Dustin Hoffman won $3 million in court over a single magazine photo. Two years later, he was left with nothing.
In March 1997, Los Angeles Magazine ran a feature called "Grand Illusions." It used computers to put famous movie stars into new spring fashions. Cary Grant, Marilyn Elvis.
The last picture was Hoffman's famous still from Tootsie. The magazine kept his head and swapped his body for a male model in a cream silk gown. The caption read: "Dustin Hoffman isn't a drag in a butter colored silk gown by Richard Tyler and Ralph Lauren heels."
Nobody asked Hoffman. Nobody asked Columbia Pictures, which owned the photo. He sued the next month.
In 1999, federal judge Dickran Tevrizian sided with him on every claim. He set the fair market value of Hoffman's name and likeness at $1,500,000 and added another $1,500,000 in punitive damages, plus $269,528.50 in lawyer fees. "To be blunt, the celebrities were violated by technology," the judge wrote.
Then the magazine appealed.
In July 2001, the Ninth Circuit reversed everything. It ruled the page was editorial speech, not an ad, and fully protected by the First Amendment. It also said Hoffman had not proved the magazine acted with actual malice. The court ordered judgment for the magazine and threw out his fee award too.
A $3 million win became $0.
So did Hoffman have every right to be paid for his face being used to sell fashion, or did the court get it right that a magazine joke is free speech?
In March 1997, Los Angeles Magazine ran a feature called "Grand Illusions." It used computers to put famous movie stars into new spring fashions. Cary Grant, Marilyn Elvis.
The last picture was Hoffman's famous still from Tootsie. The magazine kept his head and swapped his body for a male model in a cream silk gown. The caption read: "Dustin Hoffman isn't a drag in a butter colored silk gown by Richard Tyler and Ralph Lauren heels."
Nobody asked Hoffman. Nobody asked Columbia Pictures, which owned the photo. He sued the next month.
In 1999, federal judge Dickran Tevrizian sided with him on every claim. He set the fair market value of Hoffman's name and likeness at $1,500,000 and added another $1,500,000 in punitive damages, plus $269,528.50 in lawyer fees. "To be blunt, the celebrities were violated by technology," the judge wrote.
Then the magazine appealed.
In July 2001, the Ninth Circuit reversed everything. It ruled the page was editorial speech, not an ad, and fully protected by the First Amendment. It also said Hoffman had not proved the magazine acted with actual malice. The court ordered judgment for the magazine and threw out his fee award too.
A $3 million win became $0.
So did Hoffman have every right to be paid for his face being used to sell fashion, or did the court get it right that a magazine joke is free speech?
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Clint Eastwood has sold his face exactly once in 60 years of fame. Then a company he had never heard of used it for free, and a judge made them pay $6.1 million.
In 2020, a fake article spread online that looked like a TODAY show interview. In it, Eastwood supposedly endorsed . The headline said Big Pharma was "in outrage" over his product. It used a real TODAY photo of him.
None of it was true. His complaint said plainly that he had "no connection of any kind whatsoever to any CBD products and never gave such an interview."
Eastwood, then 90, sued. Lawyers used subpoenas to trace the sites to Mediatonas UAB, a company in Lithuania. It never showed up in court.
He asked for $30 million. The judge said no to that figure.
But in October 2021, Judge R. Gary Klausner awarded $6,094,565.33, the fee Eastwood could reasonably charge for a 16 month online campaign. The court noted his name and likeness had been licensed only once, for a single Super Bowl commercial. It added that he could charge a premium because an unknown brand could jeopardize his reputation.
Eastwood said the judgment "sends a powerful message to other online scammers." Whether a company that skipped court ever pays a cent is another question.
So did Eastwood just put a price tag on a legend's name, or did he win millions on paper from a ghost who will never pay?
In 2020, a fake article spread online that looked like a TODAY show interview. In it, Eastwood supposedly endorsed . The headline said Big Pharma was "in outrage" over his product. It used a real TODAY photo of him.
None of it was true. His complaint said plainly that he had "no connection of any kind whatsoever to any CBD products and never gave such an interview."
Eastwood, then 90, sued. Lawyers used subpoenas to trace the sites to Mediatonas UAB, a company in Lithuania. It never showed up in court.
He asked for $30 million. The judge said no to that figure.
But in October 2021, Judge R. Gary Klausner awarded $6,094,565.33, the fee Eastwood could reasonably charge for a 16 month online campaign. The court noted his name and likeness had been licensed only once, for a single Super Bowl commercial. It added that he could charge a premium because an unknown brand could jeopardize his reputation.
Eastwood said the judgment "sends a powerful message to other online scammers." Whether a company that skipped court ever pays a cent is another question.
So did Eastwood just put a price tag on a legend's name, or did he win millions on paper from a ghost who will never pay?
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Garth Brooks has sold more than 160 million albums in the US. He still took a small town hospital to court over $500,000.
In 2005 he quietly wrote a $500,000 check to Integris Canadian Valley Regional Hospital in his hometown of Yukon, Oklahoma.
According to his lawsuit, the health center named after his mother, Colleen, who died of cancer in 1999. He said hospital officials had shown him mockups of the building with her name in neon lights.
In September 2008, court documents say, the hospital told him the money would go to other projects.
Integris said there was never a naming deal. Its position was that the gift was anonymous and unrestricted, so it could be spent however the hospital saw fit. Its CEO testified that no women's center was ever built, and that the donation had not been spent.
