Why Do Celebrities Get Into Money Trouble?

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It is patently unfair that Ms Lebovitz should have to pay inheritance tax on her longtime partners estate. There is no less love, sacrifice, committment, or responsibility for a gay couple than a heterosexual one. This system is BROKEN, BROKEN BROKEN.

margaret of NJ 1:21PM June 24, 2009

It has been confirmed that it is NOT due to paying inheritance taxes as Ms. Sontag left the majority of her estate to her son.
Please fact check before you write comments that are based on the mublings of a blog writer who has no intimate knowledge of the subject.
http://www.pdnpulse.com/2009/03/after-ellen-blog-was-wrong-about-leibovitz.html
If what was written were true, I would certainly agree that the inheritance tax is a problem, but that's not how it works.
Leibovitz's money woes stem from precisely the items mentioned in this article: unpaid bills, rental equipment, renovations, unpaid taxes, etc.

J of MI 4:31PM March 23, 2009

Part of the photographer's problems stem from the death of her long-time partner, Susan Sontag. Because many of their properties and possessions were held jointly, Leibovitz now has to pay an inheritance tax on half the value of everything they jointly owned. If their relationship was recognized in the same way as a hetero couple, she wouldn't have to pay a dime. Can you imagine if your father died and your mother had to pay taxes on half the value of her home just to keep it? This is not about mismanagement of personal finances, it's bigotry, plain and simple.

Michael Buitron of CA 8:04PM March 03, 2009

ITS THE SAME PROBLEM WORLDWIDE,..WITH ME TRYING TO COME UP AND SCRAMBLING FOR THE SAME LIKE I NEVER HAD IT BEFORE BECAUSE I LACK THE LAWS GUIDING MONEY AND ITS EDUCATION..

BRUNO EDWARDO 8:43PM September 21, 2008

This is what I refer to as the MC Hammer Effect: the hubris to assume that one's current income level and source of income stream will both continue unabated.
Young athletes don't think they'll get old, or hurt, or cut. Entertainers assume their star won't fade.
On top of that, many get their money while they're young and dumb. Some surround themselves with bad people. Others feel a need to spend up to the next strata. B-listers spend like A-listers.
And some just aren't particularly bright, and that probably bleeds into money management.

www.stocksbondsandrockandroll.wordpress.com of GA 3:54PM September 17, 2008

Why do lottery winners literally go broke? Because they don't have a 'feel' for the money they've won and put it into perspective. Rookie sports stars have the same problem. Smart rich people realize what they don't know and hire the right people to guide them. Celebrities probably have the same 'keeping up with the Joneses' the rest of us do, except on a more expensive scale. You read about these people walking into overpriced boutiques and going on a multi-million shopping spree. Just because they spend the money doesn't mean they can afford it.

jimmy of MD 12:18PM September 16, 2008

They have more to spend, so they spend more.
The more they spend, the less they have.
You can make a million a day, and spend a million and one dollar a day, and you are broke and in debt.

HillbillyBill of TN 9:06PM September 15, 2008