theRecap: 24 co-creator quits, Bell thanked for not choosing "Lost"

I'll be trying a few things out here at Collegiate on TV, including launching a weeks-end review of television news stories that were, called theRecap. From show news to the television business, there's nothing that can't be remembered. So without any further ado, I present the inaugural edition of theRecap.

- The WGA members voted to end the strike, allowing television show runners to return back to work on Monday and writers on Wednesday. However, it is too late for some shows to return this season. Check here and here to see if your shows will be back in time for May sweeps.

- Joel Surnow, co-creator of 24 and a self-declared "right wing nut job" has left the real-time thriller to find other projects, perhaps in cable. In other 24 news, FOX is going ahead and having the rest of season seven filmed, with all 24 episodes to air probably in January, 2009.

- Lost will film 5 more episodes for the season. But instead of finishing airing the 8 episodes they have finished now, ABC will only show 7, and then come back for May with 6 episodes total. Make sense? The show will also air at 10 p.m., right after Grey's Anatomy when it returns from it's hiatus. Also, Rebecca Mader thanks Kristin Bell for not working on Lost.

- The Oscars will go forward as originally planned. Translation? People will still find it boring, pretentious and utterly worthless. (But I made some predictions that better come true!)

The rest of the rest:
- Being a Deal or No Deal model is tough business!
- Showrunner from My Name is Earl worked at a fast food joint during the strike.
- Carson Daly's staff gets cut down.
- Donald Trump's talk show is delayed again.

Strike News

When there is an official announcement of anything substantive concerning the WGA strike, we will be sure to bring it to you. But in the meantime, please check out Nikke Finke's Deadline Hollywood Daily, the source for strike news. Any and all strike news you hear on any media outlet comes from Nikki. And right now, she updates every hour or two with the latest news.

UPDATE: Both the WGA East and WGA West meetings went well. There is a 48 hour voting window to stop the strike, and it is expected writers can start working again later on this week, possibly as soon as Wednesday.

WGA: Top source says the end is near

On Feb. 2, 2008, Entertainment Weekly magazine posted some very encouraging news. According to close source, the WGA and AMTPT may soon come to an end on their fourth-month long brawl. I would say Hallelujah, but EW warns we shouldn't get our hopes up just yet. Still, the thought of a full season of Lost and the return of the beautiful Ned on the lovely hit Pushing Daises has my heart all aflutter. Here's to hoping they break out the pens & contracts soon.

Read the news brief below:

Good news from the picket lines? A source close to the negotiations says a tentative deal has been reached between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. A meeting is scheduled for Monday to tie up the final details. Both sides have been conducting informal negotiations under a shroud of secrecy for several days so their chief negotiators could finally bring an end to the ongoing labor dispute, now in its third month. There's been a press blackout on the talks, though the WGA has continued to announce interim deals with Hollywood independent producers.

The WGA has not publicly commented on the latest developments. In fact, on Sunday EW obtained an e-mail sent to the writers by WGA West president Patric Verrone and WGA East president Michael Winship, urging the membership to "disregard rumors about either the existence of an agreement or its terms."

"We are still in talks and do not yet have a contract," the e-mail continues. "When and if a tentative agreement is reached, the first thing we will do is alert our membership." Verrone also said that picketing will resume Monday.