Throughout his career, Ndamukong Suh has earned a reputation as a problematic professional athlete. However, over the past couple of years, Suh has revamped his image and become one of the premier athletes in the NFL today. Hailing from Portland, Oregon, Suh played his collegiate ball at the University of Nebraska from 2005 to 2009. In five seasons with the Cornhuskers, Suh racked up a total of 215 tackles, 24 sacks, four interceptions, and two touchdowns. In his final seasons, Suh was honored with the Lombardi Award for best lineman/linebacker in the country, Associated Press Player of the Year, and named a Heisman Trophy finalist.
In the 2010 NFL Draft, Ndamukong Suh was drafted 2nd overall by the Detroit Lions where he became an instant force winning Defensive Rookie of the Year. Suh played the first five seasons of his NFL career with the Lions where he racked up an approximate total of $64.5 million. His next contract with the Miami Dolphins made him one of the richest defensive players in NFL history signing with the Florida-based team $114.3 million for six seasons. Unfortunately, Suh was cut from the team three seasons into the contract and has become a journeyman around the league ever since. This also has allowed him to rake in the big bucks signing a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Rams for $14 million last season and a one-year, $9.2 million contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Thus far, Ndamukong Suh has almost touched the $150 million mark. When it's all said and done, Suh will be a much richer man than he already is.
When we think of inventors, the image that comes to mind is usually that of a frazzled scientist toiling away in a lab, not celebrities pulled from the pages of Us Weekly. However, a number of well-known public figures hold patents for various innovations. Some are related to the work that made them famous, while others are offshoots of hobbies or just a single great idea.
Part of guitar wizard Eddie Van Halen's signature sound was his two-handed tapping technique, but letting all ten fingers fly while simultaneously holding up the guitar's neck could get a bit tricky. Van Halen came up with a novel way to get around this problem, though; he invented a support (top) that could flip out of the back of his axe's body to raise and stabilize the fretboard so he could tap out searing songs like "Eruption." While Van Halen was obviously interested in improving his guitar work, the patent application he filed in 1985 notes that the device would work with any stringed instrument. Want to tap out a scorching mandolin solo? Find someone selling Eddie's device.
It’s probably not surprising that James Cameron—who designed a submersible to take him to the deepest known part of the ocean—will often invent technology to make his films if what he needs doesn’t exist. He holds a number of patents, including US Patent No. 4996938, “apparatus for propelling a user in an underwater environment,” that he and his brother, Michael, created to film The Abyss and patented in 1989. The device is basically an underwater dolly equipped with propellers that makes it easy for a camera operator to maneuver in the water—and allowed Cameron to capture the shots he wanted for the 1989 film, part of which was filmed in an abandoned nuclear reactor.
In 1987 Jamie Lee Curtis designed and patented a disposable diaper that included a waterproof pocket that held baby wipes. She hasn't profited from her idea yet, though, since she refuses to license the patent until diaper companies make biodegradable products.
You know him as a rock legend, but Neil Young also loves trains—so much that he owns a stake in a model train manufacturing company and has an extensive collection. He also holds seven patents related to model trains, including Patent No. US5441223, "Model train controller using electromagnetic field between track and ground."