When you hear about Eddie Murphy's childhood, it's amazing he looks as calm and self-assured as he does in this picture. He was barely eight years old when his father passed away. Not long after that, his mother was struck down by a serious illness, and was left with no option but to place her young son in foster care. He took solace in stand-up comedy, and was mesmerized by the work of Richard Pryor. Following in Pryor's footsteps, he started out in the entertainment business as a stand-up comedian when he was fifteen years old.
It didn't take long for the talented Murphy to gain attention from television producers, and he was recruited for 'Saturday Night Live,' which gave him his first big break. He took the ball and ran with it, converting TV fame into movie fame by landing parts in 'Beverly Hills Cop,' and then more child-orientated comedies like 'Dr. Doolittle.' There's still a whole generation of people in their early 20s out there who only know him as 'The Nutty Professor,' but that's better than not being known at all!
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.