Dave had already earned a $100 million net worth selling Barstool for around $400 million over several transactions, the last of which closed exactly one year ago. And as if that wasn't impressive enough, yesterday he pulled-off a Jujutsu move that has left media business owners and observers, including myself, absolutely drooling.

Yesterday Dave re-acquired 100% of Barstool for… $1.00. That's not a typo. A buck.

What? Why? How?

(Photo by Tom Briglia/ Getty Images)

The History of Barstool's Sales

Dave Portnoy founded Barstool Sports in 2003 as a print publication for Boston sports. In 2007 Barstool launched a website, expanding the content beyond the Red Sox, Bruins and Patriots to all teams and sports. It added a merchandising business, podcasts, video series, social media… and more.

With its focus on humor and no-holds-barred opinions and commentary, Barstool struck a nerve, mainly with young male sports fans. It found a large audience that up to that point was being totally ignored by the reigning stodgy sports giants like ESPN and Sports Illustrated. Over the next few years, especially with the advent of Instagram and other short-form social media where the company's scrappy talents really shined, Barstool's audience grew and grew and grew.

In January 2016, The Chernin Group acquired a minority stake in Barstool for $15 million. Two years later, Chernin kicked-in another $25 million to up its stake to 60%. With both transactions, Dave remained 100% in charge of Barstool's content. And with no co-founders, he kept 100% of the $40 million (after taxes).

Barstool kept growing. And growing.

In January 2020 a company called Penn Gaming paid $163 million to acquire 36% of Barstool. At this transaction, Chernin's stake was reduced to 36%, while Portnoy owned 28%.

Through some agreements that were baked into the January 2020 transaction, Penn soon exercised the right to increase its stake to 50%. And then in August 2022, an SEC filing showed that Penn exercised its right to buy 100% of Barstool.

Between all transactions, Penn Gaming paid $351 million, all-in, to acquire Barstool.

Over the course of all of the transactions dating back to Chernin, plus Penn Gaming equity he received, Dave Portnoy earned a net worth of at least $100 million.

Re-Acquired For A Buck

Yesterday, Penn Gaming announced it had entered into a $2 billion long-term exclusive betting partnership with ESPN. The partnership will be called "ESPN Bet" and, crucially for this article, the terms of the deal do not allow Penn Gaming to have other betting partnerships. That's a problem because Penn had previously renamed its betting brand "Barstool Sportsbook."

There are other issues.

ESPN is owned by Disney. As you know, Disney maintains a squeaky clean image that is polar opposite of Barstool and Portnoy.

And there's also some bad blood here. Back in 2017, Barstool had a show on ESPN called "Barstool Van Talk." ESPN aired it ONCE, on a Tuesday night at 1am on ESPN2. The abrupt canceling did not please Portnoy, who then very publicly shamed ESPN executives and on-air talent.

To recap.

• It wanted to secure a partnership with ESPN.
• It knew Disney probably wanted nothing to do with Barstool and Portnoy. And vice versa.
• It couldn't continue operating Barstool Sportsbook.

So what was Penn Gaming to do?

An obvious idea would be to sell Barstool to the highest bidder. But who would buy Barstool? A brand that is still entirely driven by the sheer force of personality of Dave Portnoy. Can you imagine Portnoy happily working under some new owner? With a net worth of $100 million, a huge social platform and a history of not exactly being a go-along-to-get-along kind of guy… this was not a real option.

In my opinion, Portnoy and Penn knew Barstool was only valuable to one buyer: Dave Portnoy. And that's what happened.

According to Penn's just-released quarterly report:

"PENN sold 100% of the outstanding shares of Barstool to David Portnoy in exchange for a nominal cash consideration ($1.00 dollar) and certain non-compete and other restrictive covenants."

$1.00.

Why not try to get more than $1? Several reasons.

First, they realized they only had one viable buyer (Dave Portnoy) and having one buyer does not leave the seller with a lot of room to make demands.

Second, selling for $1 allows Penn to maximize a future write-off. In its just-released quarterly report, Penn Gaming revealed that over its time as owner of Barstool, it spent $551 million on the brand. Presumably, that's $351 million to buy the company and another $200 million in various costs and investments in the last three years. Penn will be able to use that $551 million to counter an equivalent amount of profit, perhaps over several years, giving them $551 million in tax-free earnings.

Finally, Portnoy did agree to some key incentives.

In addition to agreeing to never disparage Penn Gaming or ESPN, Barstool can't license the Barstool name to another sports book AND – most importantly – Dave agreed to give Penn Gaming 50% of any money he earns from a future sale of Barstool, seemingly forever.

To recap.

Dave Portnoy started a magazine in 2003. He turned it into a website. He earned a $100 million net worth selling the company for $400 million over several transactions. And then he bought his baby back for a single, solitary dollar.

Please dear God let me find that same deal for CelebrityNetWorth some day.

Read more: A Year Ago Dave Portnoy Sold Barstool For $350 Million. He Just Bought It All Back For… A Dollar.

