Heidi Klum in a body paint swimsuitGorgeous Heidi Klum in an artistic body paint swimsuit.
Mysterious Celebrity Deaths
We're fascinated by the lives of celebrities, but when they pass on tragically, we can also be drawn to the way they died. In some cases, stars can become even more famous than ever for the mysterious circumstances under which they died. As a hat tip to this week's
premiere of the new History Channel series "Decoded," which has investigators looking into the untold histories of institutions such as the White House, the Statue of Liberty and more, we thought we'd take a look at stars whose untimely ends fascinate mystery buffs and conspiracy nuts alike.
Princess Diana
Princess Diana died tragically in a car accident with friend, multimillionaire Dodi Fayed, and a bodyguard on Aug, 31, 1997. While it is officially believed that aggressive paparazzi and an intoxicated driver were to blame for the fatal accident, multiple conspiracy theories began to pop up. The most widely disseminated theory is that the British Secret Service, the MI6, orchestrated the accident as a cover-up to the assassination of Diana.
Kurt Cobain
For any '90s child, Kurt Cobain's 1994 suicide was a defining moment, but for the conspiracy-minded, it was an all-around suspicious event. Some Nirvana fans claim that Cobain was in fact murdered, and they point to evidence such as the fact that Cobain had too much
heroin in his system to manipulate the shotgun that killed him and an alleged lack of gunpowder on his hands.
Marilyn Monroe
Officially, the cause of Monroe's 1962 death was ruled to be suicide by an overdose of pills. However, her alleged entanglements with John Kennedy prompted her fans to suspect that poor Norma Jean had been murdered. Regardless, Monroe is probably more famous today than
she was while she was alive.
Elvis Presley
Though only the nuttiest of conspiracy buffs claim that Elvis was bumped off, plenty of die-hard fans still believe that Presley didn't die at all. According to them, Presley longed to escape the spotlight and did just that, using his considerable means to fake his death and live out his
life privately -- just him, his records and a stack of peanut butter-and-banana sandwiches.
Natalie Wood
One of the strangest Hollywood deaths was that of Natalie Wood, who died at 43 years old on November 29, 1981. Along with her husband, Robert Wagner, and his costar, Christopher Walken, Wood sailed from Los Angeles to Catalina Island. Upon docking, however,
Wood fell out of the boat and drowned. It's not clear why Wood wasn't pulled back aboard or whether the cries for help heard by a witness actually came from Wood.
Bruce and Brandon Lee
After achieving fame in the U.S. on the original "Green Hornet" series, Bruce Lee seemed ready to become as big of a star worldwide as he had been in his native Hong Kong. However, in 1973 the seemingly invincible fighter lost consciousness after taking a painkiller and never
woke up -- his end being ascribed to "death by misadventure." Twenty years later, son Brandon Lee was poised to fulfill the family destiny of stardom when a prop malfunction caused him to be fatally shot on the set of "The Crow." Rumors of a curse on the Lee family have persisted ever since.
John Belushi
Founding "Saturday Night Live" cast member John Belushi was found dead in Bungalow No. 3 of the Chateau Marmont in Hollywood on March 5, 1982. Though the official cause of death was discovered to be a lethal combination of cocaine and heroin, the bizarre
incidents of the night begged the question of who was to blame. Both Robert DeNiro and Robin Williams had visited Belushi that night, as had groupie Cathy Smith. Smith later admitted to giving Belushi the fatal speedball shot and spent 15 months in prison on manslaughter charges.
Anna Nicole Smith
Less than a year after Smith's son Daniel died of a lethal combination of medications in his system, Smith died from what investigators determined to be the same cause. A lengthy investigation followed (both into Smith's death and the paternity of her baby daughter,
Dannielynn), and ultimately her lawyer and domestic partner, Howard K. Stern, was convicted of conspiracy -- allegedly enabling Smith's drug dependency as a means of controlling her fortune -- but no one has ever been charged with causing her death.
