broadway salaries- Page 3

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 4:59pm

Yankeefan007, you mentioned that Feirstein is a royalty recipient for Hairspray, why? Was he a big part of the creative process? Also, for a show like Phantom, are the people who wrote the show still getting money for the weekly gross of the show? Wow, if it's like that they wouldn't have to work for the rest of their lives.

[ashley0139]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 5:31pm

Big names like Idina and Norbert....? Haha. Outside of us, they're no bigger a draw than some ensemble member no one's ever heard of.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 5:49pm

Major stars like Fierstein are sometime given a royalty point or some form of profit-participation as part of their compensation packages (over and above their salaries). Sometimes it's only paid during their tenure in the show, but Fierstein is apparently a full royalty participant and gets payments from the Broadway and touring companies whether he's in the show or not.

And yes, the composer, lyricist, book writer and original director continue to recive royalties from the show for ..... well forever (or until the work goes into the public domain which will be after their deaths many decades from now) -- for Broadway, national and international companies, amateur, high school, college etc. productions, films, DVD sales, CD sales etc ...... Webber, for example is apparently worth nearly a billion pounds or so (and counting) and Tim Rice, Trevor Nunn etc are multimillionaires. And don't cry for Stephen Sondheim for never having a mega hit on Broadway -- his shows receive literally thousands of productions a year around the country and in England. He's an extremely wealthy man.

Updated On: 9/11/05 at 05:49 PM

[ljay889]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 6:52pm

Well Neuwirth is known for her fall out with the Weisslers because she wanted more pay, and they wouldn't give it to her.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 6:56pm

I think that was because of an article that came out the listed her as making $30,000/week, while Bernadette Peters (according to the article) was making $50,000/week plus a percentage of the gross for Annie Get Your Gun (also produced by the Weisslers). Neuwirth was furious, asked for a raise, was turned down and hasn't worked for them since.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 7:14pm

Perhaps Neuwirth should have fired her agent instead of alienating her producers. Or, given some thought to the differences between the roles of Velma Kelly and Annie Oakley.

[best12bars]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 7:45pm

Rathnait62, nicely put.

[PJ]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 7:55pm

Oh, please. Bernadette Peters is a living legend. Bebe isn't even in the same league as her so why should they be making the same amount of money?

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 7:58pm

Because Bebe sells tickets to the masses. Bernadette sells to the real followers of Broadway. Much smaller pool.

[ljay889]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:03pm

^ Exactly.

Though Bebe is a 2 time Tony winner, and considered one of the best Triple Threats of OUR time. Meaning from the 80's until now. She is still a name, and is known for her work on TV, and in film.

She definitely sells more tickets, opposed to Bernadette.

[PJ]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:04pm

Bebe Neuwirth isn't exactly a household name. I'm certan more people have heard of Bernadette Peters than have heard of Bebe.

[ljay889]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:08pm

I honestly doubt more people would know Berndadette over Bebe. Bebe was on some pretty damn popular shows watched by most of the Country, Cheers and Fraiser. She is also a two time Emmy winner.
Updated On: 9/11/05 at 08:08 PM

[best12bars]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:09pm

Wow, PJ... really???

Well, there was this little cable-access TV show called "Cheers" followed by another local show called "Frasier"...

Bottom Line: Both ladies are VERY well known. Bebe got her bustle in a bind, because their salaries went public. It was about ego. Such a shame!

Updated On: 9/11/05 at 08:09 PM

[PJ]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:12pm

I'm quite aware of her career in televsion, best12bars. But thanks anyway. I'm still not completely sold on the fact that she would sell more tickets than Bernadette. But whatever.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:14pm

I absolutely love Bebe Neuwirth and I do believe she has a great appeal to the masses because of her TV appearance. She even said so herself, she said that if what she needed to be on Broadway and not get brushed aside due to stunt casting was to be a TV/Movie star then she'd be on TV, and she did. But still, I think Bernadette Peters role was more demanding than Velma Kelly just because "Annie Get Your Gun" is a star show while "Chicago" is a two-hander three if Billy Flynn is played by the right person. I think Bebe's salary of $30,000 was great, maybe she did deserve a little more but I don't know, I still think Bernadette Peters should get more because she is truly a Broadway legend while Neuwirth is a legend-to-be.

[ljay889]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:26pm

Well point blank. Velma Kelly is one of the most demanding female dance roles in history.

[best12bars]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:33pm

Okay, so how do we actually measure a performer's salary?

