The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the organization behind the Golden Globe awards, has to return the five million dollars NBC paid it for the rights to the now canceled presentation ceremony. But that dollar amount is just the tip of the financial iceberg.
Due to the ongoing writers strike, NBC will be airing a one-hour awards press conference in place of the traditional Golden Globes ceremony, but the network will lose millions in ad revenue. Variety reports the three-hour awards event usually generates 15 to 20 million dollars in ad revenue for NBC, but advertisers will be paying greatly-reduced rates for spots in the press conference broadcast.
Also, the HFPA and Dick Clark Productions, the company hired to produce the awards event, have already spent between one and two million dollars on sets, lighting, music, crews, red carpet and security. The trade paper says that's money they won't be getting back. Several post-award parties have now been canceled, but many of those organizers have already shelled out money for catering fees and other non-refundable services. Industry insiders say those parties carry price tags as high as 750 thousand dollars.
So, what's the total damage done by the canceled Golden Globes? The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation estimates it could cost the local L.A. economy as much as 80 million dollars. That loss will affect hotels, restaurants, limo companies, stylists, photographers and messengers.
In other Golden Globe news, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced Tuesday it will postpone the presentation of the honorary Cecil B. DeMille Award to STEVEN SPIELBERG until 2009. The honor usually includes film clips and tributes from fellow filmmakers, and the organization decided a scaled-down press conference isn't the proper setting for such an honor.
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