Michael Jackson

== Earnings ==
{{Main|Estate of Michael Jackson}}
In 1989, Jackson's annual earnings from album sales, endorsements, and concerts were estimated at $125{{nbsp}}million.<ref name="World Records">{{cite news |title=News – Jackson receives his World Records |publisher=Yahoo! News |date=November 14, 2006 |url=https://uk.news.launch.yahoo.com/dyna/article.html?a=/14112006/344/jackson-receives-world-records.html&e=l_news_dm |archive-date= September 27, 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110927165143/https://uk.news.launch.yahoo.com/dyna/article.html?a=%2F14112006%2F344%2Fjackson-receives-world-records.html&e=l_news_dm}}</ref> ''[[Forbes]]'' placed Jackson's annual income at $35{{nbsp}}million in 1996 and $20{{nbsp}}million in 1997.<ref name="Finances">{{cite news |first=Edna |last=Gundersen |title=For Jackson, scandal could spell financial ruin |newspaper=USA Today |date=November 24, 2003 |access-date= March 14, 2010 |url=https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/2003-11-24-jackson-finances_x.htm}}</ref> Estimates of Jackson's net worth during his life range from negative $285{{nbsp}}million to positive $350{{nbsp}}million for 2002, 2003 and 2007.<ref>{{cite news |first=Linda |last=Deutsch |author-link=Linda Deutsch |title=Forensic accountant tells court Jackson is in financial straits |newspaper=[[The San Diego Union-Tribune]] |date=May 4, 2005 |access-date= March 25, 2017 |url=https://legacy.sandiegouniontribune.com/uniontrib/20050504/news_1n4jackson.html |archive-date= March 26, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170326051412/https://legacy.sandiegouniontribune.com/uniontrib/20050504/news_1n4jackson.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |first=Brett |last=Pulley |title=Michael Jackson's Ups And Downs |magazine=Forbes |date=November 21, 2003 |access-date= May 31, 2015 |url=https://www.forbes.com/2003/11/21/cz_1121jackson.html}}</ref> ''Forbes'' reported in August 2018 that Jackson's total career pretax earnings in life and death were $4.2{{nbsp}}billion.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Zack O'Malley |last=Greenburg |title=Michael Jackson at 60: The King of Pop by the Numbers |magazine=Forbes |date=August 29, 2018 |access-date= November 14, 2018 |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2018/08/29/michael-jackson-at-60-the-king-of-pop-by-the-numbers/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Stress killed MJ, says ex-publicist |newspaper=[[The Times of India]] |date=June 27, 2009 |access-date= May 31, 2015 |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hollywood/news-interviews/Stress-killed-MJ-says-ex-publicist/articleshow/4709371.cms?referral=PM}}</ref> Sales of his recordings through Sony's music unit earned him an estimated $300{{nbsp}}million in royalties. He may have earned another $400{{nbsp}}million from concerts, music publishing (including his share of the Beatles catalog), endorsements, merchandising and music videos.<ref>{{cite news |first=Timothy L |last=O'Brien |title=What Happened to the Fortune Michael Jackson Made? |newspaper=The New York Times |page=1 |date=May 14, 2006 |access-date= March 16, 2013 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/14/business/yourmoney/14michael.html}}</ref>

In 2013, the executors of Jackson's estate filed a petition in the [[United States Tax Court]] as a result of a dispute with the [[Internal Revenue Service]] (IRS) over [[Estate tax in the United States|US federal estate taxes]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Estate of Michael J. Jackson, Deceased, John G. Branca, Co-Executor and John McClain, Co-Executor |date=August 19, 2016 |url=https://www.ustaxcourt.gov/UstcDockInq/DocketDisplay.aspx?DocketNo=13017152 |access-date= August 19, 2016 |archive-date= November 6, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181106143242/https://www.ustaxcourt.gov/UstcDockInq/DocketDisplay.aspx?DocketNo=13017152 |url-status= dead}}</ref> The executors claim that it was worth about $7{{nbsp}}million, the IRS that it was worth over $1.1{{nbsp}}billion. In February 2014, the IRS reported that Jackson's estate owed $702{{nbsp}}million; $505{{nbsp}}million in taxes, and $197{{nbsp}}million in penalties.<ref name="Gottlieb">{{cite news |first=Jeff |last=Gottlieb |title=Michael Jackson estate embroiled in tax fight with IRS |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=February 7, 2014 |access-date= May 31, 2015 |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-jackson-taxes-20140208,0,3089248.story}}</ref> A trial was held from February 6 to 24, 2017.<ref>{{cite web |title=United States Tax Court: Washington, DC 20217 |date=February 2, 2016 |url=https://www.ustaxcourt.gov/UstcDockInq/DocumentViewer.aspx?IndexID=6774879 |access-date= August 8, 2016 |archive-date= October 11, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161011161455/https://www.ustaxcourt.gov/UstcDockInq/DocumentViewer.aspx?IndexID=6774879}}</ref> In 2021, the Tax Court issued a ruling in favor of the estate, ruling that the estate's total combined value of the estate was $111.5 million and that the value of Jackson's name and likeness was $4 million (not the $61 million estimated by the IRS's outside expert witness).<ref>{{cite news |first=Ben |last=Sisario |author-link= Ben Sisario |title=Michael Jackson's Estate Is Winner in Tax Judge's Ruling |newspaper=The New York Times |date=May 3, 2021 |access-date= November 11, 2021 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/03/arts/music/michael-jacksons-estate.html |archive-date= December 28, 2021 |archive-url= https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/03/arts/music/michael-jacksons-estate.html |url-access= limited}} {{cbignore}}</ref>

In 2016, ''Forbes'' estimated annual gross earnings by the Jackson Estate at $825{{nbsp}}million, the largest ever recorded for a celebrity, mostly due to the sale of the Sony/ATV catalog.<ref name="Forbes2016">{{cite magazine |first=Zack O'Malley |last=Greenburg |title=Michael Jackson's Earnings: $825 Million In 2016 |magazine=Forbes |date=October 14, 2016 |access-date= December 11, 2016 |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2016/10/14/michael-jacksons-earnings-825-million-in-2016/}}</ref> In 2018, the figure was $400{{nbsp}}million.<ref name="Forbes2018">{{cite magazine |first1=Zack O'Malley |last1=Greenburg |first2=Natalie |last2=Robehmed |title=The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities of 2018 |magazine=Forbes |date=October 31, 2017 |access-date= October 31, 2018 |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2018/10/31/the-highest-paid-dead-celebrities-of-2018/}}</ref> It was the eighth year since his death that Jackson's annual earnings were reported to be over $100{{nbsp}}million, thus bringing Jackson's postmortem total to $2.4{{nbsp}}billion.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Zack O'Malley |last=Greenburg |title=The Real Reason Behind Michael Jackson's Earnings Drop |magazine=Forbes |date=October 30, 2019 |access-date= November 28, 2019 |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2019/10/30/the-real-reason-behind-michael-jacksons-earnings-drop/}}</ref> ''Forbes'' has consistently recognized Jackson as one of the [[Forbes' list of the world's highest-paid dead celebrity|top-earning dead celebrities]] since his death, and placed him at the top spot from 2013 to 2023.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Freeman |first1=Abigail |title=The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities 2021 |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/abigailfreeman/2021/10/30/the-highest-paid-dead-celebrities-2021/?sh=36478cab3839 |magazine=Forbes |access-date=October 17, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/marisadellatto/2023/10/30/highest-paid-dead-celebrities-2023-michael-jackson-elvis-presley-whitney-houston/ |title=The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities of 2023 |magazine=[[Forbes]]}}</ref>