Per Adidas, the company sent $50 million to a Yeezy bank account in Wyoming, the former home of Ye. Adidas also pushed another $25 million into Yeezy's New York-based JPMorgan Chase account. All of that money was supposed to go to an annual marketing fund that would ultimately deploy a total of $100 million. According to Adidas, the $75 million it sent was immediately moved to another account that helped fund other Yeezy ventures

That's in violation of the agreement of the former partnership, and it could cost Ye a ton of money — unless he can get creative.

Jonathan Leibson/Getty Images for ADIDAS

$200 Million $100 Million

Ye and Adidas began their partnership in 2016. For every shoe Adidas sold, Ye earned a royalty. At his peak, he was earning over $200 million per year in royalties alone. In 2020 and 2021, Yeezy sales accounted for 10% of Adidas' annual gross revenue.

But that's not all.

On top of his shoe royalties, Kanye's deal entitled him to a $100 million annual marketing slush fund that could be used at his discretion. The fund would be paid in quarterly installments of $25 million. The funds were meant to be "restricted to marketing purposes," but what defined a marketing purpose is a bit vague.

For example, in 2019 Kanye told Adidas he spent $50 million of the fund putting on his "Sunday Service" gospel choir tour, and the company didn't seem to blink.

In May of 2023 Adidas sought a court order which would have required Kanye to hand over $75 million worth of funds it claims he misappropriated or simply was no longer able to use for valid marketing purposes. In its May 2023 filing, Adidas claimed there was urgency to have the $75 million returned because it had heard rumors about the rapper's solvency.

Adidas claims it paid $75 million in 2022 in three installments. It also claims that Kanye immediately transferred the funds to a separate account where it was commingled with other funds, violating the terms of their deal.

Adidas is seeking the full $75 million plus unspecified monetary damages, but they'll knock some money off the bill if Yeezy can demonstrate some of the funds were used to legitimately market products through the partnership.

Adding to the legal battle: Ye claims the Yeezy shoe designs are his and that Adidas has copied those designs to sell at lower prices. Adidas alleges it owns all of the shoe designs. Adidas is also being sued by shareholders, who believe the company didn't disclose just how bad the issues were with Ye.

However this legal battle turns out, the split with Ye has been devastating for Adidas. The company still has hundreds of millions of dollars worth of leftover Yeezy shoes and is hoping to sell as much as it can while donating some proceeds to charitable organizations that were also impacted by Ye's words and actions. It turns out that people still want to buy Yeezys — in March, Adidas told investors it was expecting an operational loss of $775.1 million but updated that projection in July to a $498.3 million loss after strong Yeezy sales.

Still, Adidas is on track for its first operational loss in 31 years. Somewhere, we imagine Ye is saying, "Don't act like I never told ya."

Read more: Kanye West And Adidas Are Feuding Over A $100 Million Marketing Slush Fund

Two large cannabis companies, Cresco Labs and Columbia Care, were all set to merge — in a deal worth $2 billion — and form the largest cannabis entity in the United States. But with a shaky economy and worry over regulatory issues, the two sides called the deal off.

As part of the merger, Diddy would have owned nine stores across New York, Massachusetts, and Illinois. Each state would have also had its own production facility. He was ready to pay $185 million for the stores and facilities.

Unfortunately that deal is now up in smoke. And while he didn't lose his $185 million, that was just a planned investment, Diddy is the rare position of feeling shafted by a business opportunity.

Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

Diddy isn't resting on his laurels, though. He and his Combs Global team are still looking at ways they can diversify the cannabis industry.

"My mission has always been to create opportunities for Black entrepreneurs in industries where we've traditionally been denied access," Combs said at the time the deal was announced. "This acquisition provides the immediate scale and impact needed to create a more equitable future in cannabis."

New York, Massachusetts, and Illinois have all legalized marijuana in the past seven years, but there are obstacles standing in the way of the industry's growth. Marijuana is still illegal at a federal level. It's also classified as a Schedule I drug, alongside much more harmful drugs like heroin and LSD.

The Schedule I classification states that these drugs have a high potential to cause addiction or abuse and serve no medical purpose. That classification hampers the availability of marijuana in some cases, and it's largely inaccurate. Cannabis isn't as addictive as many drugs, including tobacco and alcohol. And it's used to ease chronic pain and treat things like glaucoma and cancer.

For now, it's back to the drawing board for Diddy and company. Yet, with his passion for shaking up the industry, we expect to see another deal pop up soon.

Unfortunately this is Diddy's second business snafu in as many months.

Back in May, Diddy sued Diageo, his partner in a tequila brand called De Leon. The lawsuit essentially accused Diageo of being racist and suppressing De Leon while other equivalent tequilas, some of which Diageo also owned, grew into billion dollar brands. A few weeks later, Diageo severed all ties with Diddy, ending what had once been a very fruitful partnership that launched with the vodka brand Ciroc. In its public declaration of the partnership being ended, Diageo claimed Diddy only invested around $1,000 in De Leon and that's why the brand failed. Furthermore Diageo revealed that it had paid Diddy $1 BILLION in royalties over the course of their partnership.

Diddy can't win with tequila or weed. He lost his vodka brand. The guy is not having a great 2023 business-wise!

