “It is a recipe for abusing people. The bottom line is that’s wrong and that is why we will be picketing on Monday.” Here’s the release announcing the action:

LOS ANGELES – Last Thursday, February 16, the crew of Spike Television’s series “1000 Ways to Die” voted unanimously to support the IATSE in securing them benefits, safe working conditions, and collective bargaining rights.

Original Productions, who also produce reality shows such as “Ice Road Truckers” and “Deadliest Catch” for Discovery, refused to recognize the IA as the bargaining unit and summarily fired the crew, numbering over 25 employees.  The production has been down for the past week.

Begainning at 8:30 a.m. this coming Monday, Feb. 27, , IATSE and Teamster leaders, the LA County AFL-CIO and rank and file members of several production locals will join the union and non-union crew of “1000 Ways to Die” to walk the picket line in front of Original’s production facility at 2435 Naomi Street, Burbank, CA 91504.

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