What the top tier earns is the engine that pulls everyone else along.

They studio were flabbergasted when they discovered how interested everybody was in 'those old people.' And now many upcoming projects feature older people; it's become a trend.

I do feel that the trend is away from ageism and toward a recognition that older people have a unique voice.

Unlike any other form of writing, the stories of episodic television require the blended imagination, talent, and tenacity of a staff of writers,

We've heard stories of people breaking down from the strain, of men and women working from nine in the morning until after midnight with no meal breaks, of location shoots where eight people were required to work in hot trailers meant for four. When asked he had any time off, one plaintiff responded: 'I forget how the day off was supposed to work.' These men and women deserve the basic protections of fair labor standards.

Not only do they have to attain the high creative level of individual writers, they have to do it week after week, often under enormous time pressures.