Read more: Sean "Diddy" Combs Is On The Outside Looking In After A Billion-Dollar Cannabis Merger Fails

Wesley Snipes worked his butt off for more than a decade to reach the pinnacle of wealth and success in Hollywood. He smashed through perceptions and stereotypes along the way to becoming arguably the biggest action star on the planet in the 1990s. Along the way he earned tens of millions of dollars, mostly from his blockbuster film salaries. Unfortunately, like many other stories of Hollywood ascension, what goes up must come down. But unlike most fallen stars who succumb to drugs or alcohol, Wesley Snipe's personal demon was much more bland.

During that career pinnacle when he was earning tens of millions of dollars, Wesley Snipes wasn't paying his taxes. Amazingly, he truly believed he did not have to pay. He believed so strongly that he fought all the way up to the Supreme Court. This is the story of how Wesley went from Passenger 57 to prisoner #43355-018…

Wesley Snipes Tax Problems / Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

The Rise: Snipes The Action Star

When Wesley was 23, an agent discovered him in 1985 during a martial arts competition. A year later he made his film debut in the 1986 Goldie Hawn movie "Wildcats". That same year, he appeared on the hit TV show "Miami Vice" as a drug-dealing pimp. In 1987, Snipes put his dance performance training and martial arts skills to good use when he appeared in the Martin Scorsese directed music video of Michael Jackson's "Bad". That video caught the attention of director Spike Lee, who offered Snipes a small role in "Do The Right Thing". Snipes turned Lee down, opting for the larger part of Willie Mays Hayes in "Major League".

"Major League" was the first in a string of big box office hits for Snipes throughout the late 1980s and 1990s. He appeared in Spike Lee's "Mo Better Blues" and as the lead in the interracial relationship at the center of the drama in "Jungle Fever". Snipes' role as the drug kingpin Nino Brown in 1991's "New Jack City" was written especially for him and his amazingly nuanced performance cemented his status as a Hollywood superstar. Snipes worked steadily throughout the 1990s in films such as "Passenger 57", "Demolition Man", "Money Train", "The Fan", "U.S. Marshals", "Rising Sun", and "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar" in which Snipes played a drag queen.

Snipes was on a roll, showing audiences and Hollywood studio executives that he had range- playing everything from drug lords to drag queens. In fact, in 1997, Snipes won the Best Actor award at the Venice Film Festival for his dramatic performance in the Joe Eszterhas written, Mike Figgis directed film "One Night Stand". The film was a flop, in large part due to an interview Snipes gave in Ebony magazine in which he lashed out at African American women and listed all the reasons he didn't date them.

The following year "Blade" gave Snipes his biggest box office success, grossing more than $150 million worldwide. Snipes also was awarded with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and an honorary doctorate from his college alma mater, SUNY/Purchase. Blade was also turned it into a franchise. Wesley was at the top of the Hollywood food chain and the peak of his career. Unfortunately, off set Wesley's arrogance and ego were beginning to lay a path of destruction in his life that would last for more than a decade.

As the third installment of the "Blade" franchise was getting ready to go into production, Wesley's arrogance led him to believe that he was owed input on every aspect of the production. New Line froze him out of all decisions, which pissed Snipes off mightily. Snipes filed lawsuits against New Line Cinema and the director of "Blade: Trinity", David S. Goyer, claiming that he was intentionally cut out of casting decisions and that his role was reduced to make more time for the roles of co-stars Ryan Reynolds and Jessica Biel. The suit with New Line was settled, but Snipes' problems were just beginning.

Unlike most Hollywood celebrities, Wesley's self-imposed path of destruction did not involve a single drug or a drop of alcohol. Wesley's downfall involved something far more dangerous than drugs and alcohol: The Internal Revenue Service.

The Fall: Snipes The IRS Protestor

Wesley's problems with the IRS date back to 2006 when he was charged with attempting to avoid paying taxes and filing $12 million worth of false refunds dating all the way back to 1996.

Between 1996 and 2004, Snipes earned approximately $37.9 million from various acting jobs. Unfortunately, during those years he apparently failed to pay a single penny in taxes.

In 2002 Wesley bought a lavish 10,000 square foot mansion in Alpine, New Jersey. He paid $5.6 million.

Within a few years he also stopped paying the property tax bill. Here's the mansion:

He was forced to sell this home in 2014 at a $2.1 million loss.

As if failing to pay taxes for many years wasn't bad enough, Wesley took things a step further.

Wesley also used forged documents to receive $12 million worth of undeserved refunds reflecting his income between 1996 and 1998. So why did he essentially ignore and steal from the IRS? This is where the story takes a crazy turn. Wesley explained his actions by using a controversial tax theory called the..

"861 argument"

The "861 argument" revolves around the language of section 861 of the Federal tax code. People who use this 861 argument claim the tax code's language makes domestic income of U.S. citizens and residents not taxable. The language instead states that "compensation for services" is taxable. This argument claims that because the 861 provision does not specifically list wages, for example from acting in a movie, they therefore are not taxable. As a side note, the 861 argument has never been successful for anyone in the history of American tax law. Furthermore, Snipes failed to file tax returns for 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004.