Brooks sued in 2009. In January 2012 a Rogers County jury took less than three hours to side with him. They found breach of contract and fraud, and ordered the hospital to return the full $500,000.
Then they added another $500,000 in punitive damages, the legal maximum. That part took about 15 minutes.
One juror said they wanted to show the hospital "not to do that anymore to anyone else."
Brooks cried on the stand. "It's my mom," he told jurors. After the verdict he said: "I no longer feel like I'm crazy."
So did Garth Brooks win back a promise made to his mother, or did a multimillionaire drag a small town hospital to court over money he never needed?
In 2005 he quietly wrote a $500,000 check to Integris Canadian Valley Regional Hospital in his hometown of Yukon, Oklahoma.
According to his lawsuit, the health center named after his mother, Colleen, who died of cancer in 1999. He said hospital officials had shown him mockups of the building with her name in neon lights.
In September 2008, court documents say, the hospital told him the money would go to other projects.
Integris said there was never a naming deal. Its position was that the gift was anonymous and unrestricted, so it could be spent however the hospital saw fit. Its CEO testified that no women's center was ever built, and that the donation had not been spent.
Brooks sued in 2009. In January 2012 a Rogers County jury took less than three hours to side with him. They found breach of contract and fraud, and ordered the hospital to return the full $500,000.
Then they added another $500,000 in punitive damages, the legal maximum. That part took about 15 minutes.
One juror said they wanted to show the hospital "not to do that anymore to anyone else."
Brooks cried on the stand. "It's my mom," he told jurors. After the verdict he said: "I no longer feel like I'm crazy."
So did Garth Brooks win back a promise made to his mother, or did a multimillionaire drag a small town hospital to court over money he never needed?
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Bruce Willis reportedly took $3 million to save the world in Armageddon. His usual price was around $20 million. A year later, one movie reportedly paid him about $100 million.
It started with a movie nobody saw.
In 1997, Willis was starring in and producing a comedy backed by Brawler. About 20 days into filming, he reportedly fired crew members and the production shut down. More than half of its $28 million budget was already gone.
Disney could have sued. Reports put the exposure at $17.5 million.
Instead, his agent brokered a deal: Willis would make three movies for Disney at a discount. Armageddon, The Sixth Sense and The Kid.
For Armageddon he reportedly got $3 million. The difference went toward the money lost on Broadway Brawler.
Then came The Sixth Sense, a ghost story from a little known director.
Willis reportedly took a $14 million base salary plus about 17% of the gross, with a similar cut of home video. The film made $672.8 million worldwide.
Most reports put his total near $100 million. Celebrity Net Worth says up to $120 million. That would make it one of the biggest single movie paydays ever, once adjusted for inflation.
Haley Joel Osment, the kid who saw dead people, was reportedly paid around $150,000.
The three Disney movies together grossed about $1.3 billion.
So did Willis pay for his mistake with a $3 million movie, or did blowing up Broadway Brawler accidentally land him the best deal of his life?
It started with a movie nobody saw.
In 1997, Willis was starring in and producing a comedy backed by Brawler. About 20 days into filming, he reportedly fired crew members and the production shut down. More than half of its $28 million budget was already gone.
Disney could have sued. Reports put the exposure at $17.5 million.
Instead, his agent brokered a deal: Willis would make three movies for Disney at a discount. Armageddon, The Sixth Sense and The Kid.
For Armageddon he reportedly got $3 million. The difference went toward the money lost on Broadway Brawler.
Then came The Sixth Sense, a ghost story from a little known director.
Willis reportedly took a $14 million base salary plus about 17% of the gross, with a similar cut of home video. The film made $672.8 million worldwide.
Most reports put his total near $100 million. Celebrity Net Worth says up to $120 million. That would make it one of the biggest single movie paydays ever, once adjusted for inflation.
Haley Joel Osment, the kid who saw dead people, was reportedly paid around $150,000.
The three Disney movies together grossed about $1.3 billion.
So did Willis pay for his mistake with a $3 million movie, or did blowing up Broadway Brawler accidentally land him the best deal of his life?
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Noctaxbt retweeted
Sinbad was one of the biggest comedians in America, and he ended up telling a bankruptcy court he owed $10,991,715 while holding just $131,000 in assets.
In the 90s he had his own sitcom, HBO specials and family hits like Houseguest and Jingle All the Way. He also put his own ect, a 70s soul music festival in the Caribbean. In the video below he explains exactly how it went wrong: "I did five soul festivals in the Caribbean off my American Express card."
He kept betting that the next movie would fix it. "I kept thinking, okay, I get one more movie and I wipe these bills out, but that movie didn't come."
The numbers on paper are brutal. Federal records show he filed returns from 1998 to 2006 but did not pay the tax he reported. In 2009 the government filed $8.15 million in tax liens and went to court to force the sale of his house in Hidden Hills, California. California also put him on its list of the worst tax delinquents in the state. The house was sold in 2010. In 2013 his filing listed $8.3 million owed to the IRS, $2.3 million to California and about $375,000 to American Express, with income of $16,000 a month.
Sinbad's version is that the debt kept growing on its own. In the clip he says the original amount was something he could pay, then came fines and fees: "Now you owe two and a half. Well, I didn't do nothing. Now you owe four."
The case for Sinbad: he never bought the Bentleys or the chains, he invested in his own shows and his own company, and penalties and interest turned a hole into a canyon.
The case for the IRS: he reported the income, kept the money, got a payment deal in 2005 that the IRS says he broke, while ordinary people pay every year.
