We all have fantasies about what we’d buy if we won the lottery, but
celebrities have already won the lottery of life. Celebrities will often
purchase the homes of their dreams, while others will put their money away into
high interest bank accounts and plan for the future. Take Susan Boyle for
instance, the Scottish superstar who became famous for her shock performance of
‘I Dreamed a Dream’. Today, Boyle is worth millions and yet lives off an
allowance of £40,000 per year and lives in a modest house in Scotland.
There are, however, many celebrities that go all-out, not caring about money
and purchasing some of the strangest things for huge amounts of money. We’ve
listed the top 15 weird purchases by celebrities of our time that are, quite
frankly, jaw dropping! From dinosaur skulls to pigeon bones, gold iPhones to
general stores in Massachusetts, the celebrities of our time really do know how
to live a luxurious lifestyle and, perhaps more so, waste a whole lot of money!
15) Nicolas Cage’s Dinosaur Skull
Nicolas Cage has developed a reputation for collecting fossils, and it has
recently been announced that in 2007, he paid a huge sum of money for a
67-million-year-old dinosaur skull. This was the largest dinosaur skull to ever
go to auction, at the time, and was the skull of the Tarbosaurus bataar, which
was a close relative of the famous T-Rex.
The price for such an incredible artifact? An incredible $270,000! It has
also been revealed that Leonardo Dicaprio was also bidding for the same dinosaur
skull, with a view on adding it to his substantial fossil collection.
The auctioned dinosaur skull has recently come back into the news, however,
as it has been revealed that the man behind finding the skull has recently
pleaded guilty to illegally importing fossils. Eric Prokopi, the commercial
paleontologist, had been importing fossils from China and Mongolia, and it
seems that US authorities are now tracking the origins of the skull that Cage
bought. It’s possible that the skull he purchased could be seized by the
government for an investigation, as Prokopi has never revealed how or where he
got any of the fossils he sold from. Nobody knows quite what will happen to the
skulls, whether Cage will be able to keep them or even whether he will be
reimbursed. We’ll just have to wait for the headlines about Nicolas Cage, a
Tarbosaurus skull and a quarter of a million dollars!
14) Paris Hilton Dog Mansion
Ever been amazed at the price of small apartments in inner cities? Then
you’ll be totally taken aback about how much Paris Hilton’s new doghouse costs.
The well-known socialite is famous for carrying around her small dogs, which
include Dolce, Prada, Tinkerbell and Prince Baby Bear. The dogs have a
significantly better standard of life than many people earning minimum wage,
after the famous millionaire splashed out more than $325,000 on a new doghouse
for her pets.
The doghouse was designed to be a miniature mansion, and it features air
conditioning, a crystal chandelier, heating and more. The extravagant kennel has
its own garden, stairs, a rood and even a balcony for the dog to enjoy. For that
kind of money, you could buy two suburban homes!
13) Ghost Hunting Gaga
International superstar is known for spending huge amounts of money on weird
clothes, but recently it has been revealed that she has spent thousands on ghost
busting services and ghost busting equipment. The quirky singer, songwriter and
performer was scared of evil spirits at a hotel and concert venue that she was
staying and performing in during 2010. During her stay, she had the concert area
examined by paranormal investigators before she agreed to stay there during her
tour.
It has been reported that Lady Gaga believes in reincarnation, and that she
is in fact the reincarnated ghost of her dead auntie, and it’s even rumored
that Gaga has spent in excess of $50,000 on Electro Magnetic Field machines that
are said to detect the presence of spirits.
This isn’t the first time that Gaga has spent large amounts of cash on
strange purchased, though! In fact, Gaga spent more than half a million dollars
on a private jet to transport her wardrobe and performance equipment to her
performance on the British talent show, the X Factor, in 2009. It’s even been
rumored that she’s interested in buying a castle in Britain!
12) Tyson’s Two-Mil Tub
Mike Tyson, the retired professional boxer, has been in the news numerous
times for his extravagant purchases. Not a stranger to an extravagant lifestyle,
with a tattoo on the side of his face, the heavyweight boxer has been reported
to have been squandering a huge amount of his fortune over the last few years.