Unfortunately, the government wasn't buying what Wesley was selling. Wesley Snipes spent four years battling the government on his tax charges. He went to trial in February 2008. His defense team intimated that their defense would take a month and they planned to call an illustrious list of witnesses including Muhammad Ali, Spike Lee and even Barbra Walters. However in the end, his defense spent just ONE HOUR arguing his case.

The prosecution was not as brief. They presented what was a fairly rock solid and simple case of a person earning $40 million, paying zero in taxes AND requesting $12 million in refunds.

Wesley was found guilty of three misdemeanor counts of failure to file federal income tax returns. He was sentenced to three years in prison. And while three years may sound like a long sentence for a silly tax issue, the prosecution had been seeking a 16 year sentence. So Wesley got off easy in a way.

In addition to his prison sentence, over time Wesley was ordered to pay $17 million in back taxes, interest and penalties to the IRS.

Snipes appealed the verdict without success in 2010. He began his three year sentence at McKean Federal Correctional Institution on December 9, 2010. Snipes took his appeal all the way to the United States Supreme Court, but in 2011 the justices declined to hear the case.

Between December 2010 and April 2013, Wesley Snipes served 845 days in federal prison in McKean County, Pennsylvania. He served 90% of his three year sentence.

Wesley was released from prison on April 2, 2013.

An Offer They Can Refuse

After being released, Wesley made what is called an "Offer In Compromise," (OIC) to the IRS.  Essentially with an OIC, a tax offender offers an amount of money he or she hopes the IRS will accept to settle the debt once and for all, typically for pennies on the dollar. By this time, with interest and penalties, Wesley's debt had ballooned from $17 million to $23.5 million. Wesley offered to clear that debt in exchange for an OIC of $842,061, citing his lack of means to pay the remainder. That's 3.5% of the total amount due.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the government rejected his OIC.

This rejection kicked off another legal appeal. That appeal would drag on until November 1, 2018 when a judge upheld the IRS' rejection of his OIC, claiming that Snipes had failed "to provide bona fide documentation to prove his assets and financial condition."

The IRS countered that based on his assets and income potential, Wesley's "reasonable collection potential" was $17,482,152.

After yet another appeal, the IRS extended an offer to reduce the debt to $9,581,027.

Wesley rejected this offer!!! Instead he re-asserted his original OIC of $842,000.

From the judge's ruling:

"Given the disparity between petitioner's $842,061 OIC and the settlement officer's calculation of $9,581,027 as his RCP, as well as petitioner's inability to credibly document his assets, the settlement officer and her manager had ample justification to reject the offer… Accordingly, we conclude that the settlement officer did not abuse her discretion in determining that acceptance of petitioner's OIC was not in the best interest of the United States."

Wesley has continued to work in the years since his release from prison. His first film role of his post prison career was in the third installment of the Sylvester Stallone "Expendables" franchise. He has appeared in a number of television series over the years, and in 2021 he had a memorable part in Eddie Murphy's "Coming 2 America."

I actually can't determine if Wesley has paid off any of his debt. I could not find a recent filing from the government showing he had either paid or failed to pay down what is presumably the $9.5 million proposed offer. Considering how stubbornly he has fought the debt up to this point, maybe he's still fighting. We may not know the answer until the IRS officially clears him after the debt is satisfied OR if they file another suit due to lack of payment. Either way, what's the lesson of this story? Simple. Pay your damn taxes!

Read more: Wesley Snipes Played Chicken With The IRS… And Lost. Badly. Really Badly. He Literally Went From Passenger 57, To Prisoner #43355-018

He wasn't even SNL's original first choice to host. With WrestleMania 16 falling just two weeks away from the air date, SNL producers originally had their eyes on Steve Austin to host. Unfortunately he was injured, so The Rock – the second most famous wrestler in WWE – was tapped to take his place. AC/DC was the musical guest.

Much to the surprise of anyone who wasn't already a massive wrestling fan, The Rock's SNL episode was an enormous success. The Rock's charisma and natural comedic timing, that turned him into the star we love today, delivered 20 million viewers to SNL that night. It was the highest-rated episode of the season.

Side note. To illustrate just how much network television viewing habits have changed in the last two decades, consider this: Aubrey Plaza's episode was the highest-rated of this most recent SNL season. Aubrey's episode, with Sam Smith as musical guest, pulled-in 4.8 million viewers.

But back to The Rock.

Watching along with 20 million other viewers on the evening of March 18, 2000 were the producers of an in-development film project called "The Mummy Returns." These producers were so enthralled with his performance (and the subsequent ratings) that they quickly carved out a small role for The Rock in the film. The Mummy Returns went on to make $435 million at the box office, more than quadrupling its $100 million budget.

Upon that success, the producers approached WWE honcho Vince McMahon with a proposal. They wanted The Rock to star in "The Scorpion King," which would be both a prequel and spin-off of "The Mummy Returns."

The producers had to go through Vince McMahon because The Rock was under contract with the WWE. Vince basically owned The Rock's time and name. A deal was struck. Vince McMahon was made one of the film's producers and The Rock was given a salary of…

$5.5 million

Even more than two decades later, The Rock's $5.5 million Scorpion payday still stands as the largest salary paid to a first-time actor in a lead role. Earning $5.5 million in 2002 is the same as earning around $10 million today after adjusting for inflation.