Jayne Mansfield
No one disputes that the voluptuous movie star was killed by a 1967 car accident, along with her boyfriend, Sam Brody (pictured). But a rather gory urban legend has persisted about her death: that she was decapitated. She wasn't, according to the police report, though a
well-circulated photo of the accident scene seemed to indicate otherwise. (A wig depicted near the car apparently misled some viewers.) Even more weirdly, a separate urban legend claims that the accident happened as a result of a curse placed on her by the Church of Satan.
Incidentally, Mansfield's children -- including a young Mariska Hargitay -- were in the back seat at the time at the time of the accident. The children were not seriously harmed
Phil Hartman
The manner of how the "SNL" star died is fairly cut-and-dry: He was fatally shot by his wife, Brynn. What lingers about the tragedy are the accusations of blame. In 1999, Brynn Hartman's brother filed suit against the makers of Zoloft and the doctor who gave Brynn samples
of the drug, on grounds that it helped bring about the murder-suicide. And actor Jon Lovitz has accused Hartman's "NewsRadio" costar Andy Dick of being responsible for having reintroduced Brynn to cocaine. Lovitz and Dick have feuded ever since.
Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen
When Spungen, girlfriend of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious, was found stabbed to death in October 1978, Vicious confessed to killing her even though he had no memory of the night. Some claimed that Spungen could have been murdered by a third party as a result of a drug
deal gone bad while Vicious was unconscious. The rocker was arrested but was released on bail. In February 1979, before a trial could determine who killed Spungen, Vicious fatally overdosed, preserving the mystery forever
Jon-Erik Hexum
The hunky '80s star and boyfriend of singer E.G. Daily seemed poise to make a major breakthrough with the NBC series "Cover Up," but accidentally took his own life on set. During a lull in filming, Hexum allegedly began playing with a prop gun that had been loaded with
blanks. He jokingly put the barrel to his head and then fired. Hexum apparently didn't realize that prop bullets package gun powder in hard substances, and the injuries he sustained from the blanks ultimately left him brain-dead. CBS kept the show on the air for the remainder of the season.
Hollywood's Best Actors & Actresses For The Buck
In Hollywood it's all about your quote. But what do the top actresses earn for the studios in return for their multimillion-dollar salaries? We crunched the numbers using salaries, box-office earnings and film budgets. The result: an average profit number for every $1 the studio paid the actor.
No. 1: Anne Hathaway
For the sake of our return-on-investment list, being a woman in Hollywood is a good thing. They tend to earn than male actors, less so when their films hit, they offer a good return. Hathaway lands at the top of our list thanks to Alice in Wonderland, which earned $1 billion at the global box office. One of her smaller films, Bride Wars, was a modest hit, bringing in $115 million, but her ranking benefits from the film's low budget and her low salary. For every dollar Hathaway was paid, her films earned an average of $64.
No. 3 (tie): Jennifer Aniston
Aniston earns a spot on our list this year despite the perception that her films haven't been performing well. Two of the films we counted this year, The Bounty Hunter and He's Just Not That Into You, performed well at the box office, making her a decent return on investment (despite Love Happens, which brought in only $36 million). For every dollar Aniston was paid, her films earned an average of $21.
No. 3 (tie): Meryl Streep
The actress proves again and again that age and gender do not determine box-office draw.Mamma MiaIt's Complicated brought in $220 million. If Streep is able to leverage her box office success to get salaries closer to those of her male peers, she'll likely work her way off of our list. For every dollar Streep was paid, her films earned an average of $21 earned $610 million at the global box office;
No. 5: Sarah Jessica Parker
When it comes to Sex and the City movies, Sarah Jessica Parker is a great investment. In other movies, not so much. Her 2009 film Did You Hear About the Morgans earned an anemic $85 million at the global box office. Compare that with her two Sex and the City movies, which have earned a combined $705 million. For every dollar Parker was paid, her films earned an average of $17.
