Can you imagine someone handing you $7.11 million dollars for every half hour you worked?! I probably would only work for an hour because I’d be set for a good minute!
Well that’s how much some of the TV shows that we all love are earning, and this isn’t per episode, (I needed to reiterate that) but every 30 minutes!!!
Forbes revealed their annual list of TV’s Biggest Moneymakers in 2010 and is it really that hard to guess which show was number one?!
It was for me; because I assumed with all the “Sheen” controversy that Two and a Half Men had it in the bag, but American Idol is the show that’s “winning” (do I have to pay to use that terminology)?
Yes Fox’s American Idol made a whopping $7.11 million in advertising profits for each half hour they were on the air.
Not too far behind them was my first guess as the highest paid show, CBS’s Two and a Half Men.
Although we have no idea where the future of this show lies, Forbes estimates that this show made $2.89 million every half hour.
Another interesting tidbit, and a one upper for Two and a Half Men creator Chuck Lorre, is that three of his shows made the top ten lists (Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory, and Mike & Molly).
The number three spot (a show I’ve never had the chance to watch, but Wendy Williams makes it sound like I should make some time for it) is ABC’s Desperate Housewives; this show made $2.74 million per half hour.
One show I thought would have made the Top Ten at the least was Fox’s Glee, but they placed 11th.
Next year Glee will be number one!
Forbes Top 10 Lists:
1) ‘American Idol‘ (Fox) $7.1 million
2) ‘Two and a Half Men‘ (CBS) $2.89 million
3) ‘Desperate Housewives‘ (ABC) $2.74 million
4) Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) $2.67 million
5) ‘Dancing With the Stars‘ (ABC) $2.67 million
6) ‘Lost‘ (ABC) $2.6 million
7) ‘The Big Bang Theory‘ (CBS) $2.5 million
8) ‘24‘ (Fox) $2.45 million
9) ‘Private Practice‘ (ABC) $2.32 million
10) ‘Mike & Molly‘ (CBS) $2.11 million