What started out as a blaze that claimed a misshapen animatronic ape and a city pseudo-block on the Universal backlot is growing almost by the hour into something a lot costlier than the studio originally let on. First there were the Universal Music Group masters lost to fiery eternity (but they were already "transferred digitally," so, you know, whatever), and as alluded to by an astute Defamer commenter earlier today, a whole archive of film prints were rumored to be lost as well.

Hollywood's screenwriters—members of the Writers Guild—have authorized a strike in the event they don't reach an agreement with producers by the time their contract expires on Halloween. This means that on November 1, it is possible that the only useful thing about Los Angeles will cease to exist. The issues on the table are all 2.0 things—they're asking for increases in compensation and residuals for new media, including DVDs, as well as set pay schedules for work distributed over the Internet and cellphone—all stuff you kind of thought they would've figured out by now! According to the Times, producers are "not prepared to address new media until their place and value in the entertainment marketplace are better understood." OK, Dad. Let's all pray for a resolution, or we'll be stuck with reruns for God knows how long—the last strike, in 1988, lasted five months.