Elvis Presley reclaimed the top spot on Forbes.com’s seventh annual ranking of Top-Earning Celebrities, dead celebrities that is. The seventh annual ranking of “Top-Earning Dead Celebrities†assesses the earning power of deceased celebrities, including musicians, actors, authors, songwriters and composers, among others.
Elvis (who earned $49 million from October 2006 – October 2007) and the other 12 icons on the list grossed a combined $232 million in the past 12 months. Newcomers to the list this year include Steve McQueen ($6 million) and James Brown ($5 million).
The Top 5 Top-Earning Dead Celebrities
1. Elvis Presley $49 Million
2. John Lennon $44 Million
3. Charles M. Schulz $35 Million
4. George Harrison $22 Million
5. Albert Einstein $18 Million
Kurt Cobain, who debuted in first place on the list in 2006, was one of four who fell off this year’s list, joining Ray Charles, J.R.R. Tolkien and Johnny Cash. Tupac Shakur ($9 million) is back on the list, as is James Dean ($3.5 million).
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Posted by JustAZN
Who knew a semi-dead person would still be the richest celebrity alive considering the people like J-Lo and Jessica Alba is around.
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Posted by Terry Ng
He’s the richest dead celebrity, not the richest living celebrity. Read again. ;)
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Posted by JustAZN
Ohhh, hahahah. I never knew Einstein made that much money. He seemed like a middle-classed man to me.
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Posted by AllaN
I understand how Elvis makes money while he’s dead, but Albert Einstein? He’s still making money??
The fact that john lennon is in second place surprises me.
Well anyways, I guess Elvis’s spirit lives on and his fans will always exist to support him.
-AllaN -
Posted by drestuh
its gotta be Graceland making a big chunk of that money. my mom dragged me there once as a kid, and i remember the parking lot was packed. Elvis’ fans are hardcore!
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Posted by vgachi57
I’m interpreting this data as the amount of money the intellectual properties and products associated with the dead celebrities is still earning. For instance, Elvis’ songs or Einstein’s picture for posters. If they were still alive, they’d be around to collect royalties. But not that the families of these celebrities are still collecting.
Tolkien sold the rights to his Lord of the Rings stuff long ago. His family still holds the right to the Hobbit, which is one of the reasons Peter Jackson didn’t/couldn’t make a Hobbit movie.
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Posted by benmanners
hmm..if he wasnt the richest dead person last year, that means that his fame relatively fluctuates, if it is a direct show on how rich he is getting. i wonder why the sudden increase in the king of rock and roll has come back again..
dont get me wrong, elvis has always been an amazing singer, and he definitely is always on my oldies playlist on my zune, next to james brown of course :) im a classic jams guy.
im not suprised with tupak’s showing..since he is still releasing posthumous albums..and a lot at that..
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