The Scorpion King went on to earn $180 million on a budget of $60 million and launched The Rock's career as an A-list film star.

Fast forward to the present and, The Rock, who today is also known simply as "Dwayne Johnson," has set another extremely impressive film salary record…

(Photo by Pablo Cuadra/WireImage)

Largest Upfront Film Salary

The streaming era has created something of a quagmire for both studios and major stars like The Rock.

Before the streaming era and COVID, The Rock would typically earn a minimum $20 million upfront salary for his acting work. He would then pad his salary with another $5-10 million in earnings through back-end box office profits.

But how do you convince a massive star to appear in a movie that will never earn any box office revenue? For the world's top box office draws, the answer has been upfront base salaries that are so big, back-end points have become a moot question.

When Amazon wanted The Rock to star in the upcoming action film "Red One," which will debut in December on Prime, they had to cut a check as big as The Rock himself. How big?

$50 million

That is the largest upfront film salary ever earned by an actor for a single movie.

The Rock's $50 million salary overtakes the previous record of $40 million which was earned by Will Smith for his work in "King Richard."

Interestingly, King Richard wasn't originally intended to be a streaming movie. As you may recall, with the onset of COVID, Warner Media put its entire 2021 slate of movies onto HBO Max, free for subscribers. This move didn't sit well with Smith, who even with a $40 million salary was expecting millions more from the back-end. To appease the infamously-emotional Smith, WarnerMedia ponied up a $20 million bonus check, bringing Smith's total earnings to $60 million.

Largest Single-Movie Acting Payday Of All Time (Royalties Included)

Incredibly, even Will Smith's $60 million salary is a far, far, far cry from being the largest acting paycheck of all time for a single movie when back-end royalties are factored-in. That record belongs to one of the biggest action stars from the 80s and 90s for a film he did in 1999. For this film, this action star earned a $14 million upfront salary. And since the movie was a weird script from a young director with a strange name, this action star ALSO got 17.5% of the back-end plus a similar percentage of DVD and licensing proceeds. Can you guess what actor earned the largest single-movie payday of all time? (Click the link in the previous line for the answer)…

Read more: The Rock Earned The Largest Upfront Film Salary Of All Time For An Upcoming Straight-To-Streaming Movie

Thanks to her booming beauty empire Selena Gomez is almost certainly a paper billionaire right now, OR she will be one any minute.

Selena entry to the celebrity billionaire club will happen thanks to the company she founded, Rare Beauty. Rare Beauty is on pace to generate at least $300 million in revenue in 2023. And while most celebrity makeup brands are actually partnerships with a large, majority-owning company, Selena is the founder and 100% owner of Rare Beauty.

(Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images for SEPHORA)

Rare Beauty Leads To Rare Fortune

Selena Gomez launched Rare Beauty in September 2022 as a mission-driven makeup line.

The company actually has two primary missions. The first is to produce accessible and beloved products that are available at moderate prices. Most Rare Beauty products range in price from as low as $5 to around $30 at the higher end.

Secondly, 1% of all revenue is deposited into Rare Beauty's in-house Rare Impact Fund. The company also puts on fundraising events, including one at the White House in 2022 that raised $500,000. Between fundraising events and 1% revenue accruals, to date Rare Beauty has raised $5 million and donated $2 million. The company plans to raise and donate $100 million over its first 10 years, with 70% going to BIPOC-led organizations.

In 2022, Rare Beauty generated at least $100 million in revenue. In 2023 the company is reportedly on-pace to triple 2022 revenue, implying at least $300 million will be earned this year.

Beauty companies are typically valued at a 3-10X multiple of revenue, with fast-growing companies landing on the higher end of that range. If Rare Beauty is performing at a $300 million run-rate right now, on the low end of the range it is currently worth $900 million. On the high end, it's worth…

$3 billion

As a comp, when we officially confirmed Rihanna's billionaire status in August 2021, it was largely based on the value of her makeup company Fenty Beauty. At that point, it had been confirmed that Fenty Beauty was generating around $500 million in revenue and was worth $2 billion overall. Rihanna owns 50% of Fenty, which meant $1 billion could be tacked-onto Rihanna's net worth.

As you may have just calculated, if Fenty is generating $500m per year and is worth $2 billion, it is getting a 4x revenue multiple. At that level, assuming Rare Beauty is generating $300 million, Selena's company is worth $1.2 billion today. She has no partners.

And keep in mind, Rare Beauty is just one pillar in Selena Gomez's growing business empire. In addition to being a highly-successful actress and singer, she has produced several shows for streamers such as Netflix and Hulu, has a lucrative partnership with Puma and is one of the most-followed people on social media. On Instagram alone Selena has over 427 million followers. The only people on the planet who have more followers on Instagram are

Lionel Messi – 479 million

and

Cristiano Ronaldo – 596 million

Oh… and Rare Beauty isn't her only company!

Selena is the co-founder of a mental health startup called Wondermind. In August 2022 Wondermind raised $5 million at a $100 million valuation. Serena Williams' venture fund, Serena Ventures, led the round alongside Lightspeed Venture Partners and Sequoia Capital. Wonderkind, which positions itself as a "mental fitness" company, produces social media channels, web content, a newsletter, a podcast and more.

