As a revolutionary singer, songwriter and record producer, Prince’s flamboyant life off stage proved to be just as covert and mysterious as his unresolved death in 2014. The circumstances surrounding his fatal overdose at 57 from the powerful opioid painkiller Fentanyl, remains largely unexplained, and who provided the star with drugs has never been determined. However, tracing back through his legendary career exposes a secret, ongoing drug addiction stemming from his relentless desire for perfection and power in the music industry. After his death, and leaving no will behind, Prince’s $200 million estate came be under attack. A vault in his Paisley Park home would be found to contain over $100 million worth of unreleased music, lyrics and rights that the estate and potential successors were ready to cash in. With 45 individuals coming forward claiming to be a wife, child, sibling or other relative, exhaustive legal battles would ensue trying to prove who the rightful heirs to the music icon's estate would be. Without a will, Prince’s legacy would be left in the hands of the court’s rulings, allowing the final chosen successors to exploit his brand, his record label and music library, however they deem fit. Show Less

Having grown up in the spotlight, and never learning how to be a responsible adult, Michael Jackson made terrible financial decisions that jeopardized his iconic career and wreaked havoc on his personal life. Shrouded in controversy, his death in 2009 may have been at the hands of a doctor administering lethal doses of anesthesia. However, what is even less transparent is how his entire estate ended up lining the pockets of two men who the Jackson siblings say Michael could not stand – industry veterans John Branca and John McLain. Show Less

At 27, Amy Winehouse was on a collision course with death. While she was making an attempt to recover from heroin and alcohol addiction, Amy’s fate was accelerated by the people banking off of her earning power – especially her father. Pushing her to perform when she felt too weak, Mitch, along with Amy’s managers ignored the obvious mental, physical, and emotional decline of the vibrant soul singer. On Saturday, July 23rd, 2011, the star was discovered unconscious and without a pulse in her Camden Square house. Despite the British tabloids later reporting that Amy was worth anywhere from $15 to 20 million, the truth would soon be revealed that because of her hefty daily drug expenses, the value of her estate had dropped to a mere $4.6 million. What followed was a string of online scams and celebrity death pools all profiting off of her death. Meanwhile, Winehouse’s estate would turn into a source of contention as her remaining fortune would return to her parents, the very people who, perhaps inadvertently, pushed her closer to death. Show Less

As a revolutionary singer, songwriter and record producer, Prince’s flamboyant life off stage proved to be just as covert and mysterious as his unresolved death in 2014. The circumstances surrounding his fatal overdose at 57 from the powerful opioid painkiller Fentanyl, remains largely unexplained, and who provided the star with drugs has never been determined. However, tracing back through his legendary career exposes a secret, ongoing drug addiction stemming from his relentless desire for perfection and power in the music industry. After his death, and leaving no will behind, Prince’s $200 million estate came be under attack. A vault in his Paisley Park home would be found to contain over $100 million worth of unreleased music, lyrics and rights that the estate and potential successors were ready to cash in. With 45 individuals coming forward claiming to be a wife, child, sibling or other relative, exhaustive legal battles would ensue trying to prove who the rightful heirs to the music icon's estate would be. Without a will, Prince’s legacy would be left in the hands of the court’s rulings, allowing the final chosen successors to exploit his brand, his record label and music library, however they deem fit. Show Less

Having grown up in the spotlight, and never learning how to be a responsible adult, Michael Jackson made terrible financial decisions that jeopardized his iconic career and wreaked havoc on his personal life. Shrouded in controversy, his death in 2009 may have been at the hands of a doctor administering lethal doses of anesthesia. However, what is even less transparent is how his entire estate ended up lining the pockets of two men who the Jackson siblings say Michael could not stand – industry veterans John Branca and John McLain. Show Less

Robin Williams was a legendary comedian, actor and entertainer who won over legions of fans by bringing some of Hollywood’s most beloved movie characters to life. However, the one person who he failed to make happy was himself. After years quietly suffering through severe depression and a deep-rooted drug and alcohol addiction, Williams’s life took on another downward spiral after he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. In the final months before his death, the star would become besieged by paranoia and began outlining a meticulous will and trust to leave behind for his family. Yet his death would be followed by a bitter eight-month feud between his true heirs and his third wife, who looked for a loophole to steal a piece his children’s rightful inheritance. Show Less

Before Fallon, Kimmel, or Letterman, there was Carson, Johnny Carson, host of NBC’s Tonight Show for 30 years. The original king of late night television, Johnny went from earning less than his guests to more than any television performer in history. Yet underneath his good guy persona, Johnny Carson had a reputation as a devious philanderer who was said to be good at just three things – drinking, dames and being a dick. By the time of his death, Carson’s estate amounted to $450 million - yet even Carnac the Magnificent couldn’t have predicted what he would be done with it. Just like Johnny Carson himself, his financial estate would prove to have two very different sides. Show Less