press

In the WGA West board election results announced Tuesday, guild members gave a strong endorsement to the board’s stance of maintaining an assertive posture toward the congloms.  The highest vote totals went to incumbents and first-time candidates, many of them young by WGAW board member standards, who played prominent roles during the strike.

STORY CONTINUES HERE:  www.variety.com/article/VR1117992699.html

11 august 2008

Guest Commentary: ‘Wives’ Puts a Face on Military’s Unsung Heroes

By Katherine Fugate

Knock. Knock. Knock.

“I regret to inform you that your husband (name, rank, Social Security number) is dead.”

That’s what first drew me to the world of “Army Wives”: the realization that the women depicted live under the daily fear that they’ll get a knock on the door from one of the “suited ones” or the Casualty Assistance Officers, who could park their sedan in their driveway any time between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. daily.

Perhaps that intrigue stems from my childhood obsession with the Shirley Jackson short story “The Lottery.” It’s all random. You draw the X—you get stoned. You fall in love with a soldier—you get the knock.

“Army Wives” has succeeded where other war-themed shows have not because everyone, civilian and military families alike, can relate to the sacrifices we make for love. Because at its core, “Army Wives” is about love: love of our families, our friends, our country.

We’ve all seen the news footage: the emotional homecomings when soldiers return, the flags waving, the father meeting his child—who is now a toddler—for the first time. But what happens behind closed doors? When the cameras turn away and we’re left with a family that has been torn apart and now must put itself back together again?

“Army Wives” puts a face on the military. We go straight to the heart of the personal drama of their otherwise public lives.

There will always be critics of any current war, any president, any administrative policy. But in our military culture, you fight your country’s wars regardless of your personal political views.

In season one, Claudia Joy Holden (Kim Delaney), the brigadier general’s wife, gives a speech on the Fourth of July.

“I have had to put my personal opinions aside in order to truly understand that defenders of our freedom are fighting a bigger battle,” she says. “Their battle goes beyond politics, religion, race or gender. They are the defenders of us all. They are the defenders of our differences.”

Then she goes on to remind us “to look beside each soldier to find the people who fight beside them. The spouses. The sons, the daughters. We serve, too. We share the victories. We share the defeats. Together, we all fight for our freedom.”

Sure, “Army Wives” has the affairs, the cattiness, the drama that comes from any enclosed community, like ours at fictional Fort Marshall. But we believe our show is more than just entertainment. We believe that on a higher level, we are embracing the stories of real people, of real sacrifice.

I have visited Army posts with Tanya Biank, who authored the book on which the series is based, “Army Wives: The Unwritten Code of Military Marriage.” The show has struck a chord with our military families.

A young Army wife told us she watches each new episode with her husband, who was severely burned from the waist up, as she sits on the edge of his hospital bed. A newly widowed woman, who lost her husband to a sniper attack, told us the series has “saved her life.”

Other wives told us the camaraderie on the show gets them through the long months when their husbands are deployed and they become single mothers, running a household on their own.

They are humbled and surprised by the attention. They are the unsung heroes of the military and our show shines a light on a female perspective of war they’ve never seen before. They’ve told us that now they don’t feel so “alone,” sensing the supportive but unseen hand of the viewers, both civilian and military, watching the show.

The Army is undergoing constant change. We have a male “wife,” who is married to a lieutenant colonel who returns home with post-traumatic stress disorder. That a high-ranking female officer was able to raise her hand and ask for help, in a climate where ordinary people are asked to do extraordinary things and yet hide any chinks in their armor, is a storyline we are all very proud of.

America’s presence in Iraq is controversial. Some might wonder how a show can thrive against that backdrop. But our show isn’t about Iraq. It’s about relationships and people who make sacrifices.

Soldiers will always be deployed. And our troops will always have our full support. Perhaps because our love for the soldiers, who are willing to take a bullet for us, is something we all share.

And now it’s our greatest hope that gratitude will extend to the Army wives themselves—to the men and women who love their soldier spouses so much they’re willing to let them go.

Do I have that strength, that bravery? I don’t know. But I am glad they do.

(scanned article with photos)

31 july 2008

Katherine honored to make Variety's Annual 'Women's Impact Report 2008'

Every year in their Women's Impact Report, Variety spotlights the industry’s femme movers and shakers. They examine how the accomplishments of these individuals have reverberated beyond their own spheres of influence and illustrate why they consider them at the top their game.

This year's list includes Meryl Streep, Diablo Cody, Madonna, Oprah Winfrey, Alyssa Finley, Daphne Briggs, Catherine Zuber, Kathleen Kennedy, P.D. James, Phyllida Lloyd, Sue Naegle and so many more ...

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL LIST OF THESE INSPIRING WOMEN

Katherine Fugate
Women's Impact Report: The Producers

By Caroline Ryder

I remember walking by the Variety building every day with my dog and my picket sign," reminisces screenwriter Katherine Fugate about the WGA strike, recalling just one memory from an extraordinary year that saw her give birth not once, but twice: to a show, and to a baby...

Role model: "In writing, David E. Kelley. In life, my aunt Barbara Eden."

Three things in life I can't do without: "Love. That about covers it all, really. What else is there? And lip balm."

Most important issue facing Americans in this election year: "To restore America's vision of equality, democracy and making a difference to our planet."

Fave leisure activity: "Watching my daughter discover language -- even if it means my precious little buttercup is throwing a tantrum."

Career mantra: "Stay in your light -- and leap."

click here to read more on Katherine's entry ...

i am highly flattered and honored to stand beside such wonderful women.  i shake my head in wonder.  it's a powerful statement about what we can all do if we put our waking minds to something we dream about.  i have had such support here on this site, from mentors along the way and in the community at large.  i certainly haven't done this alone.  thank you all so much.  --katherine

17 july 2008