TV's Highest Paid Stars

It's no secret that movie stars earn a larger-than-life payday, but who knew these familiar faces of the small screen rake in nearly as much as their big screen counterparts?

Mariah Carey made headlines in July when it was first reported that the Grammy winner would take in an estimated $17 million for judging her first season of American Idol. Trailing in her fancy footsteps is the talent competition's host, Ryan Seacrest, who earns a cool $15 million a year for the gig, putting him neck-in-neck with America's Got Talent judge Howard Stern.

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The Kardashians take in nearly as much as their Keeping up with the Kardashians executive producer, Ryan Seacrest, with $10 million a year for the E! reality series.

Mark Harmon pulls in $500 thousand an episode for the CBS hit NCIS, putting him in at $12 million a year for his turn as Special Agent Gibbs.

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Judy Sheindlin rises to the top with a salary that blows most big screen celebrity's paychecks out the water! At a whopping $45 million a year, TV's resident judge has the coveted distinction of being the highest paid person (man or woman) on television.

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