Comedian and comic performer Tim Allen is a Colorado native, and may never have left the state if tragedy hadn't stuck. His father was killed in a car accident when Allen was young. When his mother remarried, she and her new husband moved to Michigan, taking Allen with them. It was in Michigan that the young Allen discovered classical piano, and also found out he had the knack of making people laugh on his Western Michigan University student radio show. He graduated as a Bachelor of Science in communications, but there was only one form of communication Allen was interested in by then; laughter.
For the younger generation of movie-goers, Allen's voice might be more recognizable than his face. That's because he's been the voice of Buzz Lightyear in all of the 'Toy Story' movies. The parents of the children going to the films probably remember growing up watching him play Tim Taylor in 'Home Improvement,' and you can see him now as the star of 'Last Man Standing' on ABC.
To insure one’s house, one’s car or to underwrite a life insurance policy, that is common practice. But who would pay an insurance premium for his/her thumb, legs or smile? Stars, of course.
At the top of the ranking are the legs of Mariah Carey, worth 810 million USD: The diva became, in 2006, the Gillette brand muse for the advertising campaign «Legs of a Goddess». She then took out an insurance policy with London Lloyds to protect her legs, a decision that is far from being insignificant. Among its customers, the London insurer then included several icons of music, such as Bob Dylan or Rod Stewart.
David Beckham’s body insured for 195 million USD: European champion with Manchester United in 1999, David Beckham was in 2006 the most renowned footballer of the planet. In relation to his sporting activities, he took out an insurance cover for his legs. The huge amount paid for his insurance would reportedly exceed the 103 million USD disbursed by Real Madrid for the cover of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009. The fashion model would later extend his insurance cover to his entire body.
15 million USD in insurance for Kim Kardashian’s curves: The curves of Kim Kardashian are her number one beauty asset. The reality TV star, who is crazy about plastic surgery, has underwritten an insurance policy worth 15 million USD to protect her famous butt.
The culinary critic Egon Ronay assured his taste buds: The famous Hungarian culinary critic has insured his taste buds since 1957, for the amount of 400 000 USD. An original insurance policy which allows him to cover his sense of taste without which he will no longer be able to practice his job.