Category: News

Emmy Nominations for this Year have been Announced…

Pride, 2005by Team TVWriter™ Press Service

…And, frankly, the categories and nominations for writing awards as well as everything else (Best Guest Star category? Huh?) are so screwed that it’s impossible for TVWriter™ to take the process seriously this year. (Not that we had all that much respect for how the whole Emmy thing was set up and run before.)

So instead of listing the writing nominees, as we’ve done in years gone by, we suggest you check ’em out at the SOURCE.

Or better yet, don’t bother. read article

Love & Money Dept – TV Writing Deals for 7/10/14

Latest News About Writers Who Are Doing Better Than We Are
by munchman

  • Simon Rich is adapting his book, The Last Girlfriend on Earth, Man Seeking Woman, into a comedy series for FXX. (The show is described as being about a man who “enters the dating scene, a nightmarish hellscape of untold horror.” Hey, they got that right. Now we’ve just got to hope for a few laughs.)
  • Dan Harmon (where have we heard that name before?) is prepping a 6th season of COMMUNITY for Yahoo, of all places, now that the show has been axed once again by NBC. (Which could mean that we’ll have to take Yahoo seriously when it comes to laughter. Um, anybody see what Yer Friendly Neighborhood Munchman did there? Anybody care?)
  • Jeff Pinkner (FRINGE), Josh Appelbaum “>(LIFE ON MARS),Andre Nemec (STAR-CROSSED) and Scott Rosenberg (LIFE ON MARS) are co-writing the pilot for the new CBS drama series, ZOO, based on the novel of the same name by James Patterson & Michael Ledwidge. (Which means a big payday for all the writers involved, you can bet your muncher on that – and also big aggravation for the WGAW credits department, which is not known for its love of 4-person writing teams. As in they’re generally denied.)
  • Bryan Fuller (HANNIBAL) & Michael Green (THE RIVER HEROES, whatever that is) are co-writing a pilot for a Starz series adaptation of Neil Gaiman‘s, um, masterpiece actually, American God. (Which my munchiness would greet with unmitigated pleasure if I hadn’t wanted that gig so #@!$ing much. But this is still the best TV development news I’ve heard since I started writing this department! Fucking AMERICAN fucking GODS!)

Love & Money Dept – TV Writing Deals for 7/4/14

Latest News About Writers Who Are Doing Better Than We Are
by munchman

  • Lodge Kerrigan & Amy Seimetz (newbies who scored big at Sundance this year) are writing and directing the Starz adaptation of a little sex type film directed by Steven Soderburgh called THE GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE. (Which is often referred to as “Steven Soderbergh’s THE GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE even though that film was written by David Levien & Brian Koppleman. Hollywood credits! How can we ever be sure who is or was responsible for what?)
  • Reuben Fleischer (GANGSTER SQUAD) has an overall deal with Universal TV to develop both dramas and comedies. (The big thing about this big deal is that Reuben was first noticed as a writer-director of various Funny or Die.Com videos, once again proving – “Start on the web, young man/woman, by all means start on the web.”)
  • Matt Nix (BURN NOTICE, baby!) has yet another new overall deal at Fox TV, this time to develop cable and broadcast series. (No snark here. Matt’s a bud. We love seeing his success. Have at the sons of bitches, dood!
  • Jim Sharp is the new Executive Vice President of Original Programming & Development at Comedy Central. (And even though he isn’t a writer and therefore doesn’t have his name bolded, we’re rooting for him cuz, well, it’s always nice to cozy up to development head, don’tcha think? In the words of Yer Friendly Neighborhood Munchman, “Hey, ya never know when you’ll find yourself in the croc’s mouth so wouldn’t it be cool to know his name?”
  • As long as I’m munching about network executives (AKA The Enemy), Ken Segna has continued his 4 year climb over at Starz, going from executive assistant to Vice Prez of Original Programming. (munchie lurves a good success story, but here’s the question: Will Ken really be able to give us something “original?” What is “original programming” in the eyes of those in the executive suites anyway?)

DOCTOR WHO Series 8 Starts August 23rd

doctor capaldi

Thought we’d help get the word out. Cuz the way we see it, TV science fiction doesn’t get any better than the Doctor. (And actors don’t get any better than Peter Capaldi.)

Love & Money Dept – TV Writing Deals for 6/27/14

Latest News About Writers Who Are Doing Better Than We Are
by munchman

  • Beatrice Springborn is the new Head of Originals for Hulu’s new Content Department. (So, theoretically, if you know Ms. Springborn and have an original series idea you should ring her up ASAP. Yer Friendly Neighborhood Munchman’s prob, however, is that I can’t for the life of me figure out what “original” means in this context. Nor, for that matter, am I all that sure I trust any company that hands out titles like “Head” instead of, you know, “Vice President” or “Director.” For now I’ll just chalk this up to Hulu trying to be “original.” Which, actually, makes me more confused than ever.)
  • Dana Vachon (MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS) is adapting Stephen Frey‘s novel The Chairman into drama series for Spike TV. (And el muncho sure wishes I could keep track of the Stephen Freys and Frys and whatever cuz I’d love to find some scandal to report but gotta make sure I’m nailing the right guy. Can somebody help me out here?)
  • Nick Kreiss & Ian Wolterstorph (newbies) have sold EAST OF EXURBIA, a fantasy novel about brothers, debauchery, and a magical portal between worlds to X-Box for development as a series. Gotta admit – they had me at “debauchery.”
  • Speaking of debauchery – kidding, kidding, I swear!!! – Carol Mendelsohn (CSI) has left that show after 14 fucking years – not really fucking, I swear!!! – for undivulged reasons. (Which means that if you know her, give me a yell and let me know if something wonderful has happened that will affect TV writing and the future of humanity, or if Carol’s just made so much damn money as showrunner that she’s going to take it easy for the rest of her life, or anything in between. Thank you kindly.)
  • Stephen Scaia (HUMAN TARGET) is Kickstarting a new “love letter to Indiana Jones…featuring Indy’s daughter trying to track down her missing father.” (Does Stephen have the rights to do this as a TV or film project? How about Steven Spielberg’s blessing? Or George Lucas’? Hope not cuz that way, when this gets off the ground (it’s already reached its funding goal), the Lords of Legal Hell will go nuts and Chaos will rule. And you know how munchareeno luvs chaos!