So was Sinbad an artist who bet on himself and got buried by penalties, or a star who simply didn't pay his taxes and blamed the system?
In the 90s he had his own sitcom, HBO specials and family hits like Houseguest and Jingle All the Way. He also put his own ect, a 70s soul music festival in the Caribbean. In the video below he explains exactly how it went wrong: "I did five soul festivals in the Caribbean off my American Express card."
He kept betting that the next movie would fix it. "I kept thinking, okay, I get one more movie and I wipe these bills out, but that movie didn't come."
The numbers on paper are brutal. Federal records show he filed returns from 1998 to 2006 but did not pay the tax he reported. In 2009 the government filed $8.15 million in tax liens and went to court to force the sale of his house in Hidden Hills, California. California also put him on its list of the worst tax delinquents in the state. The house was sold in 2010. In 2013 his filing listed $8.3 million owed to the IRS, $2.3 million to California and about $375,000 to American Express, with income of $16,000 a month.
Sinbad's version is that the debt kept growing on its own. In the clip he says the original amount was something he could pay, then came fines and fees: "Now you owe two and a half. Well, I didn't do nothing. Now you owe four."
The case for Sinbad: he never bought the Bentleys or the chains, he invested in his own shows and his own company, and penalties and interest turned a hole into a canyon.
The case for the IRS: he reported the income, kept the money, got a payment deal in 2005 that the IRS says he broke, while ordinary people pay every year.
So was Sinbad an artist who bet on himself and got buried by penalties, or a star who simply didn't pay his taxes and blamed the system?
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Sinbad was one of the biggest comedians in America, and he ended up telling a bankruptcy court he owed $10,991,715 while holding just $131,000 in assets.
In the 90s he had his own sitcom, HBO specials and family hits like Houseguest and Jingle All the Way. He also put his own ect, a 70s soul music festival in the Caribbean. In the video below he explains exactly how it went wrong: "I did five soul festivals in the Caribbean off my American Express card."
He kept betting that the next movie would fix it. "I kept thinking, okay, I get one more movie and I wipe these bills out, but that movie didn't come."
The numbers on paper are brutal. Federal records show he filed returns from 1998 to 2006 but did not pay the tax he reported. In 2009 the government filed $8.15 million in tax liens and went to court to force the sale of his house in Hidden Hills, California. California also put him on its list of the worst tax delinquents in the state. The house was sold in 2010. In 2013 his filing listed $8.3 million owed to the IRS, $2.3 million to California and about $375,000 to American Express, with income of $16,000 a month.
Sinbad's version is that the debt kept growing on its own. In the clip he says the original amount was something he could pay, then came fines and fees: "Now you owe two and a half. Well, I didn't do nothing. Now you owe four."
The case for Sinbad: he never bought the Bentleys or the chains, he invested in his own shows and his own company, and penalties and interest turned a hole into a canyon.
The case for the IRS: he reported the income, kept the money, got a payment deal in 2005 that the IRS says he broke, while ordinary people pay every year.
So was Sinbad an artist who bet on himself and got buried by penalties, or a star who simply didn't pay his taxes and blamed the system?
In the 90s he had his own sitcom, HBO specials and family hits like Houseguest and Jingle All the Way. He also put his own ect, a 70s soul music festival in the Caribbean. In the video below he explains exactly how it went wrong: "I did five soul festivals in the Caribbean off my American Express card."
He kept betting that the next movie would fix it. "I kept thinking, okay, I get one more movie and I wipe these bills out, but that movie didn't come."
The numbers on paper are brutal. Federal records show he filed returns from 1998 to 2006 but did not pay the tax he reported. In 2009 the government filed $8.15 million in tax liens and went to court to force the sale of his house in Hidden Hills, California. California also put him on its list of the worst tax delinquents in the state. The house was sold in 2010. In 2013 his filing listed $8.3 million owed to the IRS, $2.3 million to California and about $375,000 to American Express, with income of $16,000 a month.
Sinbad's version is that the debt kept growing on its own. In the clip he says the original amount was something he could pay, then came fines and fees: "Now you owe two and a half. Well, I didn't do nothing. Now you owe four."
The case for Sinbad: he never bought the Bentleys or the chains, he invested in his own shows and his own company, and penalties and interest turned a hole into a canyon.
The case for the IRS: he reported the income, kept the money, got a payment deal in 2005 that the IRS says he broke, while ordinary people pay every year.
So was Sinbad an artist who bet on himself and got buried by penalties, or a star who simply didn't pay his taxes and blamed the system?
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16
67
8,174
Noctaxbt retweeted
Monica Bellucci was reportedly paid €190,000 to spend 4 hours at a party. That's about €47,500 an hour.
The host was Lola Karimova-Tillyaeva, daughter of Uzbekistan's longtime dictator Islam Karimov and the country's ambassador to UNESCO.
According to the French weekly held on April 8, 2009, at the Musée d'Art Moderne in Paris for her "Uzbekistan 2020" charity foundation. The reported deal: her presence, a short speech, and no contact with the press. Car, driver, hair and makeup were paid for.
Bakchich reported that Isabelle Adjani was also approached and turned it down.
Bakchich also claimed the payment was routed through several companies, including one in the Netherlands, before reaching Bellucci's bank accounts. This was never confirmed, and Bellucci never commented.
In a 2013 interview she said money isn't what decides it for her:
"Big budget movie or small budget movie, it really doesn't matter."
So is taking a dictator's family's money for 4 hours of glamour just business, or should stars at her level say no, like Adjani reportedly did?
