Fun Friday Facts – Famous People Who Disinherited Their Children.
It isn’t always necessary for children to inherit wealth from their parents.
Check out some of the things rich and famous people have done with their money.
Aretha Franklin disinherited one of her four children in her will.
She had four children: Teddy, Kecalf, Clarence, and Edward. Her piano and her papers were the only things Aretha left to her children. It appears she had written three wills, which were found throughout her home. Clarence, her eldest son, whom she had when she was twelve, was disinherited.
Bill Gates Founder of Microsoft Net Worth: $106.8 Billion
Children: 3
As well as donating well over 99% of their legacy to charity and encouraging others to do the same through The Giving Pledge, they have indicated they will still leave $10 million to each of their children.
Warren Buffett Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Berkshire-Hathaway Net Worth: $87.7 Billion
Children: 3
Known as the “Oracle of Omaha,” Buffett is dedicated to sharing the fruits of his labor beyond his own family. The billionaire explained why he gave 99% of his wealth to charity: “I do not care about dynastic wealth, especially when there are six billion people living in poverty.”
George Lucas Filmmaker Net Worth: $6.4 Billion
Children: 4
He sold Lucasfilm’s along with all Star Wars film rights to Disney for $4.5 billion in 2012.
As an alternative to making each of his four children a billionaire, Lucas committed to donating his fortune to education in 2012 by becoming a member of The Giving Pledge. During his speech, Lucas said: “I will strive to raise the bar for future generations as long as I have the resources at my disposal.”
Simon Cowell Music Producer Net Worth: $506 Million
Children: 1
The Mirror newspaper reported that before he was a father, Cowell actively argued for making it on one’s own. “I don’t believe in passing on from one generation to another. Hopefully you have given enough people an opportunity so that they can succeed, and you have given your time and knowledge to them.”
Jackie Chan Martial Arts Star Net Worth: $400 Million
Children: 2
As a result of working hard his whole life, Chan does not plan to leave any of his wealth to his son. Instead, he plans on leaving half of his wealth to charity. Chan believes in hard work, commenting in an interview on Channel News Asia: “He can make his own money.”
Gordon Ramsay UK Celebrity Chef Net Worth: $220 Million
Children: 5
Indicating he planned to give most of his wealth to charity, Ramsay shared his view of tough love with The Telegraph saying: “I’ve never been really turned on about the money. [My kids] don’t sit with us in first class. They haven’t worked anywhere near hard enough to afford that.”
Sting Musician, Actor Net Worth: $400 Million
Children: 6
In an interview with The Guardian, Sting shared that his spending habits mean that his six children should not expect to receive a great deal after his passing. “I told them there won’t be much money left because we are spending it. We have a lot of commitments. What comes in we spend, and there isn’t much left. I certainly don’t want to leave them trust funds that are albatrosses round their necks. They have to work. All my kids know that and they rarely ask me for anything, which I really respect and appreciate.”
Elton John Musician Net Worth: $500 Million
Children: 2
While his two sons are growing up in the limelight of their father’s fame and fortune, John has shared that after his passing, they will need to find their own paths to success. Sir Elton told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “Of course, I want to leave my boys in a very sound financial state. But it’s terrible to give kids a silver spoon. It ruins their life.”
Philip Seymour Hoffman Actor Net Worth: $35 Million
Children: 3
Though his death came as a shock to all, he had taken formal steps years earlier to ensure that his three children would not grow up as entitled “trust fund kids,” choosing instead to leave his millions to his partner and their mother, Mimi O’Donnell. Though Hoffman didn’t think he needed to protect his wealth for his children, he did stipulate that they should “be raised in a city with art and culture,” ideally Manhattan, Chicago, or San Francisco.
Barron Hilton Chairman of the Hilton Hotel Corporation Net Worth: $4.5 Billion
Children: 8
Barron Hilton inherited a great deal of wealth from his father Conrad, who established the hotel chain under the family name as a global leader in hospitality. But when it came to passing along the family fortune to his eight children and high-profile grandchildren Paris and Nicki, Barron decided to break with family tradition.
