福布斯已故名人收入榜 杰克逊居首

Michael Jackson's sudden death sparked an outpouring of grief around the world, but fans also opened their wallets to make him this year's top-earning dead celebrity with $275 million, Forbes said on Monday.

Jackson raked in more than the combined total of the other 12 celebrities on the list, Forbes magazine said. He was ranked third on last year's list with $90 million.

Elvis Presley came in second, earning $60 million from admissions to his former home, Graceland, which is now a museum and tourist attraction in Memphis, Tennessee, a Cirque de Soleil show and more than 200 licensing and merchandise deals.

"Jackson's spot atop our top earning dead celebrities list should come as no surprise given the renewed fan interest in music, videos and all things Michael Jackson," said Forbes writer Lacey Rose.

Jackson was 50 when he died in his Los Angeles home on June 25 last year, shortly before a planned series of comeback concerts in London. The singer left behind three children and a debt of $500 million.

But his estate has generated millions since his death, mostly through record sales, the "This Is It" concert movie, licensing rights, deals to release new albums and a Cirque du Soleil stage show in Las Vegas.

"Thanks to a lucrative catalog, hit film and album sales, the late king of pop earned more in the last year than Lady Gaga, Madonna and Jay-Z, combined," said Rose.

"The Lord of the Rings" author J.R.R. Tolkien, whose trilogy of novels was made into films by director Peter Jackson, came in at No. 3 on the Forbes list with earnings of $50 million, while Charles Schulz, the creator of Charlie Brown and Snoopy, came in fourth with $33 million.

Former Beatle John Lennon, who would have turned 70 this year, was ranked No. 5 with an income of $17 million.

A deceased celebrity needed to earn at least $5 million between October 1, 2009 and October 1, 2010 to make this year's list, Forbes said.

《福布斯》杂志周一称，尽管迈克尔．杰克逊的突然离世让全世界的人们感到哀伤，然而歌迷们的慷慨解囊却让他成为本年度收入最高的已故名人，收入达2.75亿美元。

《福布斯》杂志透露，杰克逊所赚的钱比榜单上其他12位名人的收入总和加起来还多。去年他以9000万美元的收入位居榜单第三。

猫王埃尔维斯．普莱斯利位居第二，收入达6000万美元。其中一部分收入来自他的故居雅园的参观费。如今雅园成了一座博物馆，也是纳西州孟菲斯市的旅游胜地。另外一部分收入来自太阳马戏团纪念猫王的演出剧目的收入，以及200多项许可协议和商业交易的收入。

《福布斯》的撰稿人莱西．罗斯说：“如今杰克逊的歌迷们对他的音乐、影像以及和他有关的一切事物又重新燃起了兴趣，因此杰克逊高居已故名人收入榜的榜首应该也是意料之中的事。”

去年6月25号，就在杰克逊即将去伦敦举行他计划好的复出系列演唱会时，他在洛杉矶家中与世长辞，享年50岁。这位歌星留下了三个孩子，还有5亿美元的债务。

然而在他死后，他的遗产却带来了数以百万计的收入，大部分是来自唱片销售、演唱会电影《就是这样》、版权费、发布新专辑的交易，以及太阳马戏团在拉斯维加斯上演的剧目的收入。

罗斯说：“由于有这么多获利的项目，再加上热门电影和专辑的销售，这位已故流行天王在过去一年赚的钱比Lady Gaga、麦当娜和杰斯的收入加起来还多。”

《指环王》的作者J．R．R．托尔金在这一福布斯榜单上位居第三，收入达5000万美元。托尔金的小说三部曲《指环王》曾由导演彼得．杰克逊改编成电影。而漫画人物查理．布朗和史努比的创造者查尔斯．舒尔茨则排在第四位，收入达3300万美元。

前甲壳虫乐队成员约翰．列侬排在第五位，收入达1700万美元。列侬如果健在，今年将满70岁了。

《福布斯》称，已故名人至少需要在2009年10月1日到2010年10月1日期间赚到500万美元才能登上本年度的榜单。

Vocabulary:

comeback: if a person in public life makes a comeback, they start doing something again which they had stopped doing, or they become popular again（复出；重返；再度受欢迎）