The host was Lola Karimova-Tillyaeva, daughter of Uzbekistan's longtime dictator Islam Karimov and the country's ambassador to UNESCO.
According to the French weekly held on April 8, 2009, at the Musée d'Art Moderne in Paris for her "Uzbekistan 2020" charity foundation. The reported deal: her presence, a short speech, and no contact with the press. Car, driver, hair and makeup were paid for.
Bakchich reported that Isabelle Adjani was also approached and turned it down.
Bakchich also claimed the payment was routed through several companies, including one in the Netherlands, before reaching Bellucci's bank accounts. This was never confirmed, and Bellucci never commented.
In a 2013 interview she said money isn't what decides it for her:
"Big budget movie or small budget movie, it really doesn't matter."
So is taking a dictator's family's money for 4 hours of glamour just business, or should stars at her level say no, like Adjani reportedly did?
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Monica Bellucci was reportedly paid €190,000 to spend 4 hours at a party. That's about €47,500 an hour.
The host was Lola Karimova-Tillyaeva, daughter of Uzbekistan's longtime dictator Islam Karimov and the country's ambassador to UNESCO.
According to the French weekly held on April 8, 2009, at the Musée d'Art Moderne in Paris for her "Uzbekistan 2020" charity foundation. The reported deal: her presence, a short speech, and no contact with the press. Car, driver, hair and makeup were paid for.
Bakchich reported that Isabelle Adjani was also approached and turned it down.
Bakchich also claimed the payment was routed through several companies, including one in the Netherlands, before reaching Bellucci's bank accounts. This was never confirmed, and Bellucci never commented.
In a 2013 interview she said money isn't what decides it for her:
"Big budget movie or small budget movie, it really doesn't matter."
So is taking a dictator's family's money for 4 hours of glamour just business, or should stars at her level say no, like Adjani reportedly did?
The host was Lola Karimova-Tillyaeva, daughter of Uzbekistan's longtime dictator Islam Karimov and the country's ambassador to UNESCO.
According to the French weekly held on April 8, 2009, at the Musée d'Art Moderne in Paris for her "Uzbekistan 2020" charity foundation. The reported deal: her presence, a short speech, and no contact with the press. Car, driver, hair and makeup were paid for.
Bakchich reported that Isabelle Adjani was also approached and turned it down.
Bakchich also claimed the payment was routed through several companies, including one in the Netherlands, before reaching Bellucci's bank accounts. This was never confirmed, and Bellucci never commented.
In a 2013 interview she said money isn't what decides it for her:
"Big budget movie or small budget movie, it really doesn't matter."
So is taking a dictator's family's money for 4 hours of glamour just business, or should stars at her level say no, like Adjani reportedly did?
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Noctaxbt retweeted
Wendy Williams made about $10 million a year hosting her own talk show, then one day her own bank froze her millions and told a court she could not be trusted with her money.
In January 2022 Wells Fargo locked several million dollars in her accounts after her former financial old the bank she was of unsound mind. The bank then asked a New York court to appoint a guardian, citing undue influence and financial exploitation. Wendy fought back in court and said she could not pay her mortgages, her divorce settlement or her staff.
She lost. Since May 2022 a court appointed guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, has controlled her money and her life. In 2024 her team announced she has primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia, and a guardian filing called her permanently incapacitated.
Then came the twist. In a 2025 radio call she said she is not cognitively impaired, that she feels like she is in prison, and that she has $15. The guardian later sued over the Lifetime documentary about her, saying Wendy received only $82,000 from it.
In the video below, recorded on Instagram while the bank had her accounts frozen, Wendy speaks directly to her fans and says: "I know for a fact that Bernie Young used my American Express card to hire an attorney to file a petition against me." She calls it what she believes it is: "This is not right. This is not fair."
The case for the guardianship: doctors diagnosed a serious brain illness, and people close to her warned that others were taking advantage of her and her fortune.
The case for Wendy: a grown woman who earned every dollar on her own says she was never asked, is fully aware, and now cannot touch the money she worked for her entire life.
Was the court protecting Wendy, or did it take her life away from her?
In January 2022 Wells Fargo locked several million dollars in her accounts after her former financial old the bank she was of unsound mind. The bank then asked a New York court to appoint a guardian, citing undue influence and financial exploitation. Wendy fought back in court and said she could not pay her mortgages, her divorce settlement or her staff.
She lost. Since May 2022 a court appointed guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, has controlled her money and her life. In 2024 her team announced she has primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia, and a guardian filing called her permanently incapacitated.
Then came the twist. In a 2025 radio call she said she is not cognitively impaired, that she feels like she is in prison, and that she has $15. The guardian later sued over the Lifetime documentary about her, saying Wendy received only $82,000 from it.
In the video below, recorded on Instagram while the bank had her accounts frozen, Wendy speaks directly to her fans and says: "I know for a fact that Bernie Young used my American Express card to hire an attorney to file a petition against me." She calls it what she believes it is: "This is not right. This is not fair."
The case for the guardianship: doctors diagnosed a serious brain illness, and people close to her warned that others were taking advantage of her and her fortune.
The case for Wendy: a grown woman who earned every dollar on her own says she was never asked, is fully aware, and now cannot touch the money she worked for her entire life.
Was the court protecting Wendy, or did it take her life away from her?
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Wendy Williams made about $10 million a year hosting her own talk show, then one day her own bank froze her millions and told a court she could not be trusted with her money.
