/ Apr 10, 2025
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13 dead celebrities who are still making crores from their work
While many of the richest celebrities enjoy their fifteen minutes of fame and bow out, there are some legendary icons who manage to hold on to their limelight and their loyal fanbase even after their demise. In some cases, the posthumous fame isn’t just limited to public adoration but it extends to the cash flow.
Forbes released their annual list of top-earning dead celebrities of 2019 in November 2019 that revealed the highest paid dead celebrities from October 2018 to October 2019. The list is filled with late icons who are still pulling in fat dough from the grave, through revenue streams such as royalties for their work, marketing and licensing deals.
Here are the 13 highest-paid dead celebrities of 2019:
1. Michael Jackson
The King of Pop, who died in 2009, managed to be at the top of the list for the seventh year in a row, with earnings of $60 million – making him one of the richest celebrities
2. Elvis Presley
The King of Rock and Roll, who died of a cardiac arrest in the year 1977, pulled in $39 million in 2019.
3. Charles Schulz
Regarded as one of the most influential cartoonists of all time, Charles Schulz’s annual earnings in 2019 amounted to $38 million. Schulz lost his life to cancer in the year 2000.
4. Arnold Palmer
Arnold Palmer, who died due to heart disease in 2016, had $30 million worth earnings. The American professional golfer was considered to be one of the greatest and most charismatic player in sports history.
5. Bob Marley
Regarded as one of the pioneers of Reggae, the Jamaican singer, songwriter pulled in $20 million worth of earnings. Marley died of cancer in 1981.
6. Dr. Seuss
The political cartoonist, illustrator, poet, animator, screenwriter, and filmmaker who is known for his work writing and illustrating more than 60 books, had earnings worth $19 million in 2019. Dr. Seuss, who died in 1991, is yet another icon that the world lost to cancer,
7. John Lennon
The founder, co-lead vocalist, and rhythm guitarist of the globally popular English rock band, the Beatles managed to rake in $14 million worth of earnings. Lennon was assassinated at the age of 40 in the year 1980.
8. Marilyn Monroe
One of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and the early 1960s, Marilyn Monroe is one of only two females to make this list with $13 million of earnings. The actress died of an overdose in the year 1962.
9. Prince
The pop star, who died of an overdose in 2016, had annual earnings worth $12 million.
10. Nipsey Hussle
Nipsey Hussle, who was an American rapper and activist, pulled in $11 million worth of revenue. The rapper was shot and killed in the year 2019.
11. XXXTENTACION
The American rapper, who was quite the controversial figure due to legal issues, was assassinated in 2018 and had annual earnings worth $10 million.
12. Whitney Houston
Cited as the most awarded female artist of all time by Guinness World Records, Whitney Houston pulled in $9.5 million worth of annual earnings. The singer’s cause of death was drowning.
13. George Harrison
The second member of The Beatles to make the list, lead guitarist George Harrison, who died of cancer in 2001, had annual revenue worth $9 million.
While many of the richest celebrities enjoy their fifteen minutes of fame and bow out, there are some legendary icons who manage to hold on to their limelight and their loyal fanbase even after their demise. In some cases, the posthumous fame isn’t just limited to public adoration but it extends to the cash flow.
Forbes released their annual list of top-earning dead celebrities of 2019 in November 2019 that revealed the highest paid dead celebrities from October 2018 to October 2019. The list is filled with late icons who are still pulling in fat dough from the grave, through revenue streams such as royalties for their work, marketing and licensing deals.
Here are the 13 highest-paid dead celebrities of 2019:
1. Michael Jackson
The King of Pop, who died in 2009, managed to be at the top of the list for the seventh year in a row, with earnings of $60 million – making him one of the richest celebrities
2. Elvis Presley
The King of Rock and Roll, who died of a cardiac arrest in the year 1977, pulled in $39 million in 2019.
3. Charles Schulz
Regarded as one of the most influential cartoonists of all time, Charles Schulz’s annual earnings in 2019 amounted to $38 million. Schulz lost his life to cancer in the year 2000.
4. Arnold Palmer
Arnold Palmer, who died due to heart disease in 2016, had $30 million worth earnings. The American professional golfer was considered to be one of the greatest and most charismatic player in sports history.
5. Bob Marley
Regarded as one of the pioneers of Reggae, the Jamaican singer, songwriter pulled in $20 million worth of earnings. Marley died of cancer in 1981.
6. Dr. Seuss
The political cartoonist, illustrator, poet, animator, screenwriter, and filmmaker who is known for his work writing and illustrating more than 60 books, had earnings worth $19 million in 2019. Dr. Seuss, who died in 1991, is yet another icon that the world lost to cancer,
7. John Lennon
The founder, co-lead vocalist, and rhythm guitarist of the globally popular English rock band, the Beatles managed to rake in $14 million worth of earnings. Lennon was assassinated at the age of 40 in the year 1980.
8. Marilyn Monroe
One of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and the early 1960s, Marilyn Monroe is one of only two females to make this list with $13 million of earnings. The actress died of an overdose in the year 1962.
9. Prince
The pop star, who died of an overdose in 2016, had annual earnings worth $12 million.
10. Nipsey Hussle
Nipsey Hussle, who was an American rapper and activist, pulled in $11 million worth of revenue. The rapper was shot and killed in the year 2019.
11. XXXTENTACION
The American rapper, who was quite the controversial figure due to legal issues, was assassinated in 2018 and had annual earnings worth $10 million.
12. Whitney Houston
Cited as the most awarded female artist of all time by Guinness World Records, Whitney Houston pulled in $9.5 million worth of annual earnings. The singer’s cause of death was drowning.
13. George Harrison
The second member of The Beatles to make the list, lead guitarist George Harrison, who died of cancer in 2001, had annual revenue worth $9 million.
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It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
