Michael Jackson just destroyed the single-year earnings record of any celebrity based on Forbes estimates.
MJ's Estate made a colossal
$825M in 2016.
About $90-100M came from his usual earnings of record sales, royalties, merchandising and the Cirque Vegas show, but this year saw MJ's Estate sell their stake in the Sony/ATV catalog back to Sony Corp.
Next year, Michael Jackson's
gross career earnings unadjusted for inflation will top $4 billion.
The Top Dead Celebrity Earnings for 2016:
1. Michael Jackson - $825 million
2. Charles Schulz - $48 million
3. Arnold Palmer - $40 million
4. Elvis Presley - $27 million
5. Prince - $25 million
6. Bob Marley - $21 million
7. Theador Geiel "Dr. Seuss" - $20 million
8. John Lennon - $12 million
9. Albert Einstein - $11.5 million
10. Bettie Page - $11 million
11. David Bowie - $10.5 million
12. Steve McQueen - $9 million
13. Elizabeth Taylor - $8 million
Forbes 
That's insane.
Science Always Wins