Martin Lawrence's longevity and popularity in the entertainment industry is sneakily surprising as he's established himself as a comedian, television and movie star, and writer. Some of you might remember him from the House Party series but a lot of you youngsters might recognize his face from the resurging Martin series that is supposedly going to be rebooted in the near future as well as movies like the Bad Boys series, Blue Streak, and Life.
Back in 1999, Martin Lawrence made news headlines when he suffered a heat stroke while preparing for a movie role. Lawrence was dressed in heavy clothing and a plastic sweat suit while jogging in 100-degree weather causing him to collapse and go into a three-day coma where his breathing was assisted by a ventilator while his body temperature was at a staggering 107 degrees Fahrenheit.
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.