Biggest Celebrity Funerals

Michael Jackson, predictably, made the list—but not at No. 1

(NEWSER) - The stars on Forbes ' annual list of the top-earning dead celebrities number, appropriately, 13. To make the list, a "deleb" must have brought in at least $6 million in the past year. This year's list is notably missing former mainstays Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, and Steve McQueen, and puts a fashion designer in the top spot:

1. Yves Saint Laurent: $350 million
2. Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein: $235 million combined
3. Michael Jackson: $90 million
4. Elvis Presley: $55 million
5. JRR Tolkien: $50 million

Michael Jackson tops the list again

(NEWSER) - When you’re a celebrity, dying doesn’t have to mean you stop making money. Forbes offers up its annual list of the top-earning celebs of the past year:

1. Michael Jackson: The King of Pop is in the top spot for the second year in a row, earning $170 million thanks to music sales, his stake in the Sony/ATV catalog, and a new Cirque du Soleil tour.
2. Elvis Presley: The King of Pop is followed by the King of Rock ’n’ Roll, who earned $55 million, much of which came from Graceland admissions. A Cirque du Soleil show in Las Vegas didn’t hurt, either.
3. Marilyn Monroe: A resurgence in popularity is partly to thank for her $27 million in earnings; for example, she was featured in an ad for J’Adore fragrance, and soon she’ll be getting her own line of cafes.
4. Charles Schulz: The Peanuts creator earned $25 million as his creations found themselves coming into the digital age via a video game, e-books, and a Facebook app, among other things.
5. John Lennon: The Beatles sold 1.6 million albums last year after finally arriving in the iTunes Store, which may have something to do with Lennon’s $12 million in earnings. Also helping? Yet another Cirque show.

Friends, family, and locals attend memorial Mass

(NEWSER) - Mourners including Jack Nicholson and Val Kilmer remembered Dennis Hopper yesterday at his memorial Mass. The actor was laid to rest in New Mexico, where he first went in 1969 while scouting locations for Easy Rider and lived for 12 years. Nicholson, who acted alongside Hopper in Easy Rider, called him “an all-around guy,” the AP reports. More»

Presley's colon was 5 to 6 inches wide, 8 to 9 feet long

(NEWSER) - Most assume drug dependency and obesity were the main players in Elvis Presley’s death, but the truth may actually be more embarrassing: The King was chronically constipated. His longtime doctor and friend George Nichopoulos writes about the problem in his new book, The King and Dr. Nick, revealing that Presley’s colon was twice as long and twice as wide as a normal colon at the time of his death, and that four- to five-month-old stool was found in it during the autopsy. More»

Poll of musicians, industry insiders choose Franklin as most worthy of R-E-S-P-E-C-T

(NEWSER) - Aretha Franklin isn't just the Queen of Soul, she's the greatest singer of all time, according to a new Rolling Stone poll of critics, musicians, and industry leaders. Her heavenly voice is "a gift from God," says Mary J. Blige. "Aretha has everything—the power, the technique," Bilge adds. "When it comes to expressing yourself through song, there is no one who can touch her." More»