In January 2022 Wells Fargo locked several million dollars in her accounts after her former financial old the bank she was of unsound mind. The bank then asked a New York court to appoint a guardian, citing undue influence and financial exploitation. Wendy fought back in court and said she could not pay her mortgages, her divorce settlement or her staff.
She lost. Since May 2022 a court appointed guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, has controlled her money and her life. In 2024 her team announced she has primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia, and a guardian filing called her permanently incapacitated.
Then came the twist. In a 2025 radio call she said she is not cognitively impaired, that she feels like she is in prison, and that she has $15. The guardian later sued over the Lifetime documentary about her, saying Wendy received only $82,000 from it.
In the video below, recorded on Instagram while the bank had her accounts frozen, Wendy speaks directly to her fans and says: "I know for a fact that Bernie Young used my American Express card to hire an attorney to file a petition against me." She calls it what she believes it is: "This is not right. This is not fair."
The case for the guardianship: doctors diagnosed a serious brain illness, and people close to her warned that others were taking advantage of her and her fortune.
The case for Wendy: a grown woman who earned every dollar on her own says she was never asked, is fully aware, and now cannot touch the money she worked for her entire life.
Was the court protecting Wendy, or did it take her life away from her?
In January 2022 Wells Fargo locked several million dollars in her accounts after her former financial old the bank she was of unsound mind. The bank then asked a New York court to appoint a guardian, citing undue influence and financial exploitation. Wendy fought back in court and said she could not pay her mortgages, her divorce settlement or her staff.
She lost. Since May 2022 a court appointed guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, has controlled her money and her life. In 2024 her team announced she has primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia, and a guardian filing called her permanently incapacitated.
Then came the twist. In a 2025 radio call she said she is not cognitively impaired, that she feels like she is in prison, and that she has $15. The guardian later sued over the Lifetime documentary about her, saying Wendy received only $82,000 from it.
In the video below, recorded on Instagram while the bank had her accounts frozen, Wendy speaks directly to her fans and says: "I know for a fact that Bernie Young used my American Express card to hire an attorney to file a petition against me." She calls it what she believes it is: "This is not right. This is not fair."
The case for the guardianship: doctors diagnosed a serious brain illness, and people close to her warned that others were taking advantage of her and her fortune.
The case for Wendy: a grown woman who earned every dollar on her own says she was never asked, is fully aware, and now cannot touch the money she worked for her entire life.
Was the court protecting Wendy, or did it take her life away from her?
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Daniel Cormier's official purse for his first fight with Jon Jones was $90,000. He lost. Two days later the UFC sent him a $1 million check.
In his own words: "Dude sent me a million-dollar check next day, just because he said I did a great job."
January 3, 2015, UFC 182, Las er by unanimous decision for the light heavyweight title.
Nevada, which still published fighter pay back then, listed Cormier's purse at $90,000, plus a $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus. Disclosed total: $140,000.
Years later, on The Pivot podcast, Cormier told the rest:
"I was making $80,000 to show up and $80,000 to win. I lost. So I left that arena thinking, 'All that, and I made $80,000.'"
Then: "Dana calls me two days later. 'Hey, man, you all killed it. Numbers are out of this world.' He goes, 'We're gonna send you a million dollars.'"
That's more than 7 times his disclosed pay, and it never showed up on any public record.
Cormier's explanation: "They try to protect the athlete a little bit by not showing exactly what you make... A lot of it is hidden."
The case for the UFC: the boss paid a losing fighter $1 million he didn't have to pay.
The case against: if a fighter's real pay depends on a private phone call from the boss, nobody outside can ever tell if fighters are paid fairly.
So was that $1 million check generosity, or proof the real numbers are kept hidden on purpose?
In his own words: "Dude sent me a million-dollar check next day, just because he said I did a great job."
January 3, 2015, UFC 182, Las er by unanimous decision for the light heavyweight title.
Nevada, which still published fighter pay back then, listed Cormier's purse at $90,000, plus a $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus. Disclosed total: $140,000.
Years later, on The Pivot podcast, Cormier told the rest:
"I was making $80,000 to show up and $80,000 to win. I lost. So I left that arena thinking, 'All that, and I made $80,000.'"
Then: "Dana calls me two days later. 'Hey, man, you all killed it. Numbers are out of this world.' He goes, 'We're gonna send you a million dollars.'"
That's more than 7 times his disclosed pay, and it never showed up on any public record.
Cormier's explanation: "They try to protect the athlete a little bit by not showing exactly what you make... A lot of it is hidden."
The case for the UFC: the boss paid a losing fighter $1 million he didn't have to pay.
The case against: if a fighter's real pay depends on a private phone call from the boss, nobody outside can ever tell if fighters are paid fairly.
So was that $1 million check generosity, or proof the real numbers are kept hidden on purpose?
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Noctaxbt retweeted
DJ Mustard's ex wife asked for $82,628 a month in child support. The judge gave her $24,500, and Mustard walked away with the Lamborghinis.
He is the producer behind Not Like Us. Chanel Thierry was with him for more than a decade before they married in October 2020.
He filed , about a year and a half after the wedding.
Her lawyers told the court his adjusted gross income in 2020 was over $10 million. She asked for $82,628 a month for their three kids.
The judge set it at $24,500.
Then came the prenup. She signed it on October 9, 2020, the month they got married. In the end she agreed it was valid, and it kept his entire music catalog as his alone.
Her spousal support was settled with one payment of $315,000. She got another $275,000 to even out the property.
