Oh, for fuck's sake - I know you mean well and all Brendan, but sometimes you say things that make me want to slam your head very soundly against a very solid wall.

Repeatedly.

Like that scene from the new Coen Brothers movie.

So, you really want to know when was the last time the trades did theater (sic) workers a favor?

Well, let's see:

For starters, in 1997 when AFM Local 76-493 struck the 5th Avenue during the run of "Beauty & The Beast", not only was the strike sanctioned by KCLC, but the theatre was put on the Council's "Do Not Patronize" list until the matter was resolved. In addition, over 1,000 rank-and-file union members joined the musicians during three days of picketing, which led to Disney scrapping their "Virtual Pit Orchestra" (VPO - a computerized musical track) and hiring a live orchestra for the remainder of the run.

The trades showed up again in 2000 when AFM called a strike against The Paramount during a similar situation with a touring production of "Annie", which resulted in a national agreement with the League of American Theatres & Producers that essentially put an end to the VPO concept in professional "direct from Broadway" touring shows.

In 2001 when Actors' Equity picketed a non-union touring production of "The Music Man" at the Paramount, not only did we have the vocal support of KCLC, but rank-and-file members from the Teamsters, IAM, IBEW, UBC, and ATU - just to name a few - joined us on the line. (I'd be more than happy to show you the pictures sometime if you require evidence of what the trades have done to support local theatre workers.)

Several years ago, when AFTRA went to Olympia to press for legislation outlawing non-compete clauses in broadcast station contracts, labor was there to support the bill; when SAG and others in the local film community go down every couple of years to secure refunding for the State Film Office, or in 2006 when they sought establishment of the Washington Film Works incentives program, labor was there again offering lobbying support and testimony.

Just this past August, when the AFTRA Seattle Local submitted a referendum to the Washington State labor Convention establishng a policy that union performers be hired under contract for any commercial advertising produced by union locals and affiliates of county and state labor councils, not only were we joined by IATSE and SAG as co-sponsors, but the entire body voted unanimously in favor of the measure.

In short, whenever local theatre workers have put out the call to their union brothers and sisters in the trades, they have responded vocally, enthusiastically and en masse. The trades do theatre workers favors every single day, by standing with them in solidarity, and by supporting their work with their patronage and contributions.

So really, could you PUHLEEZE get off this soap box and stop trying to drive a wedge into some imaginary, non-existent crack?

So, IATSE members have elected to support Mallahan; they're not doing it for "the sake of the trade unions", but for what they no doubt view as very good and sufficient reasons of their own - whatever they may be. Perhaps you should ask them about it - who knows? They might even give you an answer you could print, instead of engaging in wild, fruitless, and unfounded speculation.