Just to safe, we now estimate Selena Gomez' net worth at $800 million. We will officially mint her billionaire status once we get confirmation that Rare Beauty's value is at least $1 billion or more.

Read more: Selena Gomez Is Almost Certainly A Billionaire Right Now Thanks To Booming Rare Beauty Makeup Empire

At the outset, Skims was mostly known for creating "shapewear," which is essentially tight-fitting undergarments that help "shape" and contain a body. Typically under a tight dress.

Upon releasing its first online inventory drop, Skims sold $2 million worth of product in 10 MINUTES.

In April 2021, Skims raised money at a mouth-watering $1.6 BILLION valuation. In early 2022, Skims raised money at a $3.2 BILLION valuation. That valuation allowed Kim Kardashian to enter the billionaire ranks for the first time. Skims generated $500 million in revenue in 2022. It's on pace to generate $750 million in 2023, and it is reportedly profitable.

Today it was revealed that Skims has raised $270 million in funding. The new funding round valued the company at…

$4 billion

Kim and the husband/wife Gredes are believed to each own approximately 1/3 of the company. So combined, they still have majority ownership.

(Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for SKIMS)

Kim's New Paper Fortune

Prior to today's valuation increase, we estimated Kim Kardashian's net worth to be $1.4 billion. Under the company's previous valuation of $3.2 billion, her 1/3 stake was worth around $1.05 billion. Under the $4 billion valuation, her 1/3 stake is now worth $1.32 billion.

Therefore, we just increased Kim's net worth from $1.4 billion to $1.7 billion. A nice little $300 million gain.

Next Up Private Equity?

As if being an apparel billionaire wasn't enough, in September 2022 Kim launched a private equity firm called SKKY partners. Launched with Jay Sammons, a former partner at the Carlyle Group. The fund focuses on investing in consumer and media companies, with a target of making 10-12 investments of $100 million to $500 million each. Kardashian brings her social media following and experience in the fashion and beauty industries to the table, while Sammons brings his experience in private equity investing.

The fund is seeking a minimum commitment of $10 million from limited partners and is reportedly aiming to raise $1 BILLION to invest.

Read more: Kim Kardashian's Apparel Business Is Now Worth $4 BILLION… What Does That Mean For Her Net Worth?

In case you haven't figured it out yet, we are talking about the ultimate No Limit soldier, Percy Miller. Better known as Master P.

It might be hard to fathom today, but back in the mid-to-late 90s no other rap label or CEO was more successful than Master P and No Limit Records. Master P pulled himself out of one of the roughest and poorest ghettos in New Orleans by launching a hugely successful business empire that earned him hundreds of millions of dollars. And it all started with a $10,000 life insurance settlement check.

Master P – The Early Years

Master P was raised in the Calliope housing projects, one of the most violent and drug infested areas of New Orleans. P planned to get his family out of the ghetto by playing in the NBA. After high school, he won a basketball scholarship to the University of Houston. Unfortunately P's NBA dreams were dashed after he suffered a severe knee injury during the first few months of freshman year.

After the injury, Master P left Houston and transferred to Merritt Junior College in Oakland to be closer to his family which had recently moved to the nearby city of Richmond. Determined to make something of himself and help his family live a better life, he soaked up as many business classes as he could at Merritt. In 1990, tragedy struck when P's grandfather was killed in a work related accident. The one bright side of the accident was that it left Percy with a $10,000 malpractice insurance settlement check.

Chelsea Lauren/Getty Images

Armed with $10,000 and two years worth of junior college business classes, Master P decided to open a record store. He found a dilapidated building and struck a deal with the owner that gave him the first three months rent free in exchange for cleaning and renovating the storefront. The 21 year old future mogul soon launched "No Limit Records & Tapes" on San Pablo Avenue in Richmond, California. To reduce costs in those early days, Master P lived in a tiny storage room in the back of the shop with his wife Sonya and their one year old son, Percy Romeo Miller, Jr (AKA the future Lil Romeo).

No Limit Records & Tapes mainly sold West Coast gangster rap albums with an emphasis on local East Bay artists like Tupac, Too Short, Rappin 4 Tay and E-40. Within a few months, the store was a hit in the community and in 1991 Master P began selling his own self produced album "Get Away Clean" through the newly launched "No Limit Records" label. To support the album, Master P set out on a West Coast tour as the opening act for Tupac and Too Short. Along the way, P connected with as many promoters and DJs that he could find. In 1992, after Master P's second album "Mama's Bad Boy" sold more than 150,000 album independently, he decided to move No Limit Records back to New Orleans in order to make a real run at the label business. By 1994, his third album "The Ghettos Tryin to Kill Me!" sold an unheard of 250,000 units independently and No Limit Records grossed more than $900,000!

Striking It Rich

Pretty soon, all the major record companies came calling. Leveraging his astonishing success as an independent artist, Master P was able to secure an unprecedented deal between No Limit and Priority Records. Not only would No Limit receive a $375,000 advance for every album produced and 75% of the wholesale price for every album sold (the standard at the time for a major artist like Madonna was 25-50%), but at the end of the deal Master P would own every master recording from his entire roster of artists, including himself.

