The show on goes for these incredibly famous dead celebrities, as they keep on amassing wealth, even they are no more. Talk about business as usual! Here are the highest earning dead celebrities –
- Michael Jackson (singer, dancer, entertainer) –Forbes has put him in the list of the highest earning dead celebrity for the sixth consecutive year with earnings at $115 million. The king of pop and one of the biggest entertainers of our time, died on June 25, 2009 at the age of 50 due to died of acute propofol and benzodiazepine intoxication.
- Elvis Presley (singer, entertainer) – $55 million . The king of rock and roll, and one of the biggest musical icons of the 20th century, died young, at the age of 42 (August 16, 1977) due to drug overdose.
- Charles Schultz (cartoonist) – $40 million – One of the most influential cartoonist of his time, he was known for the widely read ‘Peanuts’. He died at the age of 77 in the year 2000.
- Bob Marley (singer) – $21 million – He is the king of reggae music, and is credited with giving a distinct identity to Jamaican music. The legendary singer died at a young age of 36 on May 11 1981 due to malignant melanoma.
- Elizabeth Taylor (actress) – $20 million- The most celebrated female movie star of the 50s, she was also the first one to be paid $1 million for her title role in the movie ‘ Cleopatra’. Her personal life was a toast to the media, she married eight times, twice to the same man, braved several illnesses and lived life queen-size. She died of congestive heart failure in 2011 (age 79).
- Marilyn Monroe (actress) – $17 million – The unparalleled sex symbol and movie star Marilyn Monroe was also known for her closeness with the Kennedy brothers. Though her death at a mere age of 36 (August 5, 1962) has been attributed to barbiturate overdose, there are still many conspiracy theories that beg to differ.
- John Lennon (Singer and songwriter for Beatles) – $12 million – Known as the 5th greatest singer of all times, this Beatles co-founder and band member was shot to a death by a certain Mark David Chapman on May 10, 1955. Lennon was 40.
- Albert Einstein (scientist) – $11 million – The scientist and thinker needs no introduction. The Nobel Prize winner died at the age of 76 on April 18, 1955 due to abdominal aortic aneurysm.
- Paul Walker (actor) – $10.5 million – The actor became synonymous with ‘The Fast and Furious’ and acted in five of the six installments. He also acted in other movies like ‘Into The Blue’, ‘Running Scared’, ‘Joy Ride’ and ‘Into the Blue’. He died in a car crash along with friend Roger Rodas on November 20. 2013, at the age of 40.
- Bettie Page (model) – $10 million. – The famous American model of the 50s is known to have influenced the likes of Madonna, Katy Perry and Uma Thurman. She died in the year 2008 at the age of 85, due to pneumonia.
- Theodor ‘Dr Seuss’ Geisel (illustrator) – $9.5 million – He was a famous illustrator and writer known for writing and working on the illustrations of children’s books under the pen name ‘Dr. Seuss’. His book sold more than six hundred million copies and has been translated into more than 22 languages. He died on September 24, 1991 (aged 87) due to oral cancer.
- Steve McQueen (actor) – $9 million – He was a rebellious star who acted in movies like The Cincinnati Kid, The Getaway, Thomas Crow Affair, The Magnificient Seven, The Towering Infero and The Magnificent Seven. In the mid 70s, he was the highest paid movie sar in the world. He died age 50, on November 7, 1980 due to pleural mesothelioma.
- James Dean – $8.5 million – The quintessential teen heart-throb is still a cult icon for the rebellious teenager. He did just three films ‘Rebel Without a Cause’ , ‘East of Eden’, and ‘Giant’ but they were enough to make him supremely popular. His untimely death at the age of 24 in a car crash in the year 1955, made him ‘forever young’ in the minds of people . He was the first Hollywood actor to win a posthumous Academy Award for Best Actor.