Michael Jackson topped an annual list of the top-earning dead celebrities for the fourth straight year. He gained more revenue than fellow musical icons Prince and David Bowie. Jackson, who died in 2009, raked in a bumper $825m in earnings for the 12 months ending 1 October, according to estimates from Forbes. That came mostly from the Jackson estate’s $750m sale of the late singer’s remaining stake in the Sony/ATV music publishing catalog to Sony Corporation.
In 2009, Sony paid $60 million for the rights to the Jackson film, This is It, which subsequently became the highest grossing concert film and documentary of all time. Later, Sony agreed to pay the Jackson estate $250 million for the rights to create 10 musicals over the next seven years. Similar to Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe raked in tons of profits after her death. The representatives in charge of her image decided to exploit it and gain monetary rewards by producing cheap knick knacks and derogatory products.
With the risk of sounding pretentious, why are people so infatuated with people who died of drug overdoses? This may be due to the fact that both Jackson and Monroe were cultural icons. Still, why are people so keen on idealising these two idols who led disastrous and notorious lifestyles? The fact that Monroe’s producers were pushing so much ridiculous merchandise out the door to reap a profit is despicable, but what about the people buying all of the crap pushed out of the corporate machine?
One author critiqued society’s fascination with Marilyn Monroe stating:
- Marilyn Monroe is notoriously known for is her adulterous acts. She was married and divorced by the age of twenty . . . On top of this, she had many affairs with married men. The most well-known with John F. Kennedy. . . Her sleaziness isn’t something commonly talked about when girls start learning about Marilyn Monroe, but it definitely should be.
- Marilyn Monroe stared in many movies, which is one of her claims to fame. . . Some would assume that someone who starred in such great movies of the time period must be a great actress. Wrong. In each of her roles, Monroe plays a ditzy blonde who wears tight revealing clothing, is very promiscuous and is only there to accompany the leading male role. . . Girls should have higher ambitions. . .
- She wasn’t talented what-so-ever, which can be told by her petty acting jobs as dim-witted characters, but many movie agencies have claimed that Monroe sent naked pictures of herself in order to make herself look presentable for the roles she was auditioning for.
So, why do people keep on buying all of this merchandise? Has her image been tailored by her producers so much that we as a society idolise a completely different person?
On another note, the Telegraph article article immediately brought to mind Vincent van Gogh and Emily Dickinson. Although Monroe and Jackson reaped enormous success during their lifetime and afterwards, van Gogh and Dickinson died virtually penniless with zero recognition. It wasn’t until much later that their talent was recognised. It’s no wonder why Monroe and Jackson reaped more financial gain than van Gogh and Dickinson – van Gogh was a starving artist wandering the streets unable to sell a painting, and Dickinson was a recluse. The fame that ensued afterwards, however, is what draws these two pairs together.
Each of these people’s artistic contributions were recognised in the wake of their death, because the world realised that it had lost something special. These individuals contributed something unique to the world that can never be replicated or replaced. Jackson and Monroe most likely reaped even more benefits, because they died so unexpectedly. The tragedy of their untimely demise definitely ramped up sympathy among the masses; people who like to observe the chaos from afar, but who are careful not to get too close.
Works Cited
Greenburg, Zack O’Malley. “Neverland Ranch – Pg.8.” Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 02 Mar. 2012. Web.
Kirsta, Alix. “Selling the Dead.” The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 03 Feb. 2012. Web.
Reuters. “Michael Jackson Is Top-earning Dead Celebrity, Beating Prince and Bowie.” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 12 Oct. 2016. Web.