The boxer first became the lineal champion in 1988, when he beat his
opponent, Michael Spinks, by knocking him out in just 91 seconds. Soon after, he
list his titled, but regained them in 1991. Since then, Tyson went on to become
one of the most famous boxers to have ever existed, his fortune has allowed
him to spend more than $4.5 million on cars, and Tyson even purchased a $2 million
dollar bathtub for a partner he would later break things off with. Tyson has even spent more
than $140,000 on two Bengal tigers.
11) Ben Affleck’s Bathmat
In one of the stranger celebrity reports of the last few years, Ben Affleck
posed smiling with a shop owner selling him a Turkish rug for his bathroom in
2012. Affleck, a well-known movie star, recently decided to take a look at the
bazaar in Istanbul, Turkey. During the day, he purchased an antique Turkish rug
from a friendly and obviously rather persuasive salesman. Affleck commented that
the salesman claimed the rug had the blood of 10,000 kings woven into it, and
that it will help make his wife love him. Instead of cherishing the apparently
royal and magic rug, Affleck found no other purpose for the $2,500 rug than as a
bathmat.
Affleck explained that after he got the rug, he showed it to his wife and
despite explaining the story she told him that they’d already ordered a rug for
the living room. Two and a half thousand well spent? Probably not, but it’s a
good anecdote for visitors!
10) Beyonce’s Balenciaga Leggings
When it comes to purchasing expensive clothes, most people think about
Versace sunglasses, Prada shoes, Armani suits, Vivienne Westwood dresses and
diamonds. After all, if you’re going to spend a lot of money, you want something
to show for it! This rule, however, doesn’t seem to exist with celebrities.
Singer and performer Beyonce was, in 2007, reported to have spent more than
$100,000 on a single pair of leggings. That’s right, leggings! The superstar
decided that comfort was worth paying for, and she made an appearance at the
Black Entertainment Television Award Show in 2007 wearing the expensive
trousers.
Beyonce was clad in tight, gold leggings made by Balenciaga, coupled with a
matching top, that didn’t leave much to the imagination. For most, $30 is more
than enough for leggings, but the former signer of the girl band Destiny’s Child
decided that leggings just weren’t good enough for her unless they were
encrusted in real gold and made to sparkle in the spotlight when performing on
stage in front of thousands. Years on after her 2007 performance, she may well
be wearing the luxury leggings around the home!
9) A Plane Ticket for Bono’s Hat
Ever complained about the price of postage? Well, at least be glad you’ll
never send a parcel that costs more than $1,700! This is the price that the U2
lead singer, Bono, paid to send his hat from London to Italy back in 2005. The
fashionable celebrity realized that he’d left his new hat in Italy, and instead
of going without his favorite hat, paid for a flight ticket for his hat. Not a
person, not international postage, but an actual seat on an airplane so that his
hat would be with him as soon as possible.
Oh, and don’t forget, it was first class. You wouldn’t want your hat getting
squashed in standard class, of course!
8) Chris Brown’s Bugatti
The Bugatti Veyron, made by French company Automobile Ettore Bugatti, is the
fastest street-legal car in the entire world. The super car has a top speed of
more than 431 km/h and was given the ‘care of the decade’ title between 2000 and
2009 by Top Gear, the British television show that has become popular round the
world.
The car has been produced since 2005, with a new version released in 2009,
the Grand Sport, and later the Super Sport in 2010. HartmutWarkuss designed most
of the car, but the exterior bodywork was designed by Volkswagen designer
JozefKaban. This incredible car can easily set you back $1.5 million, making it
a car only for the rich and famous. For this reason, it’s no surprise that the
car was swept up by musician Chris Brown.
There are only 200 models of Veyron known to exist in the world, ever since
they began production. There are expected to be another 100 built in the near
future, and even then it will remain one of the least common cars on the road.
Brown is of course the rapper that hit headlines when his relationship with
singer Rihanna went sour.
7) Daniel Radcliffe’s Magical Mattress
Most young people aren’t interested in spending all that much money on their
beds, let’s face it! As long as you have somewhere warm to sleep that’s
relatively comfortable, the idea of spending thousands on a mattress simply
wouldn’t cross your mind. However, for Harry Potter superstar Daniel Radcliffe,
that’s certainly not the case. The young actor-come-millionaire recently paid
more than $17,000 on a mattress, reportedly.
