Posted on 10/28/2009 1:10:50 PM PDT by JoeProBono
Forbes magazine's ninth annual list of top-earning dead celebrities was unveiled Wednesday, and surprise, surprise:
Neither Michael Jackson nor Elvis Presley held court at the top. Late French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent debuted in the No. 1 spot with an estate that earned $350 million in the year after his death from brain cancer in June 2008.
To place on this year's list, "delebs" -- industry speak for dead celebrities -- had to earn at least $6 million between October 1, 2008, and October 1, 2009. Saint Laurent earned well past that.
A February Christie's auction sold most of his possessions, including art, antiques and furniture, to the tune of $443 million over a three-day period. The monies were split between the Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent Foundation and an as-yet-unnamed philanthropic group created for scientific research and the fight against AIDS, according to Forbes.
Following Saint Laurent at No. 2 is legendary composing duo Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein, co-creators of such works as "Oklahoma," "South Pacific," The King and I" and "The Sound of Music." The bulk of their $235 million came in combined earnings from the sale of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization and the rights to the music they co-wrote......Michael Jackson's estate earned $90 million in the four months after his death in June, which put the late King of Pop at No. 3. As a result of the media attention surrounding Jackson's death, 9 million of his albums were sold worldwide, in addition to more than 5.5 digital downloads, according to Forbes....
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Give me a break. Elvis has been dead for 32 years or so...let's see where Michael and Yves rank 31 years from now!
Ghoulishly interesting to me. :)
“Presley, who normally leads the pack of deceased millionaires, was knocked down to the No. 4 spot this year. But here’s some perspective: Although the late Presley’s estate pulled in only $55 million from merchandising and Graceland admissions, he still earned more than some of the living, like Bon Jovi and Britney Spears. The New Jersey rock group earned $50 million in the 12-month time period, while Spears brought in $35 million.”
DITTO
He Vexes me, I’m very vexed ...
How much did L.Ron Hubbard’s cult take in last year?
You’re right that this comparing apples to oranges. A better comparison would be comparing dead NFL players from 32 years ago, to earnings of recently retired players.
Clothes do make the man . . .
Give me a break. Elvis has been dead for 32 years or so...
"Elvis died the day he went in the Army."---John Lennon.
In the late 1940s, pulp writer L. Ron Hubbard declared:
“Writing for a penny a word is ridiculous. If a man really wants to make a million dollars, the best way would be to start his own religion”
Hubbard later created the Church of Scientology...
And your point is? ;)
“Elvis died the day he went in the Army.”-—
And John Lennon died the day he married Yoko...
Need I say more? That is absolutely one of the most disturbing pictures ever. Tells you everything you need to know about their relationship.
Compare Elvis in his army uniform with this wimp. Man vs. Mouse.
“Elvis died the day he went in the Army.”-—
Lennon was referring to Elvis in musical, not biological terms. Frankly, I agree. With the exception (and a great exception it is) of the volume of music he cut in Memphis in 1967-69 (and especially "Suspicious Minds," maybe the closest Elvis ever got to cutting solid soul music), Elvis musically did die the day he went in the Army.
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