ACTORS MARCH ON AD FIRMS TO PRESS FOR PAY.

Byline: Dominic Berbeo Staff Writer

On the eve of what could become known as the summer of strikes in Los Angeles, about 2,000 actors from the nation's two largest entertainment unions rallied Monday with demands for more money in advertisement roles.

Carrying signs reading ``It Pays to Advertise, But Advertisers Don't Pay,'' and ``Advertisers . . . Making Millions But Paying Pennies,'' actors marched down Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile area past the headquarters of several large advertising firms.

The strikers include members of the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television & Radio Artists, representing about 135,000 actors nationwide, half of whom live in the Los Angeles area. Striking actors in San Francisco, Chicago and New York also went on strike Monday.

The SAG/AFTRA action comes just a week after a contract deal ended the three-week strike of 8,500 Los Angeles janitors. Another 250,000 workers, including teachers, bus drivers and police officers, are preparing for labor talks this summer.

Actor William Daniels, the winner of five Emmys for his role on the TV show ``St. Elsewhere,'' said the actors are prepared to stop performing and auditioning for commercials until a new three-year contract is reached.

``A lot of people think all actors make millions of dollars,'' he said. ``But many commercial actors today are making less than (television) actors in the 1970s.''

The focus of the negotiations is whether actors should receive residual payments each time a commercial is aired on cable television in the same manner as network ads have paid since the 1950s.

For broadcast commercials, actors now get nearly $500 the first time an ad is aired, roughly $120 the second time, and less each time thereafter, which can add up to thousands of dollars. For cable, actors get a flat fee, ranging anywhere from $500 to $1,000 which allows advertisers to air the work as many times as they choose during 13-week airing cycles.

In recent years, the cable market has grown swiftly, capturing 40 percent of television viewers in 1997, up from 15 percent in 1987, according to Nielson Media Research.

John McGuinn, a lead negotiator representing advertisers nationwide, said the industry wants to pay actors a flat fee for both broadcast and cable commercials because the market has changed since residuals were first put into place.

``The per-use plan started in the 1950s, when the three major networks controlled the entire audience,'' he said. ``It's much more expensive now because we have to show commercials in many markets to reach that audience today.''

He said commercial production would continue through the strike, because ``we have plenty of ads in the can'' to use, and there is an expectation that ``thousands of actors out there'' are willing to cross picket lines.

Contract negotiations, which began on Feb. 14, broke off April 14 and the union voted to strike four days later. There is no date to resume formal talks.

Other issues at stake include developing a regulated system for keeping track of when and where commercials air.

Actor Edward Asner, a former SAG president, said the labor action, SAG's first in 12 years, was a show of new union strength.

``The pay issues need to be corrected, especially in this time of a booming economy,'' said Asner, best known for his portrayal of a gruff newsman on TV's ``Mary Tyler Moore'' and ``Lou Grant.''

In 1988, SAG and AFTRA went on strike for three weeks following a dispute with the advertisement industry.

Miguel Contreras, secretary-treasurer for the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, marched with the striking actors. He said increased job actions can be expected in coming weeks as negotiations in other labor sectors get under way.

``The commitment of workers in Los Angeles is the strongest in many years, he said. ``We'll have several multiunion demonstrations in the near future.''

Contreras said the Teamsters had also vowed not to cross SAG/AFTRA picket lines, which could snarl advertising production.

On the picket line, striking actors said they were prepared for a prolonged action.

``Residuals can make a huge difference in your life if you're doing hundreds of auditions just to get one job,'' said Brian Mulligan of the Mid-Wilshire area.

``About 60 to 70 percent of many of our total incomes are from commercials on TV and radio,'' said actor Ray Chang. ``We do the work that makes millions for advertisers; we should get a fair share.''

Total income for SAG members in 1998 was $1.6 billion, of which $600 million came from commercial productions, according to union spokesman Greg Krizman.

WHAT THE STRIKE IS ALL ABOUT

--Network TV commercials: Principal on-screen actors receive a minimum ``session fee'' of about $479 for a day's work. They also are paid a residual each time the commercial runs, ranging from about $47 to $123 in a descending scale. Advertisers want to scrap that for a flat payment system that would guarantee actors $2,575 for unlimited use of the commercial for a 13-week period. The fee would be renewable.

--Cable TV commercials: Actors get about $479 to $1,014 for each 13-week run, based on the number of subscribers to the cable channel. The payment is renewable. Unions want to install the ``pay-for-play'' formula used for network commercials. They argue that cable TV will dominate commercial work, and payment to performers should reflect that. Advertisers say the switch would mean a 350 percent hike in cable payment. Instead, they propose raising the maximum cable payment from $1,014 to $1,627.

--Pay: Unions want a 14 percent across-the-board increase in various commercial work payments, not including hikes caused by the change in figuring cable TV payments. The industry is offering a 4.4 percent hike in the session fee for principal performers, raising it to $500, with larger hikes for Spanish-language commercials.

--Internet commercials: Unions want to expand current commercial agreements to cover ads made solely for the Internet. Advertisers' negotiators say they don't have authority to do that.

--Other issues: Unions want advertisers to fund a system to monitor actual use of radio and television commercials.

- The Associated Press

CAPTION(S):

photo, box

Photo: (color) Striking SAG members chant during a rally Monday.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer

Box: What the strike is all about (see text)