A number of celebrities continue to generate regular income in the afterlife, thanks to the use of their name or image. Forbes’ annual Top-Earning Dead Celebritieslists the 13 deceased celebrities who made the most money over the past 12 months, for a total of not less than $194 million. Unfortunately, they’re not around to enjoy it. . .
At the top of the list was Elvis Presley, who made $52 million last year, beating out living stars Madonna ($40 million) and Justin Timberlake ($44 million). Charles Schultz, creator of the “Peanuts” comic strip and Snoopy’s father, was second, with a cool $33 million. In third was actor Heath Ledger, who played the Joker in the sixth Batman movie and who died of an overdose in January, with an estimated $20 million.
Albert Einstein was fourth with $18 million. Aaron Spelling, producer of popular TV shows including “The Love Boat,” “Starsky and Hutch,” “Charlie’s Angels,” and “Beverly Hills 90210,” pulled in $15 million. He was followed by “Dr. Seuss” children’s book author Theodor Geisel ($12 million), John Lennon ($9 million), Andy Warhol ($9 million), Marilyn Monroe ($6.5 million), Steve McQueen ($6 million), Paul Newman ($5 million), James Dean ($5 million) and finally Marvin Gaye ($3.5 million).