He kept the Chatsworth mansion, homes in Simi Valley and Los Angeles, two Lamborghinis, a Rolls Royce Cullinan, a Maybach and a 1960 Impala. She kept her pajama company and a Tesla.
She said he refused to co parent. He says he has nothing against her.
In the video below, he answers the people who blame him:
"Would you guys have rather me stay with this lady and me be unhappy?"
"I've never and never will say anything crazy on the internet about this person."
"I get up every morning, I take my kids to school, and I'm a dad."
So did Mustard just protect what he built before the wedding, or did he leave the mother of his three kids with a prenup and a check?
He is the producer behind Not Like Us. Chanel Thierry was with him for more than a decade before they married in October 2020.
He filed , about a year and a half after the wedding.
Her lawyers told the court his adjusted gross income in 2020 was over $10 million. She asked for $82,628 a month for their three kids.
The judge set it at $24,500.
Then came the prenup. She signed it on October 9, 2020, the month they got married. In the end she agreed it was valid, and it kept his entire music catalog as his alone.
Her spousal support was settled with one payment of $315,000. She got another $275,000 to even out the property.
He kept the Chatsworth mansion, homes in Simi Valley and Los Angeles, two Lamborghinis, a Rolls Royce Cullinan, a Maybach and a 1960 Impala. She kept her pajama company and a Tesla.
She said he refused to co parent. He says he has nothing against her.
In the video below, he answers the people who blame him:
"Would you guys have rather me stay with this lady and me be unhappy?"
"I've never and never will say anything crazy on the internet about this person."
"I get up every morning, I take my kids to school, and I'm a dad."
So did Mustard just protect what he built before the wedding, or did he leave the mother of his three kids with a prenup and a check?
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DJ Mustard's ex wife asked for $82,628 a month in child support. The judge gave her $24,500, and Mustard walked away with the Lamborghinis.
He is the producer behind Not Like Us. Chanel Thierry was with him for more than a decade before they married in October 2020.
He filed , about a year and a half after the wedding.
Her lawyers told the court his adjusted gross income in 2020 was over $10 million. She asked for $82,628 a month for their three kids.
The judge set it at $24,500.
Then came the prenup. She signed it on October 9, 2020, the month they got married. In the end she agreed it was valid, and it kept his entire music catalog as his alone.
Her spousal support was settled with one payment of $315,000. She got another $275,000 to even out the property.
He kept the Chatsworth mansion, homes in Simi Valley and Los Angeles, two Lamborghinis, a Rolls Royce Cullinan, a Maybach and a 1960 Impala. She kept her pajama company and a Tesla.
She said he refused to co parent. He says he has nothing against her.
In the video below, he answers the people who blame him:
"Would you guys have rather me stay with this lady and me be unhappy?"
"I've never and never will say anything crazy on the internet about this person."
"I get up every morning, I take my kids to school, and I'm a dad."
So did Mustard just protect what he built before the wedding, or did he leave the mother of his three kids with a prenup and a check?
He is the producer behind Not Like Us. Chanel Thierry was with him for more than a decade before they married in October 2020.
He filed , about a year and a half after the wedding.
Her lawyers told the court his adjusted gross income in 2020 was over $10 million. She asked for $82,628 a month for their three kids.
The judge set it at $24,500.
Then came the prenup. She signed it on October 9, 2020, the month they got married. In the end she agreed it was valid, and it kept his entire music catalog as his alone.
Her spousal support was settled with one payment of $315,000. She got another $275,000 to even out the property.
He kept the Chatsworth mansion, homes in Simi Valley and Los Angeles, two Lamborghinis, a Rolls Royce Cullinan, a Maybach and a 1960 Impala. She kept her pajama company and a Tesla.
She said he refused to co parent. He says he has nothing against her.
In the video below, he answers the people who blame him:
"Would you guys have rather me stay with this lady and me be unhappy?"
"I've never and never will say anything crazy on the internet about this person."
"I get up every morning, I take my kids to school, and I'm a dad."
So did Mustard just protect what he built before the wedding, or did he leave the mother of his three kids with a prenup and a check?
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43
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Flo Rida signed with a tiny energy drink company whose stock sold for about 50 cents. Nine years later a jury said it owed him $82.6 million.
In 2014, Celsius was losing money and couldn't afford his usual endorsement fee. So instead of a big check, it offered stock: 250,000 onus shares if sales hit set targets.
Flo Rida put the drink in his music videos, wore it on a racing suit, and handed out cans from his Hummer outside Miami Heat games.
By April 2021 Celsius stock was at $57.30. Flo Rida demanded the bonus shares. Celsius said the targets were never met and that its explosive growth came after his deal had ended.
So he sued. In the video below, he explains on the stand why he insisted on stock. He'd already missed one fortune: "I missed out on the deal that I wanted that was with Uber. Early on they had offered me rides... And I'm a guy who has a lot of flashy cars, so I didn't really pay attention to it."
This time he wanted it all: "I'm going to need some equity, I'm going to need some royalties, I'm going to need some stock and I'm going to need some upfront money."
On January 18, 2023, a Broward County jury awarded him $82,640,450. An appeals court later upheld that Celsius broke the deal, but ordered the damages recalculated using the stock price at the time of the breach.
So did Flo Rida earn every share by building a brand from nothing, or did a rapper cash in on growth he had nothing to do with?
In 2014, Celsius was losing money and couldn't afford his usual endorsement fee. So instead of a big check, it offered stock: 250,000 onus shares if sales hit set targets.