No. 6: Angelina Jolie
When Jolie stars in action films like Wanted, she brings in big box office for the studios. She recently proved her action-star prowess again with Salt, which earned $290 million at the global box office (but which came out too late to be considered in our calculations for this list). Her smaller prestige pics don't perform as well, though. A Mighty Heart earned only $19 million at the box office worldwide. For every dollar Jolie was paid, her films earned an average of $14.
No. 7 (tie): Kate Hudson
Hudson has become the go-to actress for a certain brand of romantic comedy. Films likeBride Wars and Fool's Gold don't cost too much to make, and Hudson earns a reasonable salary, so she's a good return on investment. Next up for the actress: a comedy about cancer, called A Little Bit of Heaven. For every dollar she was paid, her films earned an average of $13.
No. 7 (tie): Cameron Diaz
Diaz rakes in millions of dollars as the voice of Princess Fiona in the Shrek movies. That franchise has earned $3 billion at the global box office. But her live-action films--the ones that count for this list--haven't performed as well. Still, thanks to the comedy What Happens in Vegas, she squeaks onto our Top 10 list. For every dollar Diaz was paid, her films earned an average of $13.
No. 9: Reese Witherspoon
Witherspoon hasn't been seen on screen since 2008's Four Christmases, but that film was the kind of sweet-spot romantic comedy the actress should keep aiming for. It brought in $162 million at the box office, making up for flops like Rendition. Her latest film, How Do You Know, looks likely to be another of her popular romantic comedies, and could help improve her return-on-investment number. For every dollar Witherspoon was paid, her films earned an average of $12.
No. 10: Nicole Kidman
Kidman might not be seen as much of a movie star in the U.S. these days, but her films perform well internationally. The Golden Compass earned only $70 million here but $300 million abroad; Australia tripled its domestic take overseas. But both of these films were also expensive productions. To boost her standing on our list she'd need to take a pay cut and appear in some moderately budgeted films. For every dollar Kidman was paid, her films earned an average of $11.
In Hollywood, it's all about your quote. But we decided to look at what the top actors really earn the studios for their multimillion-dollar salaries. We crunched the numbers using salaries, box-office earnings and film budgets. The result: an average profit number for every $1 the studio paid the actor.
Shia LaBeouf
$81
LaBeouf tops our list for the second year in a row thanks to his relatively low-paid work in high-earning films like Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and the secondTransformers movie. As his box office grows so will his quote, which means it will be harder for him to stay at the top of our list unless his films earn proportionally more money.
Anne Hathaway
$64
Daniel Radcliffe
$61
The Harry Potter movies are the kind of high-budget films that would usually hurt an actor on this list unless he was earning under $10 million total. But Radcliffe lands in third place because the films earn so much money. The entire franchise has so far brought in $5.4 billion at the global box office making his growing salary seem like a drop in the bucket.
Robert Downey Jr.
$33
It wasn't so long ago that Downey was a Hollywood pariah because of his drug and alcohol problems. That helped shrink his quote when he started his comeback in 2008 with the firstIron Man. Since then he's starred in some of the highest-grossing films of the past few years, including Sherlock Holmes and Iron Man 2 while his payday has stayed relatively low.
Cate Blanchett
$27
Jennifer Aniston
$21
Meryl Streep
$21
Johnny Depp
$18
Depp is the rare actor on our list who earns more than almost every actor in Hollywood but still manages to offer a good return on investment. That's because his films do phenomenally.Alice in Wonderland has earned $1 billion. Public Enemies brought in $215 million. As long as he continues to be a major draw overseas and his films keep performing, Depp will continue to get one of the highest paydays in Hollywood.
Nicolas Cage
$17
Cage makes our list mostly thanks to the 2009 film Knowing, which earned a healthy $184 million on an estimated budget of $50 million. The budget was able to stay low because the producers went with Cage over someone who would have cost much more like Will Smith or Johnny Depp.
Sarah Jessica Parker
$17
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