It's nice that they were still around, but if they're relegated to a two-second cameo or whatever, I think that's a waste. Either use them fully or don't.
And for other actors on other shows,
this kind of working arrangement is exactly a reason why they would voluntarily walk away from a show. This is
exactly the reason why Wayne Rogers left M*A*S*H when he did, because not only was Trapper reduced to Hawkeye's sidekick when they were supposed to be equal leads, but it got to a point where Trapper was only given maybe a scene or two in episodes, and that was it: he even told the producers if they were only going write just a scene or two for him a week, then they don't have to write him into the show at all, so that way they're not wasting his time, and he's not wasting theirs. This eventually lead to his departure.
Then, you've got incidents like with SEINFELD, was George was left out of
one episode, and Jason Alexander
flipped out over it, threatening to leave the show altogether if they ever did that to him again.
Then, you've got situations where actors let their egos take over and they basically go on their own personal strikes until their demands are met - and those demands are usually for
even more money (and some cases, more of their own input), despite how already handsomely they're paid.
So be grateful that the older castmembers have even stuck with the show all these years, to the bitter end, even if they were being phased out, or not used as much as they were when they were younger.
Now, can we
please get back to the topic at hand and stop turning
every Sesame thread into a bellyache over the devil-worshipping international media conglomerates at SW kicking the old farts to the unemployment office to cash their welfare checks?
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