Flo Rida put the drink in his music videos, wore it on a racing suit, and handed out cans from his Hummer outside Miami Heat games.
By April 2021 Celsius stock was at $57.30. Flo Rida demanded the bonus shares. Celsius said the targets were never met and that its explosive growth came after his deal had ended.
So he sued. In the video below, he explains on the stand why he insisted on stock. He'd already missed one fortune: "I missed out on the deal that I wanted that was with Uber. Early on they had offered me rides... And I'm a guy who has a lot of flashy cars, so I didn't really pay attention to it."
This time he wanted it all: "I'm going to need some equity, I'm going to need some royalties, I'm going to need some stock and I'm going to need some upfront money."
On January 18, 2023, a Broward County jury awarded him $82,640,450. An appeals court later upheld that Celsius broke the deal, but ordered the damages recalculated using the stock price at the time of the breach.
So did Flo Rida earn every share by building a brand from nothing, or did a rapper cash in on growth he had nothing to do with?
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A crowd laughed at a 13 year old girl on Dr. Phil. She says she has since netted about $75 million on OnlyFans. The TV network he founded filed for bankruptcy.
Her name is Danielle Bregoli. America knew her as the "cash me outside" girl.
September 2016: her mother brought her t-of-control behavior, including stealing a car. The crowd laughed. She offered to settle it outside.
The clip passed 46 million views by 2018, the most watched video on the show's YouTube channel, according to the BBC.
She turned the meme into a rap career as Bhad Bhabie.
April 2021: days after turning 18, she opened an OnlyFans account.
In the video below, on a March 2025 Twitch stream, she tells DDG: "When we first started, I made a million dollars in six hours." By the end of that day, "like 4 million."
Then: "And now overall the net on it is like 75."
DDG puts his head in his hands. "I got properties, cars," she says.
July 2025: Merit Street Media, the network Dr. Phil founded, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with $100 million to $500 million in liabilities. Its largest creditor, Professional Bull Riders, has filed a $181 million claim.
One thing to keep in mind: the $75 million is her own number, said on a stream. In July 2024 she showed a screenshot of about $57 million net, and OnlyFans has never confirmed the $75 million.
One side says she turned a national joke into a fortune and owes Dr. Phil nothing.
The other side says a TV show made money off a troubled 13 year old, and she is just cashing in on the fame he gave her.
Who deserves the money, her or the show that made her famous?
Her name is Danielle Bregoli. America knew her as the "cash me outside" girl.
September 2016: her mother brought her t-of-control behavior, including stealing a car. The crowd laughed. She offered to settle it outside.
The clip passed 46 million views by 2018, the most watched video on the show's YouTube channel, according to the BBC.
She turned the meme into a rap career as Bhad Bhabie.
April 2021: days after turning 18, she opened an OnlyFans account.
In the video below, on a March 2025 Twitch stream, she tells DDG: "When we first started, I made a million dollars in six hours." By the end of that day, "like 4 million."
Then: "And now overall the net on it is like 75."
DDG puts his head in his hands. "I got properties, cars," she says.
July 2025: Merit Street Media, the network Dr. Phil founded, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with $100 million to $500 million in liabilities. Its largest creditor, Professional Bull Riders, has filed a $181 million claim.
One thing to keep in mind: the $75 million is her own number, said on a stream. In July 2024 she showed a screenshot of about $57 million net, and OnlyFans has never confirmed the $75 million.
One side says she turned a national joke into a fortune and owes Dr. Phil nothing.
The other side says a TV show made money off a troubled 13 year old, and she is just cashing in on the fame he gave her.
Who deserves the money, her or the show that made her famous?
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Noctaxbt retweeted
Patrizia Reggiani admitted paying $365,000 to have her ex-husband, Gucci heir Maurizio Gucci, shot dead.
Two decades later, a court said his estate still owed her 1.1 million Swiss francs a year for life.
Maurizio had sold his half of Gucci for about $170 million. Witnesses alimony wasn't enough for her. She wanted all of it.
Her old motto: "I would rather weep in a Rolls-Royce than be happy on a bicycle."
In 1995, a hitman was waiting for him outside his Milan office.
She later said it was worth every penny.
In 1998, a Milan court gave her 29 years. The hitman got life.
She walked out of prison in 2016.
Then the money question came back.
In 2017, a Milan appeals court ruled that the 1993 deal Maurizio signed, giving her 1.1 million Swiss francs a year for life, still stood. Her own daughters were told to pay it.
"Any other opinion belongs to the moral, rather than the strictly judicial, sphere," the court wrote.
In the video below, she describes the morning police came: "What is this, a robbery?"
And: "I didn't think they'd catch me."
She ordered his murder and was still owed his money. Should the court have let her keep a single franc, yes or no?
Two decades later, a court said his estate still owed her 1.1 million Swiss francs a year for life.
Maurizio had sold his half of Gucci for about $170 million. Witnesses alimony wasn't enough for her. She wanted all of it.
Her old motto: "I would rather weep in a Rolls-Royce than be happy on a bicycle."
In 1995, a hitman was waiting for him outside his Milan office.
She later said it was worth every penny.
In 1998, a Milan court gave her 29 years. The hitman got life.
She walked out of prison in 2016.
Then the money question came back.
In 2017, a Milan appeals court ruled that the 1993 deal Maurizio signed, giving her 1.1 million Swiss francs a year for life, still stood. Her own daughters were told to pay it.
"Any other opinion belongs to the moral, rather than the strictly judicial, sphere," the court wrote.
