CareerBuilder goes to the movies

Many of us made our way to the movies this weekend to see the eagerly anticipated Batman movie, “The Dark Knight.” (And as we mentioned the other week, we suspect more than a few of you played hooky on Friday to see it!)

You would think that sitting in a nice, air-conditioned theater with a bucket of popcorn and an endless stream of previews would keep me happy. But curiosity got the best of me and made me ask: How are these movie characters faring in their careers? And more importantly, how much money are they making?

I decided to do some research on CBSalary.com and see what I could find out. Here are some characters from recent films, and the salary that those fictional characters might rake in if they were real.

THE DARK KNIGHT: Bruce Wayne, also known as Batman, was the focal point of “The Dark Knight.” In the Batman mythology, Bruce has been described as a billionaire industrialist. The closest real-life figures to Bruce Wayne in terms of compensation and pay might be Bill Gates (net worth: $58 billion), Steve Jobs (net worth: $5.4 billion) or the founders of Google, Sergey Brin and Larry Page (net worth: $18 billion each).  I wonder if any of these guys have a secret life fighting crime?

GET SMART: The remake of “Get Smart” still had Maxwell Smart and Agent 99 working for the fictional spy agency CONTROL. Real-life criminal justice types who pursue a career as a CIA agent make an average of $51,700 annually. Hopefully, that salary allows for an upgrade from the clunky shoephone.

MAMMA MIA!:  In this film version of the stage musical filled with the music of ABBA, Meryl Streep plays the lead role of Donna, a former musician who now owns a hotel on a small Greek island. Managing the hotel is a handful for Donna, but it can be extremely rewarding. According to CBSalary.com, hotel managers make an average of $142,723.

HANCOCK:  John Hancock (played by Will Smith) might not be paid for his superhero duties, but his public relations man, Ray Embrey (played by Jason Bateman) earns his salary by keeping troublemaker Hancock out of trouble. The average salary for a public relations representative is $44,649. But agents like Embrey, who are based in Los Angeles and are handling celebrities, undoubtedly make far more.

KIT KITTREDGE: Though child labor laws would prevent a real-life Kit Kittredge from working at a newspaper, a reporter hired at a newspaper today makes an average of $40,902. Kit wrote on her typewriter about the events she saw from her treehouse. Today, a reporter must write about issues from around the corner or around the world. They also have to learn new technologies, like video, to incorporate into their reporting. Their stories are published in print as well as on the Web.

IRON MAN: Last but not least, we have Tony Stark from “Iron Man.” Engineers like Tony Stark make an average of $42,699 for a starting salary. Engineers with experience and advanced knowledge make an average of $98,300.

Check out CBSalary.com if you are curious about other careers and what those jobs are paid on average. And see you at the movies!