LA agents get rich off their stars

If you think Actors get rich making movies, you should check out their agents!

A secret memo, leaked to Hollywood news site, ‘The Wrap,’ gives disturbing details of just how much cash these unseen suits make. Apparently penned by their bean-counter-in-chief, Irvin Weintraub, the memo lists the salaries and stock options of some of William Morris’ top agents and suits in 2007. And some pretty big numbers were involved.

According to the fax, former Morris CEO, Jim Watt, who recently left when they merged with Endeavor, pulled down $7-million in ’07, while his replacement, Dave Wirtschafter, scored $6-million in his first year at the wheel. “These are private companies and the numbers never go public,” The Wrap’s Sharon Waxman explains. “And more than a few of Morris’ clients are considering if their reps really earn what they’re paid.”

The memo, the first ever expose of such unwarranted wealth, is causing some pain in the thirty-mile zone because most Actors had no idea what their agents can earn. “The memo’s important, because actors should never be clued in that their agents make a hell of a lot more money than they do!” says Waxman.

From the info provided, a typical agent with some high-profile names can make $4-million a year without breaking a sweat. And all just for working the phones.

Formed in 1898, William Morris was a long-time Goliath of the agency world, with revenues topping $300-million a year. Jim Watt was denounced by his peers when he green-lit the deal to be absorbed by Endeavor, and to sweeten the pill they called it a ‘merger.’ But 100+ long-term staff still lost their jobs, and the once-invincible mammoth is now a weakening third in the agency ranks.