Although he won't be drawn on whether he's formally retired from acting, Sean Connery hardly ever accepts movie work anymore - and hasn't done for some time. Peter Jackson tried to lure him back to the big time by offering him the chance to play Gandalf in 'The Lord of The Rings,' but hit a stumbling block when it transpired than Connery was no fan of fantasy films, and had never read the original Tolkien books.
Connery wrote back to Jackson and politely thanked him for the offer, but said he didn't understand the script or the character. Ian McKellan got the part instead, and Connery watched as the movies made huge sums of money at the box office. Resolving that he'd accept the next script he found a little strange, Connery agreed to appear in 'the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen' when he got the chance. It was good, but we're sad we never got to hear 'You shall not pass!' in Connery's accent.
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.