Robin Strasser has a sizeable decision to make. The actress has been presented with a new contract by One Life to Live executives. Published reports say the actress would have to agree to a massive paycut. Strasser, meanwhile, hints that she's not sure what decision she'll make.
The clock is ticking down to decision day for long-time One Life to Live veteran Robin Strasser (Dorian Lord). The Emmy-winning actress reports that her contract talks with show executives are now in their final days -- and her future with the ABC soap will more than likely be decided by the end of July.
On her fan hotline last week, Strasser revealed that barring some sort of "compassion extension" to the negotiation process, the network's latest contract offer is a "take it or leave it" offer. At the time, Strasser said that she had just 26 days to decide if she'd accept the offer. Published reports claim that Strasser is being asked to take what amounts to a 61% percent salary cut. Due to confidentiality clauses, it's unclear what Strasser's salary would be after such a sizeable reduction. In 2005, however, Strasser asserted that she was working for about half of what she had been making in 1999.
By now, it's well-known that even daytime's biggest stars are being asked to take salary cuts. The Young and the Restless' Melody Thomas Scott (Nikki Newman) recently reached an argeement on a new contract with the top-rated CBS after initially rejecting a paycut, but not before the show wrote her character off the canvas. This spring, even All My Children's Susan Lucci (Erica Kane) confirmed that she'd agreed to work at a reduced rate, possibly as much as 40% less.
But not every veteran performer is given the chance to accept or reject a smaller salary. In January, Days of our Lives sent shockwaves throughout the industry by cutting two of its biggest stars, Deidre Hall (Marlena Evans) and Drake Hogestyn (John Black), from the cast. The implications were clear: no star was too big to be let go.
"I took a huge pay cut six years ago, so I don't think anyone should whine," Strasser told TVGuide Canada in an interview earlier this year. "I took a healthy pay cut, and I was happy to be taking one for the team. Listen, I get it - times have changed. It's survival time. Let's not have a pity party. I would hate to see the cameramen, the teamsters, and our security guards out of work because the headliners didn't want to do the right thing. We all need to display some judgment and think about the big picture."
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Whether or not Strasser will agree to another paycut remains to be seen. The actress has also been vocal about her uncertainty over whether or not she'd agree to remain on One Life to Live on a recurring basis.
Strasser, who joined One Life to Live in 1979, has left the show twice before. In 1987, Strasser left to pursue other ventures, but she returned to Llanview six years later. In 2000, Strasser left One Life to Live amid a much-publicized dust-up with then-executive producer Jill Farren Phelps. Strasser then took on the recurring role of Hecuba, a 300-year-old witch, on NBC's Passions. In April 2003, Strasser announced that she was "delighted" to be returning to One Life to Live.
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