The Silent Stars · 1910s
Top-earning actor
$670,000
One-year Mutual contractReported
About $19.8 million in 2025 dollars
Mutual paid him $10,000 a week plus a $150,000 signing bonus, about $670,000 for the year. At 26 he was one of the best-paid people in the world.
Top-earning actress
≈ $520,000
$10,000 a week, annualizedEstimate
About $15.4 million in 2025 dollars
On June 24, 1916 she signed with Adolph Zukor for $10,000 a week and half of her films' profits, with $1.04 million guaranteed over two years: the first million-dollar contract for an actress.
By U.S. and Canadian box-office gross
$1.8 million
$606,000
$103,000
Neither top earner was in one of the year's three biggest films.
