How Long Sitcom Characters Need To Earn Actors' Pay

Played By:Ed O'Neill

Character Salary:$12,000

Actor Salary:$500,000

Married... With ChildrenThe actor playing the hapless shoe salesman earned serious money by the end of the show's first run. Al Bundy made as little as $12,000 annually, but the actor made the studio more money than Peggy Bundy could earn in several lifetimes.$12,000 annuallyThis leaves anyone guessing how Al Bundy could afford a large suburban home.

Al Bundy needed nearly a whole working life to earn what he made.Ed O'Neill made this for one episode.This occurred at the end of the show's run in 1997.

Played By: Tim Allen

Character Salary:$65,000

Actor Salary:$1,250,000

Tim Taylor had a large home and good money for projects; he was not short on cash. The actor playing Taylor earned much more. At the peak of 'Home Improvement', Tim Allen pulled in $1.25 million per episode during the show's initial run in the 1990s.'Home ImprovementThe cast made good money during the show's first run in the 1990s. Tim Allen reportedly pulled in $1.25 million per episode.$1.25 million per episodeBy 1998, Tim Allen earned this amount and could have made more if he accepted a ninth season.a ninth seasonof the show.

As a local cable show host in the 1990s, Taylor likely earned about $65,000 annually, or about $111,000 in today's money.about $111,000The Tool Man needed 21 seasons of 'Tool Time' to match Allen's pay.Tool Timeto catch up with Allen's pay packet.

Played By:Seth MacFarlane

Character Salary:$35,000

Actor Salary: $50,000

Seth MacFarlane's pay seems low for a long-running show on a major network. The main reason is that his large 'Family Guy' fortune comes from his Fox contract, not episode pay.$50,000 per episodeSeth MacFarlane's pay seems very low for a long-running show on a major network. The bulk of his money comes from his Fox contract, not episodes.Family GuyMacFarlane provides the voices for Family Guy rather than episodically.MacFarlane provides the voices for four main characters.MacFarlane provides the voices for several smaller roles.

Peter Griffin's job and money change per episode. As a shipping clerk at a brewery, he probably earns about $35,000 per year. This means it takes him just under a year and a half to match the actor's episode pay.$35,000per year.

Played By: Helen Hunt

Character Salary: $200,000

Actor Salary:$1,000,000

Jamie would likely earn more than her on-screen husband Paul. Her career grew on the show as she moved up in a PR firm, eventually starting her own agency. New York City offers many good jobs for a PR firm owner. Someone in her role could earn over half a million annually. Working backward, Jamie's salary at the show's end (1999) is about $200,000.half a million annually$. Working backward, we can put Jamie's salary at the show's end (1999) around $200,000.

Helen Hunt's pay rose sharply at the show's end. For the last season (before the reboot), she and co-star Paul Reiser earned a huge $1 million per episode.$1 million per episodeJamie needs time to earn that salary, but not that much.

Played By:Desi Arnaz

Character Salary:$20,000

Actor Salary:$2,000

A bandleader and actor, Ricky Ricardo's career took off in the mid-1950s after a Europe tour. By 1956, the character earnedabout $20,000 yearly($200,000 now). The actor playing Ricardo was financially comfortable, but not super rich. Not right away.

Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz made a smart deal with the studio. They accepted a lower joint pay of $4,000 per episode (instead of $5,000), and Desilu Studios kept the show's rights. CBS later bought the first 180 episodes for $5 million.Desilu StudiosThe first 180 episodes later sold to CBS for $5 million.$5 millionThey invented syndication and ensured future sitcom stars made serious money long after the show ended.

Played By:Ray Romano

Character Salary:$48,000

Actor Salary:$1.7 million

Ray Romano was one of the highest-paid TV actors ever at the height ofEverybody Loves Raymond'srun, earning an astonishing$1.7 millionRomano's high pay for each episode exceeded the rest of the cast. This led to a walkout in 2003.a walkoutin 2003.

The character Romano played had much smaller finances. A New York sportswriter did not make big money in the 1990s/2000s, earning just under $50,000 annually. For Ray Barone to match Romano for one week, he needs decades of work.

Played By: Kelsey Grammer

Character Salary:$160,000

Actor Salary:$1,600,000

Dr. Frasier Crane could not afford that apartment.impressive apartmenton a radio host's salary. Today, a starting radio host makes about $64,000 annually in Seattle.around $64,000annually in Seattle. With a tough agent and several years on air, Crane would likely have done much better.a good deal better, even in the 1990s/2000s. Unless he had major investment income, his lifestyle exceeded his means.

The 1990s were great years for actors in hit sitcoms. Kelsey Grammer is among the highest-paid TV actors ever. He earned an astonishing $1.6 million per episode at the show's peak and still earns about $13 million annually from reruns today. Crane needs a decade's worth of listening to match that.$1.6 million per episodeat the show's peak, and still rakes in some $13 million annually today from reruns. Crane would have to do a whole lot of listening to match that—a decade's worth.

Played By: Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen

Character Salary:$221 per day

Actor Salary:$40,000 ($80,000 split between two performers)

For this item, we use Michelle's high earnings from selling lemonade in the Season 8 episode "You Pet It, You Bought It": $221 ($414 today). That is a good score, but the twins playing Michelle would lose more running for the bus.

Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen split an astonishing$80,000 per episodefor the show's eighth season. Michelle would need to keep her lemonade stand open daily for six months to match that.

Played By:Courteney Cox is listed in 'How Long Sitcom Characters Need To Earn Actors' Pay'.

Character Salary: $56,000$56,000

Actor Salary:$1,000,000

TheFriendsThe Friends cast did not start with huge salaries. They earned about $25,000 per episode when the show began. The show's success let the cast get bigger pay raises, reaching $1 million per episode by the late seasons. The cast still earns much money from syndication today.$1 million per episodeLike other 1990s hits, the cast still makes a lot of cash from syndication now.

As any New Yorker knows, the big loft in Manhattan's Greenwich VillageGreenwich VillageMonica and Rachel could not afford the space they occupied for most of the show. Monica made less than $56K annually. Therefore, the chef needed nearly twenty years to earn what Courteney Cox made from one episode.$56K annually, so the chef needed almost two decades to match Courteney Cox's episode earnings.

Played By:John Lithgow

Character Salary:$50,000

Actor Salary:$200,000

We skip the money details of Dick Solomon's home planet and whether he earned a salary as High Commander of the expedition sent to Earth. Instead, we look at Solomon's job as a physics professor at a "third-rate university" in the fictional town of Rutherford, OH.

Based on the median income of aprofessor of physics in Ohio today, Solomon was likely at the lower end of the income scale at the turn of the 21st century. $50,000 annually seems reasonable. Given the recentThere is a dearth of full-time positionsin academia, Solomon would probably have to work as an adjunct if the series were made today.

John Lithgow earns as much as$200,000 per episode, Solomon would need to teach eight semesters at Pendelton State to reach that amount.

Played By: Harry Shearer

Character Income: $60,000,000

Actor Salary: $300,000

Along with Mr. Burns, Harry Shearer plays Ned Flanders, Reverend Lovejoy, Principal Skinner, and Waylon Smithers, among others.Harry Shearervoices Ned Flanders, Reverend Lovejoy, Principal Skinner, and Waylon Smithers, among others in The Simpsons.The Simpsons, Shearer makes$300,000 per episode. The voice actor is rich, but he is not as wealthy as Mr. Burns.

Burns's wealth shifts during the show, going from broke to possibly $16.8 billion in 2007. For this entry, we use $1.3 billion for his current net worth.$1.3 billionLike other billionaires, the bulk of Burns's income comes from untaxed stock options, not salary. If an even billion earns a 6% annual return, Burns would match Shearer's pay in under 48 hours. That is excellent.other billionaires, the main source of Burns's income is nontaxable stock options, not salary. Burns's income comes mostly from stock options. If a billion earns a 6% annual return, Burns would match Shearer's pay in under 48 hours. Excellent.

Played By:Dan Castellaneta

Character Salary:$44,000

Actor Salary:$300,000

We use Homer's main job, not the many side jobs he had over the show's more than 30 years. We saw Homer's weekly paycheck in the 1996 Season 7 episode "Much Apu About Nothing"."Much Apu About Nothing"" - $479.80 gross. Adjusted for inflation, that equals about $44,000 today."

Dan Castellaneta is one of the world'sbest-paid voice actorsHomer Simpson works today. Along with the main cast, he pulls in $300,000 per episode since 2008. Homer Simpson needs over six years at the power plant to match that.

Played By:Leah Remini

Character Salary:$45,000

Actor Salary:$400,000

At the height of the initial run ofTheKing of QueensCo-star Leah Remini negotiated a bumper pay deal to match the money her on-screen husband Kevin James made. At $400,000 per episode,$400,000 per episodeRemini and James were among the highest-paid actors on TV then.

The character Remini played, a legal secretary in New York City, makes about $65,000 annually today.$65,000 annually todayBased on inflation and because Heffernan never finished college, $45,000 is a fair estimate. It takes her less than nine years to meet Remini's pay.

Played By:Jerry Seinfeld

Character Salary:$35,000

Actor Salary: $1,000,000

Jerry Seinfeld the character could not afford an apartment on 81st Street. However, Jerry Seinfeld the actor could. Actor Seinfeld's salary peaked at $1 million per episode.$1 million per episodeduring the show's initial run and could have reached $5 million if he took an offer to continue. Seinfeld's bulk money comes from syndication.Seinfeldmoney has earned the comedian as much as $440,000,000 from syndication.$440,000,000Other cast members do not make much money. Jason Alexander explained this.Jason Alexander explainedin a 2004 interview:

I say in the years we have been in syndication, Julia, Michael, and I each saw about a quarter of a million dollars in residuals. Our other cast members saw hundreds of millions. Seinfeld has a profit over a billion dollars.

For the character, a non-touring comedian working the local circuit would not have been wealthy. He would earn about $35,000 in the region.$35,000, which would make that modest apartment in the nice location out of his reach.

It takes almost 30 years of touring to match the actor's pay, and multiple lifetimes to earn the interest on the show's syndication haul.