Do non-talking ghosts get paid less?

[Julia99]

Hey . .this one can certainly be answered by Nancy. . did the actors who played ghosts and didn't speak for months. . get paid less?

[victoriawinters]

my name is victoria winters...

yes my dear that was the whole point.  dan was on a very limited budget.

[Nancy]

LOL, as one of many actors who wound up never speaking a word on TV, I can tell you that non-speaking roles get paid less than those actors who speak even five words.

For anyone interested, you can visit the website governing the pay scale for actors, visit http://www.aftra.org.  The pay is much higher now, obviously, than what it was when DS was on.  

Here is the current rate for daytime soap actors. Remember, these are the figures for actors who are not established cast members or stars.  Usually if you become a part of the show, you negotiate a contract that pays you above minimum scale.  The regular cast members of DS made somewhere around $250-$300 a week IIRC but I could be wrong.  


See the current minimum pay scale for soap actors

                1/2 hour show       One hour show

Principal         $564                      $753

Five lines
or less            $267                       $328

Background
actor               $102                      $132


Nancy

Hey . .this one can certainly be answered by Nancy. . did the actors who played ghosts and didn't speak for months. . get paid less?

[tripwire]

I either read or seen an interview with Nancy Barrett, and i think she said each actor who appeared in an episode received 350 dollars for that day, except for those who had "a most favored nations" contract, which she said Joan Bennett and later on Jonathan Frid had.. and the mutes some less i guess, cant imagine DC paying full wage to some of those zombies that was summoned from their graves

[Nancy]

Curtis didn't have any choice about what he paid union actors. He had to pay them at the very least scale that all has to do with whether you are a walk-on, have an under 5 (words) part, a day player, etc..  But how high above scale other actors got was something that Curtis could have a say in.  It sounds like he was very stingy.

Nancy

I either read or seen an interview with Nancy Barrett, and i think she said each actor who appeared in an episode received 350 dollars for that day, except for those who had "a most favored nations" contract, which she said Joan Bennett and later on Jonathan Frid had.. and the mutes some less i guess, cant imagine DC paying full wage to some of those zombies that was summoned from their graves

[Dr. Eric Lang]

An actor with no lines does not have to be given screen credit (as in the closing credits of the show) and doesn't get paid as much as an extra who has a line or two (such as the barmaid at the Blue Whale that Chris just killed).

However, I'm pretty sure that David Selby and Kate Jackson were brought into the show with the anticipation, if not the contract, of being full fledged cast members, and may have been payed a regular wage from their first appearance on even if they started out mute.

[Craig_Slocum]

The regular cast members of DS made somewhere around $250-$300 a week IIRC but I could be wrong.

Not much money was it? For my expenses, I pay $4,000.00 a month. Now you know why I don't date, no one can afford me.

[Luciaphile]

However, I'm pretty sure that David Selby and Kate Jackson were brought into the show with the anticipation, if not the contract, of being full fledged cast members, and may have been payed a regular wage from their first appearance on even if they started out mute.

Wasn't Jackson still a drama student at the time?  I doubt she and Selby had the clout to demand a decent salary--they probably took what they were offered.

Luciaphil

[ElizabethGrayson]

Actually, I think I remember reading somewhere that the reason Kate Jackson couldn't do a speaking role at first was becase she was still in drama school and there were strict regulations about her doing parts with lines.

AT least I think that's what I read...

EG

[Nancy]

Not much money was it? For my expenses, I pay $4,000.00 a month. Now you know why I don't date, no one can afford me.

LOL, the cost of living back in the late 1960s was a lot less than it is now, even in New York.  The pay scale for actors on soaps is better even those who are minor characters.

[VAM]

Nancy,

 What did stunt man Alex Stevens make a day? I know it was a non-speaking role. However,  it was a specialized one.

[Nancy]

Alex Stevens was certainly a "background actor" (and a hairy one at that) with special abilities.  Basically that's like being able to roller skate, speedline or perform some physical stunt.  Scale payment today for that is about ten dollars more an hour than for regular background extras.  But Stevens did jumping and some other stunts IIRC that required more skill than the average well coordinated actor might have.  

However, there is an organization for stunt men/women and the scale rate is negotiated based on the difficulty of the stunt. I do know that stunt men and women can make very good money in film.  I don't know if Mr. Stevens was paid above scale or not.  Would be interesting to know.