LEADERSHIP QUOTE OF THE DAY (20 May 2012): 'DO' BETTER THAN YOU 'TALK'. - Jeff Doyle
SUCCESS
Dead Stars Still Earn Millions
For the second year in a row, Michael Jackson tops our annual list of the Top-Earning Dead Celebrities...
Over the past year his estate brought in $170 million from sales of his music and his stake in the Sony/ATV catalog. That’s a big drop from the $275 million Jackson earned in the previous 12 months but it’s still enough to make him the second highest-earning pop act over the past year, dead or alive, after U2.
Elvis Presley ranked second on our list with $55 million. Of course Presley’s iconic songs, like “Hound Dog” and “Heartbreak Hotel,” still sell well and fans flock to Graceland. But a long-running Vegas show where tickets sell for as much as $175 a pop definitely gooses earnings.
John Lennon, who ties for fifth on our list with $12 million, and George Harrison, tied for 13th with $6 million, both also benefited from Cirque. The show 'Love' based on Beatles music, has been running at The Mirage in Las Vegas since 2006.
Elizabeth Taylor, who passed away in March, joins the list this year in fifth place (tied with Lennon) with $12 million. Most of that money comes from Taylor’s best-selling perfume White Diamonds.
Marilyn Monroe, who returns to hte list with $27 million in earnings over the past year, ranking her third. Earlier this year Authentic Brand Management bought the rights to Monroe’s estate.
Like Monroe, Bettie Page is enjoying a renaissance. The pinup girl, who died in 2008, is more in style than ever before, with a chain of stores called Bettie Page Clothing in places like Hollywood and Las Vegas selling clothes inspired by the model and B movie star. Those stores helped her estate earn $6 million this year, tying for 13th place on our list with Andy Warhol and George Harrison.