The Top-Earning Dead Celebrities

The Top-Earning Dead Celebrities – It’s been two years since his death, but Michael Jackson’s earning power shows no signs of slacking. According to an articles in Forbes.com, the King of Pop once again tops their list of the biggest earners in the afterlife, this time with $170 million.

This year he’s joined by newcomer Elizabeth Taylor who, thanks in part to her White Diamonds fragrance, has earned $12 million since her death in March. The 15 stars on our list show that with the right planning, death is no barrier to making big bucks.

The Top-Earning Dead Celebrities – Over the past 12 months Jackson’s 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.

The 15 people on our list earned a combined $366 million between October 2010 and October 2011, which just goes to show that death is not the end when it comes to celebrities.

Songwriters who own their own work usually fare best on our list because their catalogs can keep selling well long after they’ve passed away. But now there’s a new way for dead pop stars to earn big: Cirque Du Soleil.

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