Realistically, the young millionaire could probably afford 100 of those and
still not feel the strain, but it’s a perplexing amount of money for anybody to
spend on a mattress.
The actor, who was first paid $320,000 at the young age of 11, seems to like
spending money, just like his fellow actors. His co-star on screen, Rupert
Grint, is also reported to have bought an ice cream van with his Harry Potter
fortune.
Whether or not Radcliffe can afford it, $17,000 for a mattress or even a bed
seems amazing, making him an ideal fit for our list of the 15 most bizarre
things purchased by celebrities.
6) Kim Basinger-Ville
If you’ve ever dreamed of owning your own town, then you’re going to be
immensely jealous of Kim Basinger. The American singer, actress and fashion
model, who is known for playing the Bond girl in ‘Never Say Never Again’ has had
rocky relationships and a touch-and-go experience in the movie industry. After
not knowing what to do with the money that she had earned in the late 1980s, it
was suggested to her that she purchases a small town and sets up a tourist
attraction where people can learn about movie studios and enjoy an annual film
festival.
Kim Basinger
The town that was recommended was Braselton, in Georgia. The purchase was
made, and Kim Basinger spent $20 million on nearly 1,700 acres of land. This was
expected to be a great success for the model, but after running into financial
difficulties, Basinger began to sell off parts of the town she had purchased.
From 1995 onwards, the town was slowly sold off and eventually became owned by a
single developer called Wayne Mason.
Wayne Mason
It was in a 1997 interview with Barbara Walters that Basinger commented that
it was not a great decision to make as it simply created a rift in her family.
The financial difficulties also caused a great deal of trouble, and after making
money in her 1993 movie Boxing Helena, the superstar filed for bankruptcy.
Today, Basinger remains an animal rights activist and a vegetarian, and has even
posed for publicity shoots for PETA’s anti-fur campaign.
5) Beckham’s Gold iPhone
As if the iPhone didn’t already cost the earth, David Beckham’s wife, former
Spice Girl Victoria Beckham, was snapped back in 2011 with a gold-plated iPhone
4. Designers in the past have created some pretty impressive, stylish cases to
protect your iPhone, but this is no boring old case. The gold case, designed by
UK-based designer Stuart Hughes, is made of 150g of pure 24-carat gold.
Beckham, once known as Posh Spice, was seen at Heathrow Airport holding her
$33,000 gold iPhone 4 in her hand, which featured a photograph of her photogenic
footballer husband David Beckham as the home screen.
This is an incredible amount of money to spend on a phone, but amazingly,
this isn’t the cheapest option. In fact, the model that Posh Spice was sporting
was one of the cheaper options when you consider what else is available. The
most expensive phone in the world was sold in 2010 for an incredible £5 million
GBP. This was an iPhone 4 that had 500 perfectly cut diamonds on the back,
making up the famous Apple logo. All in all, the phone weighed in at more than
100-carats, making it a spectacular buy for anybody.
Victoria Beckham
The $33,000 iPhone is certainly a strange purchase, but when you consider her
husband’s career at the time, it’s certainly no surprise that this well-known
diva would splash out on something so expensive. The photograph of Beckham was
taken back when her husband, David, had only recently signed his $1 million deal
at LA Galaxy.
4) Spielberg Splashes Out on Citizen Kane Sled
Citizen Kane, the classic 1941 drama movie that was written by, directed by,
produced by and starred in by Orson Welles, is still one of the best-known
movies today. The movie features the likes of Joseph Cotton, Everett Sloane and
Ray Collins, and has a range of references that are still used today.
Mostly, the movie is narrated through flashbacks, and a notable part of the
movie is the mystery of the dying word whispered by a media businessman,
‘rosebud’. In the film, rosebud is in fact the name of a sled that’s used, and
it was announced in June 1982 that Steven Spielberg had bought that very sled.
Orson Welles in Citizen Kane
In early June of 1982, Rosebud the sled was auctioned off at the Sotheby Park
Bernet and bought by the legendary movie producer Steven Spielberg for $55,000.
Combining the buyer’s fee of 10%, the overall cost of the sled was $60,5000.
The sled purchased by the movie director was one of three balsa wood sleds
made for the final scene of the film, and it is this sled that is the only one
to have survived the filming. The other two that were used ended up being burned
in the scene of the movie in which a workman throws the sled into a furnace.
