Summary
- Ray Romano's role in Everybody Loves Raymond season 1 changed his life, making him one of the wealthiest sitcom stars.
- Without Everybody Loves Raymond, Romano might have continued as a stand-up comedian, but wouldn't have made as much money.
- The supportive writers and producers of the show believed in Romano, leading to the success of Everybody Loves Raymond.
It's hard to imagine Ray Romano not becoming a massive sitcom star. His comedic talent jumps off the screen in each episode of Everybody Loves Raymond season 1 and beyond. In his scenes with Debra's Everybody Loves Raymond character and the rest of the iconic cast, Romano is a relatable everyman who just wants some peace (but truly loves his family).
It's impossible to talk about the 1990s sitcom without focusing on the money that the co-creator and main star made. Romano's salary affected future TV roles because he would never be paid so much for a TV show again. Thanks to the supportive Everybody Loves Raymond writers and the successful first season, Ray Romano became one of the wealthiest sitcom stars.
Everybody Loves Raymond Season 1 Changed Ray Romano's Life After Years Of Stand-Up Comedy
In a behind-the-scenes video about Everybody Loves Raymond, Ray Romano, his wife Anna, and co-creator Phil Rosenthal shared the story of how Everybody Loves Raymond season 1 came to be. If Romano hadn't been cast in this sitcom, it's possible that he would have continued to be a stand-up comedian. However, it's hard to say if he would have made the high salary that he did. He might not have a $200 million net worth today, either.
Romano explained that he spent seven years in college and enjoyed stand-up comedy. After he began doing improv in New York City, he moved out of his childhood home at 29. It seems possible that Romano might have continued living like this if it wasn't for Everybody Loves Raymond season 1.
The Future Of Everybody Loves Raymond Was In Doubt After Patricia Heaton Purposely Called In "Sick" Due To Behind The Scenes Issues
With season 8 of Everybody Loves Raymond shooting, Patricia Heaton decided to call in "sick," while Brad Garrett didn't show up either.
After he appeared on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson in 1991, Romano began telling jokes on many late-night shows. As his wife Anna shared, they were both home with their three kids during the day, and he then left in the evenings to do stand-up. Things truly changed when Ray Romano appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman. He said Rob Burnett phoned him and said he was "in the talking stages" of a TV development deal.
Ray Romano's TV Credits (Besides Acting)
- hosted two episodes of Saturday Night Live (1999-2003)
- performed on 31 episodes of The Late Show with David Letterman (1995-2015)
- hosted David Letterman: A Life on Television (2015)
- appeared in two episodes of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? (2021)
Of course, the rest is history, and once Everybody Loves Raymond season 1 aired, it was clear that the sitcom was a success.
As Romano's wife Anna shared in the video, he had many odd jobs before Everybody Loves Raymond, including selling futons. It's unclear how much he could have made if he continued to do stand-up comedy and didn't book a huge sitcom job. It seems unlikely that he would have made millions, though.
In 2001, Entertainment Weekly reported that Ray Romano was given a pay raise. He was going to earn $40 million.
The Tragic Truth About Everybody Loves Raymond Twin Sawyer Sweeten
Everybody Loves Raymond twin Sawyer Sweeten tragically passed away prior to his 20th birthday.
Romano, proving that he has always been humble, said:
"My wife does all the finances. If she ever left me, I swear, I’d be selling futons again. I don’t even know if I get paid on this job. I think it’s all barter."
Everybody Loves Raymond's Writers Like Phil Rosenthal Helped Ray Romano's Comedy Career Take Off
In the same behind-the-scenes video, Everybody Loves Raymond's writers and producers talked about how they knew that Ray Romano deserved his own TV series.
Phil Rosenthal explained more about how the show came to be. After trying to become an actor in New York City, he began writing, and that is when it all came together. Rosenthal was given one of Romano's comedy tapes and got the opportunity to write for the show. Rosenthal said, "I said to my wife 'I love this bit that he does with the keys'... I just liked his personality and they were interviewing a bunch of guys to see who was right... So I got lucky." Romano joked, "And I got unlucky."
Was The Cast of Everybody Loves Raymond The Reason It Was Canceled Despite Its Enormous Ratings?
While shows of so much magnitude often end due to dwindling viewership or internal conflicts, Everybody Loves Raymond defied the norm.
Wendi Trilling, SVP of Comedy Development at CBS, explained that CBS and David Letterman's production company Worldwide Pants were working together. Chris Albrecht, the Chairman and CEO of HBO, explained that Worldwide Pants knew Phil Rosenthal from the TV show Down The Shore. It's clear that if it wasn't for Everybody Loves Raymond's writers like Phil Rosenthal, Ray Romano's lucrative comedy career might not have happened the way that it did.
Since Romano and Rosenthal related to each other, they decided that they would work together. Rosenthal had a great idea about the Everybody Loves Raymond premise and knew the sitcom should be based on their own families' desire to look at life with humor. If he hadn't had that idea, it's possible that the show wouldn't have been such a hit and Romano's life wouldn't have changed so much.
Phil Rosenthal said:
"Here's someone who really didn't have a lot of acting experience so you want to keep the show close to who he is so he's comfortable. That seemed like a smart thing to do."
Rosenthal mentioned the importance of Debra's Everybody Loves Raymond character since Ray and Debra Barone have "a classic male/female relationship."
Since Romano bonded with one of the Everybody Loves Raymond writers, the meat of the sitcom was born. Rosenthal learned more about Romano's family life with his twin sons and parents who lived close by and could tell there was comedy gold there. Rosenthal said, "We're going into his actual personal life."
| 77% on the Tomatometer |
| 77% Audience Score |
It sounds like each of the Everybody Loves Raymond writers knew that the show was going to work out because they believed in Ray Romano so much. One of the writers, Jeremy Stevens, shared a story in the behind-the-scenes video and said "We're on for 10 years." If Ray Romano didn't have such a supportive team behind him, it's possible that Everybody Loves Raymond would have fizzled out fast, or maybe it wouldn't have even been made in the first place.
