Hollywood writers have dropped their pens and picked up picket signs — walking off the job for the first time since 1988 after last-minute talks with the producers broke down on Sunday night

The opposing sides had met at the behest of a federal mediator, but, after some 10 hours of talks, were still far apart on issues including compensation for DVD and new media. The contract between the AMPTP and the Writers Guild of America expired on Wednesday — prompting preparations for a strike on both sides, even as others continued to work towards a solution.

The east coast wing of the writers union walked out at about midnight local time, followed shortly by WGA in the west.

‘When we asked if they would ‘stop the clock’ for the purpose of delaying the strike to allow negotiations to continue, they refused,’ said AMPTP president Nick Counter in a statement. ‘We made an attempt at meeting them in a number of their key areas including Internet streaming and jurisdiction in new media. Ultimately, the guild was unwilling to compromise on most of their major demands. It is unfortunate that they choose to take this irresponsible action.’

The writers say the the AMPTP has ‘made no response to any of the other proposals that the WGA has made since July.’

No new talks are scheduled.

The first shows to go dark because of the strike will be late-night and afternoon talk shows, which rely on current events. If writers stay out for long, the effects will spread to primetime scripted series and feature films.