Unknown article re: soap actors' salaries

Excerpts from Soap Opera Update

November 12, 1999

I only have part of this article.....sorry!

Exactly How Much Do They Make?

Salary is definitely a question that is off-limits when talking to a daytime actor.  But here are some ideas of what's going on...

Daytime's Elite:  No one knows for sure how much money daytime's top stars bring home at the end of the work week.  But insiders guess that some of soaps' biggest stars are making a million dollars or more a year.  Of course, there are also some extra benefits thrown in to sweeten the deal.

The Veterans:  As far as your average soap star goes, insiders say that they earn somewhere upwards of $250,000 a year.

The Up-And-Comers:  They're not veterans yet, but those on their second or third cycle (maybe they've been on their soap for five or six years) of their contract are probably earning upwards of $125,000 a year.

The New Guys:  As far as newcomers, well that's another story.  They're lucky if they're earning $100,000 a year -- but by the time they finish paying their managers, agents, publicists, union dues and other expenses associated with the business, many up-and-coming "soap stars" say they struggle just like everyone else to pay their rent and bills.

(The rest of the article that I have.....)

......Likewise, Maurice Benard (Sonny, GH) also reportedly negotiated a variety of "outs" when he agreed to return to the show.

Money Matters

    We'd be lying if we said salary had nothing to do with it.  Daytime stars make a good living -- okay, so it's not the $20 million that the mega-movie stars get per flick -- but it's enough to keep them and their families living very comfortably.

    And while it's true that daytime stars work longer hours and have more material to learn than the average primetimer (the average soap star clocks in 50 weeks a year; sitcom stars work about 13 weeks a year), they both earn roughly the same amount of money annually.

    But then again, "with a sitcom, you never know how long it's going to last.  You can do two episodes and it's canceled," says Marv Dauer, a Hollywood manager who represents stars like B&B's Hunter Tylo (Taylor) and former AMC star Eva La Rue Callahan (ex-Maria).  Sitcom stars, by the way, get paid by the week.

    And let's face it, in an industry where the unemployment rate hovers in the 90% range, landing a steady soap paycheck is heaven.

Not Enough Money

    When Eileen Davidson quit Days of Our Lives in 1998, she had decided to leave her soap days behind forever.  "My heart just wasn't in it any longer," she says.  But the actress says that when her old alma mater Y&R asked her to reprise the role of Ashley, they made her an offer that she couldn't refuse -- and she didn't!  But Davidson is the first to admit that a hefty paycheck, by itself, wasn't enough to convince her to come back to daytime.  After all, she hadn't exactly been making peanuts during her Days gig, but the backbreaking work schedule, which featured 12-15 hour days, was ruining her personal life, being that she had recently wed Jon Lindstrom (Kevin, Port Charles).

    So how did Y&R sweeten the deal?  They gave her the kind of work schedule most stars can only dream about:  in in the morning, out by the afternoon.  And she's never been happier.  "This should be illegal," she says of her new work schedule.  What other stars also have "reduced" work weeks or early in/early out call times to keep them happy and re-signing year after year?  Erika Slezak (Viki, OLTL), Deidre Hall (Marlena, DAYS) and Genie Francis (Laura, GH), to name just a few.

Keeping Them From Leaving

    Signing a big star is the easy part -- but how do soaps convince their heaviest hitters to re-sign? 

    No, there aren't any chains or shackles in the green room, but daytime does have to find new and inventive ways to keep their stars from fleeing.  After all, stars like Drake Hogestyn (John, Days) and Susan Lucci (Erica, AMC) have got primetime producers camping out in front of their dressing room doors.  So why do they stay?

Perks Plus

    "Daytime is great if you have a family and you are offered a two- or three- year contract and you know that you are going to be making a steady living as opposed to not having a clue when you are going to be working net.  That goes a long way," explains Dauer, who says daytime has a lot to offer actors, even if they have been starring on the same soap for a number of years.

    Insiders say a devoted family man like Days' Hogestyn stays with his soap because he appreciates the stability that a daytime job offers.  As the old adage goes, "(with actors), it's not the size of the paycheck, but the frequency of it that matters."

    Besides soaps, there's nowhere else in Hollywood that a star can be guaranteed a steady paycheck and the same drive to work each day.  Daytime soaps tape in L.A. or N.Y., while a primetime series can tape almost anywhere, which often means uprooting an entire family.

    GH's newest hire, A Martinez revealed recently that he had been courted for a number of East Coast soaps, but had stayed away because he didn't want to uproot his family and children from their California digs.  Luckily, when Hollywood-based GH came a callin', he was more than happy to accept a role that would enable him to keep his kids in school and his home off the market.  During a recent appearance on The View, Martinez revealed that while a primetime and film career has its advantages, daytime's "stability" can't be beat.

Every Day is "Bring Your Kids to Work" Day

    And it's not just doting dads that dig daytime's family-friendly work environment.  Daytime mommies love it, too!  New moms know that there is nothing more traumatic than having to.....

    (Sorry, I don't have the rest of this article!)

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