Spielberg explained that his purchase of the sled was because he considers
Citizen Kane to be the ‘most classic movie ever made’. The director had
purchased the sled via telephone bid, and also explained that Rosebud was a
‘symbolic emblem of quality in the film business.’
To others, it’s just a sled!
3) Depp’s Pigeon Bones
If someone told you that another person collected pigeon skeletons, you’d
think they were lying. If somebody told you that Johnny Depp collected pigeon
skeletons, you’d think they were mad. In reality though, it’s absolutely true
and easily one of the weirdest things that any celebrity has spent money on!
The actor, who became particularly famous for his young role in the cult film
Edward Scissorhands, collects a wide range of things that seem more suitable in
a haunted house, or perhaps on the shelves of Tim Burton’s bedroom. Perhaps all
the dark stories of Tim Burton and Depp’s regular acting partner, Helena Bonham
Carter, has begun rubbing off on him. The Pirates of the Caribbean star doesn’t
just collect pigeon skeletons, but also bats and insects from all over the
world.
Pigeon Skeleton
Elsewhere in the Depp home, you will come across the blades from his role as
Edward Scissorhands, and a range of other personal items from the deceased
writer Jack Kerouac. Johnny Depp is known to own Kerouac’s jackets and suitcases
and even has letters written by the author.
2) Amanda Seyfried’s Dead Horse
If Johnny Depp buying pigeon skeletons wasn’t weird enough for you, how about
Amanda Seyfried buying a dead horse? When staying in England for the premiere of
the movie Red Riding Hood, movie star Amanda was so amazed by a taxidermy
produced
miniature horse called Antoine, she decided to buy the animal. She took the
stuffed horse home with her and explained that the horse she purchased was three
years old when it died. She had the horse shipped to Los Angeles from England,
and apparently, Seyfried had hoped that the dead horse would become her dog’s
best friend.
Seyfried also explained that the horse was an example of some of the best
taxidermy in the world, which is why she felt that she had to purchase it. The
star is known for being quirky, deep and even sometimes a little philosophical,
but fans were taken aback and surprised to hear about the movie star’s taste in
home furnishings. Still, it’s hard to tell whether it’s weirder to have
skeletons like Johnny Depp in your home, or a three-week-old horse making
friends with your dog!
1) Steve Carrell’s Store
Number one on our list of the weirdest, most bizarre things purchased by
celebrities has to be Steve Carrell’s purchase of a Massachusetts store, that he
never intended to own or profit from!
Carell is best known for playing Michael Scott on the American version of the
hit sitcom, The Office, as well as featuring in the movie Anchorman. Aged 45, in
2009, the actor decided to purchase the Marshfield Hills General Store on the
south shore of Massachusetts, just 25 minutes away from Boston.
Instead of running or using the store, he put his sister-in-law, Tish Vivado,
in charge of it. He said, however, that customers should expect to see him
working in there every once in a while. Despite having no intention of
benefiting from the store himself, he wrote in an email to the Boston Globe
that he will take charge of the cash register or stock the shelves whenever he
gets the time to do so.
Tish Vivado
The reason for the purchase appears to be entirely emotional. The previous
owner of the store, Sherry Bechtold, had run the store with her husband, Bob.
They sold the building and the business to Carell after financial difficulties
and wanting to pass on the building and business to somebody who cared for it.
Carell himself had often visited the store when he was younger, and so, wanted
to be able to ‘preserve a piece of Americana’, in his own words.
Carell’s sister-in-law took over the store on January 1st, 2009 and to this
day, the store is still owned by Carell and the 155-year-old building has been
kept in great condition.
Conclusion
It seems like there will always be an endless stream of entertainment when it
comes to the lives of celebrities. We don’t even have to look at the daily
mishaps and arguments between famous lovers – we just have to take a look and
see what regular people do when they come into these huge amounts of money! Not
only is it fun to see ‘how the other half live’, but it can also be immensely
interesting to see how people act when they are taken out of the regular,
working lifestyle.
We may laugh, but truthfully, we’d all probably be guilty for spending
$33,000 on a mobile phone or $17,000 on a mattress if we knew we could afford
it. After all, that mattress must be incredibly comfy and a 24-carat gold iPhone
would really set you out from the crowd.
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