Barron instead opted to donate 97% to charity, mostly to the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.
Gene Simmons Musician Net Worth: $350 Million
Children: 2
A multimillionaire for the past few decades, Simmons grew up poor and wants to make sure his son and daughter stay hungry for their own success. In an interview with CNBC, Simmons is quoted as stating, “Every day they should be forced to get up out of bed and go out and work and make their own way.”
Joan Crawford Actress Net Worth: $2 Million
Children: 4
Though she left $77,500 to each of her two younger children, Cindy and Cathy, Crawford cut Christina and son Christopher out of her will entirely. Crawford stated, “It is my intention to make no provision herein for my son Christopher or my daughter Christina for reasons which are well known to them.”
Mark Zuckerberg Founder and CEO of Facebook Net Worth: $74.5 Billion
Children: 2
Mark and wife Priscilla Chan established the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative to support a range of philanthropic objectives.
To demonstrate their commitment, they have dedicated 99% of their fortune to the Initiative. Here is what Zuckerberg stated in a Facebook post, titled ‘A letter to our daughter’: “We know this is a small contribution compared to all the resources and talents of those already working on these issues. But we want to do what we can, working alongside many others.”
Robert Kardashian Defense Attorney Net Worth: $30 Million
Children: 4
Though they obviously went on eventually to carve out their own incredibly successful careers and build their own fortunes, at the time, the Kardashian clan were outraged and contested the will in court. The court ultimately rejected the suit that claimed Robert’s widow had illegally forged documents.
Sean Connery Actor Net Worth: $350 Million
Children: 1
Over the span of six decades, Connery has appeared in dozens of films, earned a knighthood, and built a nine-figure fortune. However, according to his ex-wife Diane Cilento, none of his millions will go to his only son Jason. When asked for a reaction, Jason commented to The Telegraph to defend his father, stating he “earned this money, through nothing but his own tireless hard work, and what he does with it and who he gives it to is completely up to him.”
Tony Curtis Actor Net Worth: $60 Million
Children: 6
After his death, his estate sold off his memorabilia for an estimated $1 million, but none of the proceeds or the rest of his estate were dedicated to his six children, including actress Jamie Lee Curtis. Instead, his will, which he reportedly re-wrote shortly before his death, specifically disinherited all six children but stopped short of supplying his rationale.
Ted Turner Founder of CNN, TNT, and TBS Net Worth: $2.2 Billion
Children: 7
Having made his fortune in the volatile, ultra-competitive world of media, Turner turned increasingly to rural America. Turner bought up huge amounts of property in the Western plains and mountains to become at one time the largest single landowner in America. Consequently, Turner has placed the highest priority on supporting environmental and conservation causes through the Turner Foundation, which he launched in 1990.
Marlon Brando Actor Net Worth: $100 million*
Children: 11
Brando passed away at the age of 80 years old. He had several kids, one of which was Christian Brando. Christian was troubled and passed before his father. Brando’s other kids were troubled as well, and Brando cut two of them out of his will.
Andrew Carnegie Head of the 19th-century steel industry Net Worth: $372 billion*
Children: 1
Carnegie, despite his $372 billion wealth, did not leave it all to his daughter or 4 grandchildren. He cut his family out of a large portion of their inheritance, choosing instead to give his money to charity. One publication described Carnegie as having gone from Robber Baron to Robin Hood in his old age.
Michael Jackson Musician Net Worth: $500 million*
Children: 3
He did not leave all of his money to his children. He split the money between his kids, his mother, and the various charities to which he was dedicated. Michael left no money to his father, Joe, with whom he had a tumultuous relationship.
There are many more celebrities who have a better cause for their wealth than handing it down to the next generation.
Hope you enjoyed the read.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at www.careysuen.com.