Considering how successful he was as an independent artist without money, marketing or national distribution, perhaps what happened next is not surprising. Master P's first album for Priority Records "Ice Cream Man" reached #3 on the Billboard charts in 1996 and would eventually go platinum with over 1.7 million copies sold in The US alone. No Limit quickly churned out albums for roster artists like Silkk The Shocker and C-Murder (P's brothers), Mystikal, Mia X and Steady Mobb'n. By 1997, No Limit had produced more than 8 platinum albums. Between 1997 and 1998, No Limit released nearly 50 albums that often topped various Billboard sales charts. Master P's 1997 album "Ghetto D", which featured his most famous song "Make Em' Say Uhh", sold 3.2 million copies in The US. The single for "Make Em' Say Uhh" sold over a million copies.

The Peak Of Success

Without question, 1998 was the peak year for Master P and No Limit Records. That year saw the release of Master P's penultimate album "MP Da Last Don". That album debuted at #1 on Billboard's Top 200 Chart and sold a whopping 500,000 copies in its first week alone. The album would eventually go on to sell more than four million units. Capitalizing on their success, No Limit signed super star rapper Snoop Dogg whose deal with Death Row had recently expired. Snoop's first No Limit album "Da Game Is to Be Sold, Not to Be Told" debuted at #1 on Billboard, sold 800,000 units in its first two weeks and would eventually be certified 2X platinum. Thanks to Snoop and the other hit making artists at No Limit, Master P's label sold more than 20 million albums in 1998 alone.

As if this wasn't enough, while No Limit was tearing up the Billboard charts, Master P was expanding his empire into a diverse array of side businesses. He launched a sports management company, a clothing line, a real estate firm, a phone sex business, a high end travel agency, a video game company and a film studio. No Limit Films produced a series of straight to VHS movies that routinely sold millions of copies. Between 1992 and 1998, No Limit Records sold $120 million worth of albums and in 1998 alone Master P's various business ventures generated revenues of more than $160 million. As of March 2013, No Limit Records has sold nearly 80 million albums worldwide and Master P has a personal net worth of $200 million!

The Decline

No matter how much talent or luck No Limit had, it would have been extremely difficult to top the success of 1998. Between 1999 and 2002 Master P focused much of his time on trying to jump start an NBA career. He actually landed contracts with the Charlotte Hornets and the Toronto Raptors. He never made a regular season NBA roster but he did play a few seasons in the Continental and American Basketball Associations. While he was shooting hoops, No Limit did release a few more platinum albums including two from Snoop Dogg and two from his son Lil Romeo. Unfortunately, as Master P's focus shifted to basketball, America's taste in music shifted away from No Limit. Their most popular artists left for new labels and by December 2003 No Limit filed for bankruptcy. In 2004 Master P launched "New No Limit Records" and released a self produced album called "Living Legend: Certified D-Boy" which only sold 75,000 units. In 2010 the label was renamed "No Limit Forever Records" and today they represent a handful of lower and mid-level rap acts. But don't count Master P out just yet, as he proved time and again, with a little hustle and luck there really is no limit to your success.

Read more: How Master P Flipped A $10,000 Life Insurance Settlement Into A $250 Million Business Empire

The Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit in December 2022 to block the deal. Last month, the FTC followed up with a restraining order and injunction in federal court to halt the deal before a July 18 deadline and now has an administrative hearing scheduled for August 2. The UK's Competition and Markets Authority also opted to block the acquisition; Microsoft and Activision Blizzard are appealing the CMA's decision, with a hearing set for July 24.

There's one person in particular who'd especially be interested to see the deal close: Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick. Bobby could potentially earn half a billion dollars if the acquisition happens.

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Per an SEC filing from earlier this year, Kotick owns just under 4.3 million shares of Activision Blizzard stock, with the right to acquire a little over 2.2 million more. That could potentially give him nearly 6.5 million shares in total.

As part of the acquisition, Microsoft plans to offer buyouts at $95 per share. Kotick's current stock would be worth about $408 million. Those other 2.2 million shares are stock options with exercise prices starting at $47 per share. Exercising those could earn him another $98.8 million, giving him nearly $507 million before taxes.

So, yes, Kotick certainly stands to gain a lot from the deal.

Meanwhile, Microsoft could potentially lose a lot. Though $68.7 billion is a hefty price tag, legal policy writer Lee Hepner noted the company is on the hook for a $3 BILLION BREAK UP FEE if the deal falls through. That's a ton of money to pay for nothing in return.

To be clear, regulators in many nations have already approved the deal. The European Union, South Africa, Japan, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Chile are all on board with the acquisition. But since this is an unprecedented acquisition — one that could potentially change the future of cloud and console video games — there are going to be several hurdles along the way.

Assuming Microsoft and Activision Blizzard can clear them all, Kotick will have himself a major payday.

