Jackie Coogan was a successful child actor of the 1920's. By the time he reached 21 years old, his career was over. At that time, he discovered that his parents had spent the millions of dollars he had earned. Coogan Law was instituted in 1939 to protect the earnings of child actors. California updated this law in 2000 stating that all money earned by the child is solely theirs. 15% of the earnings must be held in a trust fund called a Coogan account.
All working child actors must have a working permit (issued for six months of work) and a social security number. Babies may only be filmed 20 minutes a day - resulting in the employment of twins and triplets to play one character. Children over the age of seven can be on set for up to 8 hours - 3 of which must be dedicated to their education.
Many of today's child stars find the fame and fortune difficult to navigate. Sadly, these children grow up to be disfunctional adults with addicition issues, legal problems or file for bankruptcy. Corey Haim, Michael Jackson and River Phoenix have tradgedically met early deaths due in part to their celebrity.
Geraldine, this is a very interesting post. I did not know how child labor laws applied to actors who are children. I do agree that most children who make lots of money acting when they are young, for the most part, end up being spoiled and get into trouble. There are a few who beat the odds and end up either being successful actors when they grow up or use their money to educate themselves and become successful at something else. The laws you talk about need to exist for the protection of these children. Great post. Mary Ann Reday.
ReplyDeleteI found this a very informative post. I was aware of the child-labor laws, but did not know how and why they came about. I agree that many children actors are very spoiled, and can easily fall into trouble, have poor social skills, and abuse drugs. This can be attributed to not having the time to be a child, and enjoy playing with other children and just doing the normal kid stuff. How often did we hear Michael Jackson say that he just wanted to be a normal "kid", but that time had past and he was trapped in an adult scenario. Very often it is the parents or legal guardian who are after the fame and fortune without regards to the child actor best interests. I agree the laws need to be reviewed from time to time and exist to protect children.
ReplyDeleteI really do find this post interesting because some parent that have the children in the business at an early age only do it for the money. I didn't know, however, there was a law for children working. Although, a lot of people pick out the bad seeds of child actors/actresses, there are some good ones. For example, Tia and Tamara Mowry, Dakota Fanning, Hayden Panettiere, etc.
ReplyDeleteGeraldine, I never knew about The Coogan Law. I'm glad to hear that this law was implemented, but it hasn't completely protected young child stars from parents that only see green.I remember hoe innocent Michael Jackson looked when he was the star of the Jackson Five group. He is one artist that took advantage of the lastest technology in the movies business. His video Thriller set the trend for high tech music videos. I believe that he really did not enjoy making music until he begin controlling the music he produced.
ReplyDeleteI've heard about this law, didn't know the name though. I think this law should be revised now with more child actors and crazy parents. I remember my mom telling me the big story with LeAnn Rymes and how her parents spent all her money and she actually sued them when she was like 15 or something. Very interesting post.
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