How Tom Selleck Took Care of MAGNUM P.I. Cast and Crew When Studio Wouldn’t
By Movieguide® Contributor
In his recently released memoir, Tom Selleck recalls how he put the crew of MAGNUM P.I. ahead of himself, giving them money from his bonus when the studio wouldn’t.
In the final season of MAGNUM P.I., Universal refused to pay the cast and crew $1,000 bonuses. Selleck would not stand for this and was able to negotiate a major bonus for himself because he was the star of the show. Instead of keeping the money, however, he had Universal distribute his bonus money to everyone else working on the show.
“I called Skip and Bettye and told them to tell Universal — not ask them tell them — to issue thousand-dollar checks to every regular member of our MAGNUM company in both Hawaii and L.A. And that since it was coming out of my bonus money, there was no precedent involved,” Selleck wrote.
“When the checks came out, I got a picture from our L.A. crew standing on a bleacher with big smiles on their faces,” he continued. “In front of them was a very big oversized check for a thousand dollars. The caption below read, ‘Thanks, Tom. What a “grand” gesture.’ That made me happy.”
This wouldn’t be the last time Selleck forwent money for the sake of a show. Last year when CBS was considering canceling BLUE BLOODS without airing a farewell season, Selleck and the rest of the main cast advocated for lower salaries for themselves so they could keep the show going.
READ MORE: BLUE BLOODS CAST CUTS LOOM AMID SEASON 14 RENEWAL TALKS
Decisions like these point to Selleck’s humble nature and his love for life over greed for money. That personality shines throughout his memoir as he walks down memory lane.
“I really want to share my 50 years of show business, or how many years the book deals with, what it was like to start in a business that I never anticipated being in,” Selleck said, explaining why he wrote his memoir. “I never wanted to be an actor, I never did a play, I never did anything. I got lucky and got exposed to it under contract with 20th Century Fox. So that road — and I’m quite a ways in — that road is not what the audience thinks it is.”
“I’ve had a very good life, a very lucky life. I don’t know if it’s what I figured I’d be doing, but it’s with a lot of gratitude,” he added.
READ MORE: BLUE BLOODS’ TOM SELLECK PROMISES TO ‘SHARE THE RIDE’ IN NEW MEMOIR
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