Oprah Winfrey Once Again Tops Forbes? Highest-Paid Celebrities List

Oprah Winfrey is so loaded that even a $125 million drop in income hasn’t affected her rank on Forbes’ Highest-Paid Celebrities list. The former talk show host once again out-earned America’s other wealthy celebs, topping Forbes’ list with earnings of $165 million. This is Winfrey’s fourth year as number one, though her reign may soon come to an end.

“It's been a challenging year for Winfrey, who signed off from her 25-year syndicated show and immediately turned her attention to struggling cable network OWN,” Forbes reports. “She does not earn a salary at OWN, which has faced ratings disappointments and financial issues since it premiered in January 2011.”

Here are 9 other celebrities who pulled in the big bucks last year.

Director Michael Bay raked in $160 million last year, thanks to hits like Transformers: Dark of the Moon and the Transformers ride at Universal Studios Hollywood. Directors Steven Spielberg and Jerry Bruckheimer also did extraordinarily well with respective earnings of $130 million and $115 million. Spielberg’s The Adventures of Tintin and War Horse and Bruckheimer’s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides had a little something to do with their success.

Next up is rapper Dr. Dre, though it wasn’t his music that brought in the big bucks. The multi-talented entrepreneur received $100 million after selling the Beats by Dr. Dre, the headphone company he co-founded with Interscope chief Jimmy Iovine, to handset maker HTC.

Meanwhile, Tyler Perry and Howard Stern placed sixth and seventh on Forbes’ list with respective earnings of $105 million and $95 million. Perry’s money comes from his branded films and TV empire, while Stern earned an extra $15 million for his new role as a judge on America’s Got Talent.

Prolific author James Patterson earned $94 million last year, thanks to his steady stream of books. Patterson released 14 titles last year alone! Last but not least, are George Lucas and Simon Cowell who each pulled in $90 million. George Lucas is set for life thanks to the massive success of the Star Wars franchise, while Cowell’s earnings come from American Idol and his new show The X Factor.

Check out more big earners here...

Photo: IMDb

Source: http://blog.starcam.com/post/Oprah-Winfrey-Once-Again-Tops-Forbese28099-Highest-Paid-Celebrities-List.aspx

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