Harlan Help Us! Mr. Ellison Could Teach the WGA a Thing or Two About Negotiation

The great writer Harlan Ellison -- who loathes being pigeonholed into the category of being strictly a "science fiction" author -- has never been shy about letting his opinions be known. For that reason, he was one of the late Tom Snyder's favorite guests. And it happens that one of Ellison's pet peeves is the plight of the writer, namely the disrespect often heaped onto the profession by too many who see the scribe as entirely disposable.

For that reason, Ellison is in passionate support of the writers strike. He has been doing some picket line walking himself. His cantankerous championing of his ilk is perfectly encapsulated in this sterling and typically brusque clip of the man culled from the forthcoming documentary feature "Dreams With Sharp Teeth" from producer Erik Nelson that eloquently captures the irascible but brilliant Ellison's in-your-face style.

What you'll see in the clip is a little more than three minutes of Ellison going off on one of his characteristic tangents about having received a call from a DVD packager at Warner Bros. who wondered if they might be granted permission to include a filmed interview previously done with him on the disc's bonus material. Ellison says that would be no problem so long as he were paid for the privilege. The woman responds that she was hoping he would agree to let it be used for free since "that's what everyone else is letting us do."

This was the wrong thing to say to Harlan Ellison.

"I sell my soul at the highest rates!" Ellison recalls having declared. "I don't take a piss without getting paid for it!"

Message to WGA president Patric Verrone and his negotiating team: Be sure to include in the guild's list of demands a per-bathroom-visit fee for writers on assignment. And if you're uncertain as to how to get producers to agree to that, give Harlan a jingle.

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give Caesar what belongs to Caesar ..well sort of