In the video below, she describes the morning police came: "What is this, a robbery?"
And: "I didn't think they'd catch me."
She ordered his murder and was still owed his money. Should the court have let her keep a single franc, yes or no?
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Patrizia Reggiani admitted paying $365,000 to have her ex-husband, Gucci heir Maurizio Gucci, shot dead.
Two decades later, a court said his estate still owed her 1.1 million Swiss francs a year for life.
Maurizio had sold his half of Gucci for about $170 million. Witnesses alimony wasn't enough for her. She wanted all of it.
Her old motto: "I would rather weep in a Rolls-Royce than be happy on a bicycle."
In 1995, a hitman was waiting for him outside his Milan office.
She later said it was worth every penny.
In 1998, a Milan court gave her 29 years. The hitman got life.
She walked out of prison in 2016.
Then the money question came back.
In 2017, a Milan appeals court ruled that the 1993 deal Maurizio signed, giving her 1.1 million Swiss francs a year for life, still stood. Her own daughters were told to pay it.
"Any other opinion belongs to the moral, rather than the strictly judicial, sphere," the court wrote.
In the video below, she describes the morning police came: "What is this, a robbery?"
And: "I didn't think they'd catch me."
She ordered his murder and was still owed his money. Should the court have let her keep a single franc, yes or no?
Two decades later, a court said his estate still owed her 1.1 million Swiss francs a year for life.
Maurizio had sold his half of Gucci for about $170 million. Witnesses alimony wasn't enough for her. She wanted all of it.
Her old motto: "I would rather weep in a Rolls-Royce than be happy on a bicycle."
In 1995, a hitman was waiting for him outside his Milan office.
She later said it was worth every penny.
In 1998, a Milan court gave her 29 years. The hitman got life.
She walked out of prison in 2016.
Then the money question came back.
In 2017, a Milan appeals court ruled that the 1993 deal Maurizio signed, giving her 1.1 million Swiss francs a year for life, still stood. Her own daughters were told to pay it.
"Any other opinion belongs to the moral, rather than the strictly judicial, sphere," the court wrote.
In the video below, she describes the morning police came: "What is this, a robbery?"
And: "I didn't think they'd catch me."
She ordered his murder and was still owed his money. Should the court have let her keep a single franc, yes or no?
5
1
16
1,188
Big Meech said he made his first million at 17. He ended up with a 30-year sentence and a $270 million judgment.
His Black Mafia Family started selling cocaine in Detroit in the early 1990s. By the mid-1990s it reached Missouri, Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, California the DEA.
Law enforcement seized over 476 kilograms of cocaine headed for the organization and more than $5 million in cash.
Then the bill came.
In 2008, a federal judge sentenced him to 30 years.
The government forfeited over $19 million in assets, including 13 homes, 35 vehicles like a Lincoln limousine, an Aston Martin and Bentleys, plus millions in jewelry.
The forfeitures also included a $270 million money judgment.
In the video below, he says: "I can name plenty of city and states that I've made multi millionaires." Asked when he made his first million: "17, first million in Detroit."
A million at 17, then 30 years. Was it worth it?
His Black Mafia Family started selling cocaine in Detroit in the early 1990s. By the mid-1990s it reached Missouri, Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, California the DEA.
Law enforcement seized over 476 kilograms of cocaine headed for the organization and more than $5 million in cash.
Then the bill came.
In 2008, a federal judge sentenced him to 30 years.
The government forfeited over $19 million in assets, including 13 homes, 35 vehicles like a Lincoln limousine, an Aston Martin and Bentleys, plus millions in jewelry.
The forfeitures also included a $270 million money judgment.
In the video below, he says: "I can name plenty of city and states that I've made multi millionaires." Asked when he made his first million: "17, first million in Detroit."
A million at 17, then 30 years. Was it worth it?
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Noctaxbt retweeted
Shaquille O'Neal earned about $292 million in NBA salary. He still tells his six kids, "We ain't rich. I'm rich."
Bloomberg counted $292.2 million in paychecks over his 19 seasons. Forbes put his net worth at over $400 million in 2016, after a lifetime brand deal it expected to to $270 million.
His kids have to earn their own. On the Earn Your Leisure podcast in 2021, he said they need a bachelor's or master's degree first.
If they want him to invest in a company, they have to pitch it to him. "I'm not giving you nothing," he said.
In the video below, he says that to touch his money "you've got to have three degrees," and that he has to teach his kids, "we're not rich. I'm rich."
He also tells the story of his oldest son getting all A's. Shaq told him he could get whatever he wanted, then got a call from Tesla and told him to go "across the street in a Honda" instead.
$292 million in salary, and straight A's still didn't get his son a Tesla. Smart dad, or too tough on his own kids?
Bloomberg counted $292.2 million in paychecks over his 19 seasons. Forbes put his net worth at over $400 million in 2016, after a lifetime brand deal it expected to to $270 million.
His kids have to earn their own. On the Earn Your Leisure podcast in 2021, he said they need a bachelor's or master's degree first.
If they want him to invest in a company, they have to pitch it to him. "I'm not giving you nothing," he said.
In the video below, he says that to touch his money "you've got to have three degrees," and that he has to teach his kids, "we're not rich. I'm rich."
He also tells the story of his oldest son getting all A's. Shaq told him he could get whatever he wanted, then got a call from Tesla and told him to go "across the street in a Honda" instead.
$292 million in salary, and straight A's still didn't get his son a Tesla. Smart dad, or too tough on his own kids?
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