Thursday, February 17, 2011

Michael Jackson's Estate Earns $310 Million; Half Used To Pay Off Debt

If you thought MJ's heirs were going to be able to pocket everything they earned off the deceased King of Pop you may be somewhat surprised at how debt is actually being paid down with the earnings.

Michael Jackson's estate has generated $310 million in revenue from album sales, a film, merchandising and other products since the "Thriller" singer died in 2009, according to court papers filed on Thursday.

His estate's administrators have used $159 million to pay down the pop star's debt, which when Jackson died amounted to more than $400 million, court records show.

"Although there remain unresolved creditor claims, pending litigation and additional challenging business, tax and legal issues, and the estate is not yet in a condition to be closed, the executors have made substantial progress in reducing the estate's debt," the documents state.

The records, which were made public as part of the estate's probate proceedings, are the most detailed accounting yet of the finances of Jackson's estate from his death until December 31, 2010.

They aren't exactly starving, but I was surprised to see that so much debt was taken care of. I assumed that they would try to keep it in court for much longer and not have to use it. Then squander it all on underwater cameras and theme parks and pretend they were poor. Of course they really can't do that since it is an estate and it owes the money and they got dibs.

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