Elvis Presley: $52 million
Despite being dead for 31 years, Elvis Presley continues to draw a rising income, from $49 million last year to $52 million this year. Attendance and merchandise sales are soaring at Graceland. New licensing ventures, including Thomas Kinkaid art, slot machines and Martin guitars, are expanding the brand, and the new Elvis satellite radio show is adding to the already extensive royalties. The King is dead; long live the King.Charles M. Schulz: $33 million
A partnership was formed last October between the "Peanuts" comic strip and Warner Bros. studios. The deal sparked a spate of new DVD releases with fresh "Peanuts" content, sending Charles M. Schulz's cartoons flying off shelves. In the spirit of the U.S. election season, the main "Peanuts" character, Charlie Brown, teamed up with the Rock the Vote campaign, and the movie "You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown" was re-released. Schulz died in 2000 at age 77.Heath Ledger: $20 million
The January 2008 death of 28-year-old Australian actor Heath Ledger was magnified by the talent he displayed in the role of the Joker in this summer's blockbuster Batman film, "The Dark Night." At the very least, he got paid well: Ledger scored a merchandising deal (Joker action figures, etc.) and received a percentage of the box office. Throw in the upfront payments he received for his work on the unfinished film "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus," and Ledger earned an estimated $20 million over the last year.Albert Einstein: $18 million
Albert Einstein, who died in 1955, probably never thought he would be earning money from making babies smarter. But Baby Einstein, a suite of learning tools for infants, keeps expanding. Now the brand is being marketed toward middle schoolers. International licensing with Nestle's Japanese coffee brand, Charge, and an upcoming sneaker campaign with basketball player Kobe Bryant add to Einstein's rich portfolio of deals.Aaron Spelling: $15 million
Syndicated reruns and DVD sales landed television producer Aaron Spelling high on our list of the crypt's top earners. His stable of hit shows ("Charlie's Angels," "7th Heaven," "Beverly Hills 90210") ensures checks keep coming in every time there's a rerun. It didn't hurt that a new version of "90210" was launched last year. The umbrella company, Spelling Television, also maintains the rights to various soap operas and the classic holiday film "It's A Wonderful Life." Spelling died in 2006 at age 83.Related Stories
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