Top Earning Dead Celebrity, Michael Jackson

For the second year in a row, Michael Jackson has topped Forbes magazine's list of top-earning dead celebrities. The King of Pop, who died unexpectedly at age 50 in June 2009, earned an estimated $170 million over the past year, making him the second-highest-earning pop star this year (behind U2) dead or alive.

The megabucks came in from sales of his music, as well as his stake in the lucrative Sony/ATV catalog, and while impressive, was a big step down from the $275 million the Jackson estate earned in the year after the singer's death. Songwriters who own their work tend to place high on the Forbes list because their catalog sales often remain strong after their death, one of the reasons Jackson's posthumous career has been so lucrative.

The magazine speculated that Jackson is likely to top the list again next year thanks to the recent launch of the Cirque du Soleil tribute show "Immortal," which, if successful, could net more touring income for the singer in death than he earned in life.