So far we've heard the following: Audience size (aka ticket sales), seniority (how long they've been "at it"), degree of difficulty of the role, size of role, public opinion or "critical stature" of the given performer...

I now vote for height... or maybe even weight. Just like buying a ham. (No pun intended.)

Okay, all kidding aside, it's not "scientific" and I'm sure it never will be.

[kjklo]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:42pm

The notion that Bernadette Peters is only known to theatre cognoscenti is simply wrong. Of course she sells tickets to the "masses." Why do you think she gets cast and paid the way she does?

I'm a big fan, and I've never mentioned her to anyone, no matter how unknowing or unsophisticated about Broadway, that they haven't a) known who she was b) said they loved or liked her c) said they'd love to see her perform live someday.

[ljay889]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 8:48pm

But lets not forget. Bernadette is 10 years older than Bebe.

Bernie has more experience because she's older.

Bebe still has time to get that legend status. They both have the same number of Tonys, granted Bernie had many more nominations.

But Bebe is still pretty damn popular outside of Broadway.

[moljul]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 9:36pm

What big Broadway musical has Bebe opened on her name alone? When it comes to selling theater tickets, Bernadette is legions above Bebe. Look who got the only solo spot in the 9/11 commercial about Broadway - Bernadette, while Bebe was several spaces away from the center. Bernadette is much more the face of Broadway. Bebe is known mostly for television and I'm sure a lot of people don't even know about her musical theater talents. I would imagine if you told someone who didn't know a lot about theater that Bebe Neuwirth was starring in a musical they would say "She can sing and dance?". People on a whole didn't buy tickets to Chicago because Bebe Neuwirth was in it - maybe her return engagements but not her original run. But The Goodbye Girl, Annie Get Your Gun and Gypsy had big advances based on Bernadette's name alone and Martin Short's name on Goodbye Girl. Let's face it: This last revival of Gypsy would not have been made without Bernadette, would not have had the huge advance it had without Bernadette and would not have stayed open for 14 months without Bernadette. There is simply no example in Bebe's career that would compare. Yes, Bebe is younger but while I really love Bebe and think she is very talented, I think her abilities (as well as mass appeal) is more limited than Bernadette.
Updated On: 9/11/05 at 09:36 PM

[ljay889]

Posted: 9/11/05 at 9:50pm

Why did I even mention Bebe?

This thread became a Bernadette VS Bebe thread. Which is ridiculous.

Bernadette is a great Broadway personality and actress.

and Bebe is one of the best dancers Broadway has had in decades, having a lot of qualities like Gwen Verdon & Chita. She has worked with Fosse, Bennett, etc.

They're both talented. But their talents differ.

[SondheimFan5]

Posted: 6/12/12 at 10:58pm

(Thread bump sorry) - Harvey is an un-credited bookwriter on Hairspray, if I recall, so he gets $$$ from every production of Hairspray done around the country (in addition to getting $ from the Broadway production after he left it).

[musicman_bwayfan]

Posted: 6/12/12 at 11:36pm

If I remember correctly, for the recent VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE revival, Scarlett J. and Liev S. each made between $80 and $90 grand a week.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 6/13/12 at 12:02am

I don't remember hearing that Zero Mostel or Julie Harris ever got rich off of starring on Broadway.

Actually...they did.

Star actors like that have always commanded a set salary against a percentage of the gross. Tallulah Bankhead was famous for demanding 10 percent of the gross.

Ethel Merman probably got the richest. She was a shrewd businesswoman and throughout the 1940s, she commanded 8 percent of the weekly gross--less than Bankhead, but she made more money because her shows were more successful.

Beginning with Annie Get Your Gun, she got 10 percent.

On Call Me Madam, she negotiated DOWN to 8 percent, but in exchange for that, she owned an even more astonishing 10 percent of the entire property, earning royalties whenever the show was performed, no matter who was appearing as the Hostess with the Mostess.

On Gypsy, she negotiated a deal whereby she received 5 percent of the weekly gross until the investors were paid off, after which it went up to 7 percent. In addition, David Merrick agreed to have the production pay for her room (a furnished apartment at the Park Lane Hotel) and board (and Ethel could eat a lot of board).

Updated On: 6/21/12 at 12:02 AM

[Gypsy9]

Posted: 6/13/12 at 7:33am

Interesting statistics, Pal Joey. I seem to remember at the time that Merman was in GYPSY, Variety reported that she was getting a salary of $5,000 per week. Is there any truth to that as far as you know? Might that have been as a guarantee against 5% of the gross? $5,000 was a lot of money back in 1959.