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Cast member

From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A cast member is:

Television

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Most television series have a "regular cast" or "main cast". These are the actors who are regularly on the show each week. They are commonly called just "regulars" or "main characters". Programs will often need other actors to play smaller roles in the series. These are called "guest stars". A guest star may only be used for a single episode or they may be used for more than one. This often happens if the character's story goes on for more than one episode. Often, a character will be used for many episodes, but over a long period of time not for episodes shown one after the other. These are called "recurring characters" and are characters that are not "regulars", they are not part of the main cast, but are used many times during the series.

Etymology

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The word cast comes from the Old English word ' casten ' or ' kasta '(c.1230). The Old English means to throw in, to consider, plot, imagine, and design.[2][3] This led to its meaning when referring to a "group of actors in a play" (c.1631).[4]

References

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  1. McGill, Douglas C. (1989-08-27). "A 'Mickey Mouse' Class - For Real". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-02-22. At Disney, employees are called 'cast members,'...
  2. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
  3. Skeat, Walter W.; Mayhew, Anthony (2005). A Concise Dictionary of Middle English: From A. D. 1150 To 1580. R. A. Sites Books. ISBN 0979871255. Retrieved 2007-10-04.
  4. "v. Cast". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 2008-02-22.