40 were taken out at Reelz Channel yesterday, as they cancelled the one heavily produced show they make, Dailies. Sigh.
As I write, more cuts at Paramount are being made. The NY office is taking the most significant hit versus department size. But jobs that were filled to fill the void left by earlier cuts are now being cut today. Paramount, of course, has a long history under current management of pre-Christmas firings.
You know, I am not terribly sympathetic to the bosses at Paramount these days. But on the other hand, when these firings are reflected in the glow of the Ben Button black-tie premiere the other night... not fair.
The public image and the private pain are always in direct conflict in this industry. People are being fired, in part, for fear of Ben Button losses… but the studio still has to turn every trick it can to make Ben Button work financially… and that includes Oscar… and with that, glamour. More people will consider spending money to go see Ben Button after seeing Pitt and Jolie on that red carpet than via straight ads or trailers.
For a critic, it is an odd thing to think, “I hope Ben Button succeeds,” not (just) because of the film, but because you don’t want to see more good people get slaughtered with no where else to go... people we actually know.
Weird times.
Read the complete post at http://www.mcnblogs.com/thehotblog/archives/2008/12/take_me_away_fr.html