The Simpsons go on strike
 

Taken from here, some place on msn news

"Simpsons" on strike over contract

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The actors who provide the voices for the cartoon characters on the long-running TV show "The Simpsons" have stopped work in a bid to force a settlement of lengthy contract renewal talks, Daily Variety has reported.

The Hollywood trade paper said the six actors have not shown up for two script readings in the past few weeks, holding up production on the hit satire's upcoming 16th season.

It quoted insiders as saying each cast member is asking for about $360,000 (195,460 pounds) an episode, or $8 million for a 22-episode season. Each member currently earns $125,000 an episode.

The highest-paid star in TV is Ray Romano, who reportedly earns between $1.7 million and $2 million per episode of his Emmy-winning series "Everybody Loves Raymond."

The three-year contracts for Dan Castellaneta (Homer), Hank Azaria (Moe, Apu, Comic Book Guy), Harry Shearer (Mr. Burns and others), Yeardley Smith (Lisa), Julie Kavner (Marge) and Nancy Cartwright (Bart) expired several months ago, and their representatives have been negotiating new ones to no avail, Daily Variety said.

The last "Simpsons" work dispute was in 1998, at a time when the actors were making $30,000 per episode. The show's producer, Twentieth Century Fox TV, hired casting directors in five cities to replace most of them before both sides worked out a new deal and resumed production.

"The Simpsons" airs in the United States on the Fox network. Both Fox and Twentieth Century Fox TV are owned by News Corp.
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Should anyone be getting paid that much for just one episode?

Do you think they deserve a pay increase, or not?

Romano must be loaded if he gets that much per episode.

Yeah, compared to other television actors they don't get paid much.

Greedy bastards.

Let's face it they're not exactly actors in the truest sense, they're voice actors, which is something else altogether. It's not like they can expect to earn on the level of Friends.

Why not? THey provide one of the most crucial parts of probably the best comedy on TV right now. Why SHOULDN'T they demand suitable compensation?

if Ray Romano can get a fortune for the heap of manure he serves up, I'm not begrudging Hank Azaria a penny.

Yeah wtf,Romano isn't even that funny.

It's like they cast a guy with no personality to be his brother on that show and make Romano seem more humourous.

Not to mention just how many roles so many of these people play.

And while the Simpsons have gone wayyyy downhill, they are sadly still one of the best comedies on TV.

April Fool's joke I bet. :D

I hope they don't solve this pay dispute the way they solved the one with the perosn that did Maude Flanders voice. :nono:

At least they can replace the extras and no-one can tell the didly-ifference.:shifty:

What, they kill off the entire Simpsons? :lol:

They should have a Lenny spin-off.:love:

Ahh man a show called "The Flanders"

Voices can be mimicked/impersonated. If Fox searched hard enough I'd think they would be able to find suitable replacements eventually. Not that I'm advocating it, but let's face it, it's easier to replace a voice actor than a live action equivalent.

if they got people to replace the voices, a large percentage of the audience would call bullsh</>it. It may be easier to replace a voice actor in theory, but if Homer suddenly didn't sound like Homer, people would notice no matter who they got to cover.

So that's why they killed off Maude?

Yup

I heard about it and was all "Oh My :$"

Even just sitting around in the pub with friends I've heard people do good enough impersonations of the existing voices that I couldn't tell the difference. I kinda doubt if Fox really wanted to replace them they'd have too much trouble finding people who sound similar enough to the point where an audience wouldn't be able to tell.

People in show business are so ****ing whiney.

"OMG I'm only making $500,000 per episode, I'm so sueing!"

lol

Look, the 6 "Friends" on NBC are making a million an episode. Raymond makes 1.7-2 Million an episode....

you think that is too much?

They are greedy?

Do you know how much the networks make from syndication!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
- The Networks make 10 times if not more the amount the money the actors make. The actors are trying to maximize their worth at their peak... just like athletes.

Its called Capitalism and its the one that works.

I hope they get the money. It's not like The Simpsons isn't a huge money making machine for the network already. Share the wealth.

I agree with Hero. On top of that, they are only going to be around for a couple more seasons anyways.

The Simpsons aren't that great anymore. I wish they would end it.

It works, because the people who play rounders deserve to make millions of dollars a year, while most teachers, rescue/fire/police services, and so on can't make ends meet.

Good to know that Michael Jordan is more valuable than the guys who responded from across the nation when 9-11 hit...God bless capitolism...

That's what I was trying to say. I'm not trying to sound like a communist, but I believe that cops, firefighters, and teachers should be paid enough money to stay above the poverty line if a bunch of actors and actresses think it's the end of the world because they want to make another hundred thousand dollars per episode.

I simultaneously agree with you, but can't blame people for trying to get what they can from the system.

I mean, it seems reasonable to get the same as your peers for the same level of work (or in this case, popularity).

However, I think it's ridiculous that someone can get paid so much to play ball or tell jokes. Especially when we underfund fire departments, police stations, and schools.

To steal from Bill Maher, "we call them our heros, but pay them like chumps."

Incidentally, I'm not preaching exactly communist ideas, just stating that people should get paid what they're actually worth.

When Lars Ulrich saves a child from a buning building, we'll talk...

Quote:
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When Lars Ulrich saves a child from a buning building, and then throws her back in because she's a kazaa user, we'll talk...
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

:lol:

And the next day, Rammsteinmad would be on here defending Lars and condemning the girl like a REAL Metallica fan.

You'd think that just being an actor on The Simpsons is special enough. I don't think what they're asking is unreasonable, but I think going on strike is probably the worst way to do this. Unless it is all a work to boost The Simpsons' popularity and to mark Lisa's heel turn. :shifty:

How many of these people can do more than one, though?

Hank Azaria himself has probably voiced more than 50 characters over the years, with at least two dozen recurring on a semi-regular basis.

Assume you find a guy who can do a good Moe and a pretty good Apu. You still have to find someone to fill in all his other characters.

The money you'd be paying to the twenty-thirty actors you'd need to accurately recreate all of the essential voices would more than likely end up costing more than you'd pay the six if they just got the raise they wanted.

Indeed, Loppy.

Hank Azaria is one of the most underrated comedy actors & voice talents in the world.

He is priceless in The Birdcage and Mystery Men.

Yeah, Hank Azaria rules. :y:

I really hope this whole situation will be fixed soon. so we can all get back to our Simpsoness ways.

Now I'm not in anyway educated in the way of showbiz, but do you think it is more probable that they'll release a Simpsons movie this year now the actors are on strike? They might try and use it to boost the popularity of the show, and get some extra cash in order to give the actors what they want?

They cant replace the actors, I guarantee you I would be able to tell if they brought in a new cast. No matter how good the new person might be, they still cant match the real voices. A good impression is one thing, but Ive watched the show enough to know that I could spot a fake.

The arguement that they are greedy is moronic, as has been mentioned people have the right in this society to earn the most money they can. Simpsons still has a huge following, and I believe they are still a top rated show, so the actors should be compensated accordingly.

One thing to consider with this thing is that the Simpsons have considered doing a movie, one would assume that would do huge numbers at the box office, so I think FOX would be stupid to piss off the actors before they get that done.

As always CyNick speaks wisdom to us all. :y:

I, too, would know if the actors are different. Not only is it impossible to completely match a voice, but it is impossible to put the same type of timing and style into it. Dan Castellaneta might say omething completely different to how Homer #2 would say it. I hope they get this mess cleared up, and start writing episodes that were as good as the classic eps.