Read more: Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick Stands To Make $200-500 Million If He Can Get The Microsoft Acquisition To Close

The Titanic carried a number of millionaires and their families. For example, the richest person on the planet at the time, John Jacob Astor IV was a passenger. He was last seen by his wife standing the Starboard bridge wing, smoking a cigarette. Just 30 minutes later, the mighty Titanic disappeared beneath the surface of the ocean. Jack Astor and his valet Victor Robbins were never seen again.

Another multi-multi-millionaire passenger was named Benjamin Guggenheim. More than 100 years later, the story of how Guggenheim went down with the Titanic continues to fascinate.

What would you have done if you were an extremely wealthy male passenger on Titanic? What would you have done if you were offered a space on a lifeboat knowing that it would likely mean a child or female passenger would die in your place?

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Early Life

Benjamin Guggenheim was born on October 26, 1865 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was the fifth of seven sons of the wealthy Swiss-born mining magnate Meyer Guggenheim and his wife Barbara. Ben spent much of his adult life working in the family mining business, earning the nickname the "Silver Prince."  When he was 20 years old, Guggenheim went to Leadville, Colorado to run the family's mines. While there he launched a smelting operation in Pueblo that became yet another lucrative business for the Guggenheims.

Side trivia: The Guggenheim Museum in New York City, which contains one of the finest collections of art on the planet, was founded by Ben's brother Solomon R. Guggenheim.

In 1894, Ben married Florette Seligman. The couple had three daughters. When his father died in 1905, Guggenheim inherited a fortune.

Not long after his father's death, Ben and his wife grew distant and began living separate lives. Guggenheim kept an apartment in Paris, far from his familial home in New York City.

Accidental Titanic Passenger

After an extended stay in Europe in 1912, Guggenheim made plans to return to the U.S. and booked a trip on the Lusitania. However, that voyage was cancelled as the Lusitania had to undergo repairs.  Guggenheim was offered a trip on the Carmania, which was to be the replacement ship for the Lusitania, but instead he decided to make the trans-Atlantic voyage to New York on a brand spanking new ship from the White Star Line called the Titanic.

At the time Ben Guggenheim purchased his Titanic ticket he was 47 years old, and had a personal net worth was estimated to be $4 million. That's the same as roughly $95 million after adjusting for inflation.

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When Guggenheim boarded, he was in the company of his French mistress, a 25-year old singer named Leontine Aubert. The pair was accompanied by Guggenheim's valet, Victor Guglio, and chauffeur Rene Pernot, as well as Aubert's maid Emma Sagesser.

Iceberg Collision

Guggenheim and Guglio slept through the Titanic's fateful collision with the iceberg on the night of April 15, 1912. They were awakened about 20 minutes later, just after midnight, by Aubert and Sagesser who had felt the collision. The group made their way to the Boat Deck for evacuation.

Guggenheim moved quickly to make sure his mistress and her maid were loaded into Lifeboat No. 9. He spoke to the maid in German, saying:

"We will soon see each other again! It's just a repair. Tomorrow the Titanic will go on again."

Despite this statement, Guggenheim was very much aware just how dire the ship's situation was. Once his mistress and the maid were safe, he then set out to help as many women and children into lifeboats as they could handle.

Considering his wealth and importance, it's almost certain that Guggenheim would have been offered a spot on a lifeboat ahead of some people from steerage or random other general passengers. He clearly did not accept this offer.

Instead of sneaking onto a lifeboat Ben and his trusted valet returned to their quarters where they proceeded to get dressed in their finest evening wear. At the time, they were both of the belief that they would not make it off that doomed ship alive. Guggenheim and Guglio were last seen seated in deck chairs in the foyer of the Grand Staircase sipping brandy and smoking cigars stoically. Both men went down with the ship. Their bodies, were never recovered.

As this dreadful scenario unfolded, Ben Guggenheim was heard saying:

"We've dressed in our best and are prepared to go down like gentlemen. Tell my wife, if it should happen that my secretary and I both go down, tell her I played the game straight out to the end. No woman shall be left aboard this ship because Ben Guggenheim was a coward."

Benjamin's mistress Leontine Aubert survived. She lived to be 77-years-old, dying in 1964.

Why Didn't He Escape?

For over 100 years, historians have struggled to understand  Guggenheim's failure to escape. Since most wealthy passengers were offered spots on lifeboats, historians don't know why the millionaire businessman and his valet chose to stay on board.

A hundreds years after the sinking, a photo Guggenheim's valet offered a new theory. Guglio was born in England but was of Italian-Egyptian heritage. The photo that surfaced shows that he was dark-skinned. The prevailing racism and bias at the time would have prevented him from being allowed on one of Titanic's lifeboats.

It is now theorized that Benjamin Guggenheim chose to die with his beloved mixed-race friend rather than leave him behind to die alone.

It is one of the most haunting tales of the many haunting tales surrounding the sinking of the RMS Titanic.

What Would You Have Done?

Put yourself in Ben Guggenheim's position. What would you have done if you were literally on a sinking ship and you knew your $100 million fortune could guarantee a spot in a lifeboat? Would you cut the line and take the "coward's" way out? Or would you go down with the ship to save someone else's life?

Read more: Go Down With Titanic Or Sneak Onto A Lifeboat? Multi-Millionaire Ben Guggenheim Chose….