tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post2105037022551071961..comments2024-03-26T22:42:06.412-07:00Comments on TAG Blog: A Stroll Through Starz MediaSteve Huletthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05537689111433326847noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-2905509461188744382007-10-27T00:05:00.000-07:002007-10-27T00:05:00.000-07:00Unless I'm wrong,the new Sup. Dir. of the Simpsons...Unless I'm wrong,the new Sup. Dir. of the Simpsons is MIKE Anderson, not Bob.. <BR/>What happened to Kirkland sucks -- he was scape-goated big time.<BR/>He's a great guy and did not deserve this.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-38810364561251633192007-10-26T00:53:00.000-07:002007-10-26T00:53:00.000-07:00Bob Anderson is now the Supervising Director on Th...Bob Anderson is now the Supervising Director on The Simpsons.<BR/><BR/>Steve,<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the info. I doubt Kirkland would complain about his circumstances, or take action against it. I just wanted to know if anything could be done for future references. I was just using Kirkland as an example. <BR/><BR/>As you know, lots of artists are timid and accept such abuse as routine.J. J. Hunseckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04067327948394872768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-31686152111699271962007-10-25T22:32:00.000-07:002007-10-25T22:32:00.000-07:00I heard Mark KirkLand was only demoted back to dir...<I>I heard Mark KirkLand was only demoted back to director from supervising director, not fired?</I> <BR/><BR/>Didn't Mark Kirkland take over as Supervising Director because David Silverman and few other directors left to do the movie? Since the movie's over, it would make sense that Mark would step down, and let David take over again.<BR/><BR/>But who knows?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-10577871342676420322007-10-25T22:31:00.000-07:002007-10-25T22:31:00.000-07:00From what I understand, there are no write-ups or ...<I>From what I understand, there are no write-ups or warnings from Gracie Films or Matt Groening.</I><BR/><BR/>The fired artist need only contact us, and we can start a Step One grievance.Steve Huletthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05537689111433326847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-34178493517261204042007-10-25T22:01:00.000-07:002007-10-25T22:01:00.000-07:00Sherri Gunther, oh my God! Why did you bring up th...Sherri Gunther, oh my God! Why did you bring up that name? Yikes!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-64910884701701589342007-10-25T21:53:00.000-07:002007-10-25T21:53:00.000-07:00"Even with a c.b.a. in place, people get laid off ...<I>"Even with a c.b.a. in place, people get laid off and fired all the time. A company just has to write a person up about the infraction, wait a week, then write them up again. And it's adios."</I><BR/><BR/>Steve, <BR/><BR/>From what I understand, there are no write-ups or warnings from Gracie Films or Matt Groening. They pressure Film Roman to fire the artist in question instantly, no questions asked. <BR/><BR/>Years ago Brooks and company wanted Gabor Csupo to fire Sherri Gunther (sp?) and when he refused the Simpsons was taken away from his studio and awarded to Film Roman. I'm sure the people at Film Roman remember that lesson.J. J. Hunseckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04067327948394872768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-57513528519031931882007-10-25T21:26:00.000-07:002007-10-25T21:26:00.000-07:00"I heard Mark KirkLand was only demoted back to di...<I>"I heard Mark KirkLand was only demoted back to director from supervising director, not fired?"</I><BR/><BR/>I hope that's true, but the person who told me he was fired also told me that Film Roman had a party for his last day there. They also said that Kirkland was very gracious and showed no sign of being upset.J. J. Hunseckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04067327948394872768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-42227970807408561752007-10-25T17:13:00.000-07:002007-10-25T17:13:00.000-07:00I heard Mark KirkLand was only demoted back to dir...I heard Mark KirkLand was only demoted back to director from supervising director, not fired?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-61689062242604599492007-10-25T17:11:00.000-07:002007-10-25T17:11:00.000-07:00Speaking of The Simpsons, does a company like Grac...<I>Speaking of The Simpsons, does a company like Gracie Films have to abide by TAG rules? </I><BR/><BR/>TAG has no contract with Gracie Films. Only with Starz Media.<BR/><BR/>Even with a c.b.a. in place, people get laid off and fired all the time. A company just has to write a person up about the infraction, wait a week, then write them up again. And it's adios.<BR/><BR/>Sometimes we fight dismissals successfully. Other times not. Depends on the circumstance.Steve Huletthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05537689111433326847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-80914608129521962722007-10-25T16:37:00.000-07:002007-10-25T16:37:00.000-07:00Mark Kirkland was recently fired, even though he h...<I>Mark Kirkland was recently fired, even though he had been with the show for years.</I><BR/><BR/>Mark was with the show from Season One, I believe.<BR/><BR/>Tinseltown can be -- and often is -- a cold, brutal place.Steve Huletthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05537689111433326847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-11732584474715945462007-10-25T12:34:00.000-07:002007-10-25T12:34:00.000-07:00Matt threw a tantrum during the color screening of...Matt threw a tantrum during the color screening of "Strong Arm of the Ma" because of the way muscular Marge was drawn. From what I hear (and I admit this is all second hand gossip from those who work on the show) Matt wanted the director of the episode fired, even though the "show runner" had already approved of the design months earlier.<BR/><BR/>Mark Kirkland was recently fired, even though he had been with the show for years. In his new postition as supervising director he was blamed by James L. Brooks for the overall dismal look of the show in recent years. (Brooks has suddenly become obsessed with the 3rd season of The Simpson, which he thinks looks the best.) <BR/><BR/>We all know that the directors don't have much creative control on The Simpsons. It rests with the writers and producers (who are usually head writers). The directors have to yeild to their whims. Yet when things go wrong, the artists are usually blamed. Even if Kirkland was to blame, he could have been demoted back to a regular director. (I blame Film Roman for that.) He directed more episodes than just about any other director there, and the writers & producers always seemed happy with his results. It seems to me that Kirkland was made a scapegoat for something beyond his control.J. J. Hunseckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04067327948394872768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-74323443911095888712007-10-25T10:45:00.000-07:002007-10-25T10:45:00.000-07:00I worked on the Simpsons for several years, and kn...I worked on the Simpsons for several years, and know of no one who lost their job because of Matt. In fact, I've never heard of him having a tantrum. More often than not he's defending the artists. <BR/><BR/>Back before the studio was union, all employment was 'at will', and I do know of some people who were fired without warning by people AT the studio. Unless you count what happened to poor Kent Butterworth after the very first show came back from Korea. And I think that was James L. Brooks that had him fired.Christian Romanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13987465637725898569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-45587704193347177502007-10-25T01:47:00.000-07:002007-10-25T01:47:00.000-07:00Steve,Speaking of The Simpsons, does a company lik...Steve,<BR/><BR/>Speaking of The Simpsons, does a company like Gracie Films have to abide by TAG rules? What about someone like Matt Groening? I hear rumors about his tantrums from friends who work on the show. People can lose their jobs if Groening is upset over some aspect of the show, without warning. Is this kosher?J. J. Hunseckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04067327948394872768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22906998.post-30292698331445107952007-10-24T20:28:00.000-07:002007-10-24T20:28:00.000-07:00Now that KOTH's good till the end of the season, w...Now that KOTH's good till the end of the season, we want our ping pong table back!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com