Entertainment | Celebrity Net Worth

Lonnie Johnson is a nuclear engineer who worked on NASA's missions to Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars. But none of those missions matter because Lonnie also happens to be the inventor of a little toy called The Super Soaker.

What company became the most valuable company in the world after its stock increased 4,000% in five years because it was "selling picks and shovels during a rush." Answer? CISCO in 1999. NVIDIA has only increased 3,000% in five years.

In 1978, Donald Sutherland was offered a huge back-end incentive to appear in the low-budget comedy "Animal House." He held out for cash upfront and winded up losing a fortune.

Mark Hughes founded Herbalife from the trunk of his car in 1980 at the age of 24. He went on to earn a massive fortune then died suddenly, leaving behind an extremely messy backstory involving four beauty queen ex-wives.

Most 25 year olds who inherit a billion dollars would instantly disappear to a private island and drown themselves in margaritas. Erik Prince used his newfound wealth to build the largest, most powerful and deadliest private army in the world: Blackwater.

Back in 1984, the three main Ghostbusters actors – Bill Murray, Dan Aykrod and Harold Ramis – opted to take modest salaries for their work in exchange for backend points. That was a wise move.

Jackie Coogan was probably the first major child film star in history. Unfortunately, when he turned 21 and finally had access his hard earned fortune, he discovered a gut wrenching truth.

OJ Simpson just died at the age of 76. At the time of his death he still owed the Goldman family $96 million. And yet he died with a healthy pension and a multi-million-dollar net worth. How was that possible?

Jeopardy creator Merv Griffin made earned a staggering amount of money off royalties from the show's famous theme song. A song that only took him 30 seconds to write.

Mike Tyson is legendary for many reasons – the face tattoo, the biting off of Evander Holyfield's ear, oh, and all of the knockouts. "Iron" Mike Tyson is one of the top 15-heavyweight boxers to ever step foot into the ring. He is also legendary for his prolific spending.

By all accounts, Serbian inventor Nikola Tesla should have become the world's first billionaire thanks to lucrative royalties. So how did he end up dying alone, senile and bankrupt?

Jeff Bezos moved to Florida – a zero-income-tax state – in NOVEMBER. Fast forward a few months, and he has sold $8.5 billion worth of Amazon stock in NINE trading days. And the move saved him $600 million.

If you were a billionaire, how would you feel if you found out that your entire fortune exists because your grandparents were Nazi sympathizers?

When Charlie Ayers decided to take a job as the company chef for a tiny Silicon Valley startup with a funny name, his friends probably thought he was insane. He ended up being employee #56 at company called Google.

How did Michael Jackson turn a $47 million investment in The Beatles catalogue into a multi-billion dollar music publishing empire? The story is incredible.