It's Monday. Hollywood actors will begin voting tomorrow on a contract with entertainment studios. Plus, APEC arrives in San Francisco. |
 | | SAG-AFTRA members walking the picket line in September. Union members will begin voting on a proposed agreement this week.Mark Abramson for The New York Times |
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For the past several months, production in Hollywood has been at a near standstill. |
In May, thousands of movie and television writers went on strike, calling for better pay amid an explosion of streaming services that have upended the entertainment industry. In July, 160,000 actors joined the action — the first time that Hollywood writers and actors went on strike at the same time since 1960. |
The Writers Guild of America, which represents 11,500 screenwriters, ended its 148-day strike in September after reaching an agreement with studios. |
And last week, SAG-AFTRA, the union representing tens of thousands of actors, reached a tentative deal for a new contract with entertainment companies. That ends what was the longest movie and television strike in the union's 90-year history and clears the way for the $134 billion U.S. movie and television business to swing back into business. |
Fran Drescher, the union's president, highlighted the "extraordinary scope" of the agreement, noting that it included protections around the use of artificial intelligence, higher minimum pay, better health care funding and more. The studio alliance called the deal historic, saying it reflected "the biggest contract-on-contract gains in the history of the union." |
You can read more about the deal here. |
For the Golden State and beyond, the fallout from the dual strikes has been major. |
California's economy alone has lost more than $5 billion, according to Gov. Gavin Newsom. Experts put the nationwide losses at between $6 billion and $10 billion. (While the big studios are based in Los Angeles, they also use soundstage complexes in Georgia, New Jersey, New Mexico and New York.) |
And though writers have been back at work for more than a month, and actors can return to work immediately, getting Hollywood up and running again won't be easy with so many paused and delayed projects restarting at the same time, as my colleague Nicole Sperling reported. |
"It's a bit like all those ships that were stuck in the harbor during Covid because they couldn't offload them fast enough," the producer Todd Garner told Nicole. "They are just going to have to go through the canal one by one, and then it will catch up and resume again." |
And even then, many people in Hollywood remain worried about the long-term prospects for the industry. |
TV networks and streaming platforms ordered 40 percent fewer adult scripted series in the second half of 2022 than in the same period in 2019, Brooks reported. That decrease means cuts for not just the people who work directly on the shows but also for the hundreds of people, including agents, managers, publicists and stylists, who in turn fuel the broader economy. |
"With the strike over, we're all staring down the barrel of a painful structural adjustment that predates the strike," Zack Stentz, a screenwriter with credits like "X-Men: First Class" and "Thor," wrote on social media. "A lot of careers and even entire companies are going to go away over the next year." |
Gain unlimited access to The Times — with just one subscription. Independent reporting. Recipes. Games. Product reviews. Personalized sports journalism. Enjoy it all with an introductory offer. |
 | | Paul Pelosi, the husband of Representative Nancy Pelosi, attended a ceremony for the unveiling of his wife's portrait in Washington in December, less than two months after he was assaulted in their San Francisco home.Pete Marovich for The New York Times |
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- David DePape, 43, faces charges of attempted kidnapping and assault on an immediate family member of a federal official in the 2022 attack against Paul Pelosi.
- As San Francisco struggles to rebound from the pandemic, officials raced to clean up the city before the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference began.Plus, President Biden and President Xi Jinping of China plan to meet at the conference.
- The Democracy Alliance, a powerful network of major liberal donors, will prioritize winning back control of the House for Democrats next year by planning to pour funds into crucial races in New York and California.
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- Fire damage has indefinitely shut down a part of Interstate 10, one of the busiest freeways in Los Angeles.
- A man whose parents are a veteran Hollywood agent and an actress has been charged in the murder of a woman whom investigators believe to be his wife and whose remains were found bagged inside a dumpster in Los Angeles.
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- Bay Area school leaders are scrambling to address the anger, fear and activism driven by the Israel-Hamas war that has pitted teachers, families and students against one another, The San Francisco Chronicle reports.
- San Francisco opened a new tree nursery and education center supported by a California initiative to clean up roads and transit infrastructure, The San Francisco Examiner reports.
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 | | Mount Shasta in Siskiyou County.Nathan Weyland for The New York Times |
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Today's tip comes from Duncan Barr, who lives in San Francisco. Duncan recommends visiting Mount Shasta in Siskiyou County: |
"Marvelous in all four seasons, but the fall is magical. On Highway 5 and four hours from San Francisco and never too crowded for skiing, biking, or swimming/boating in Lake Siskiyou. There are terrific hiking trails throughout the area and five golf courses within 10 miles of Mount Shasta city." |
Tell us about your favorite places to visit in California. Email your suggestions to CAtoday@nytimes.com. We'll be sharing more in upcoming editions of the newsletter. |
I'm thinking about how Californians celebrate Thanksgiving. By the beach? With sourdough stuffing? |
Email your Golden State Thanksgiving traditions to CAtoday@nytimes.com. Please include your full name and the city in which you live. |
 | | A rendering of the new 637,000 square foot, 12.37-megawatt solar carport and energy storage system at Six Flags Magic Mountain. Business Wire/Associated Press |
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And before you go, some good news |
A major solar energy project is planned for Six Flags Magic Mountain in Southern California. |
The project, announced by the amusement park this month, is a 12.37-megawatt solar carport — essentially an open-sided canopy — to be constructed over the main parking lot used by the park's guests and staff members. |
The solar structure would both store and produce electric energy and help decrease pollution, KTLA 5 reports. It is expected to produce about as much electricity in a year as that consumed by 2,874 homes, the station said. |
The project, said to be the largest commercial solar installation on a single site in the state, would be the third in the Six Flags chain, after those at the company's parks in Vallejo and Jackson Township, N.J. |
Thanks for reading. I'll be back tomorrow. — Soumya |
Maia Coleman and Briana Scalia contributed to California Today. You can reach the team at CAtoday@nytimes.com. |
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