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It’s National Estate Planning Week and while it doesn’t involve costumes or gourds full of candy, celebrating can still be fun. Which brings us to these examples of “unique” (i.e. over the top, kooky, crazy, or weird) estate plan provisions of the rich and famous. In the past we’ve highlighted the unfortunate circumstances of celebrities who died without a valid estate plan dictating to whom they want their assets to go. The lesson there? Don’t leave it up to others what should happen with your property!

Today’s lesson? Your estate plan is unique and you can employ different planning strategies and tools to make whatever (legal) requests and bequests about your estate you wish…even if they’re a little different.

Gene Roddenberry, Creator of Star Trek

Roddenberry created the original Star Trek television series and was obsessed with space. So, it was actually fitting he requested a celestial burial. He passed away in 1991 and his request for a disposition of his final remains in deep space was fulfilled in 1997. Roddenberry was cremated and a part of his remains was put on a rocket and launched into orbit. His wife Majel, who played Christine Chapel in the original Star Trek and died in 2008, also elected for a space burial with the same company (Celetis).

Harry Houdini, Magician

Famous magician Houdini conducted séances during his life and wanted his wife, Bess, to continue the practice upon his own death. A clause in Houdini’s (otherwise “normal”) will requested his wife conduct an annual “session” with the afterlife. Houdini had his wife memorize a secret “code” that he thought would use identification to prove communication from the “other side.” She honored the request for 10 years on Halloween, the anniversary of her husband’s death.

Oprah, Media Mogul

Oprah is the living (thank goodness, let’s not imagine a world without Oprah in it) spokesperson of the benefits of an animal care trust! Reportedly, Oprah has established a trust funded with $30 million for her pet dogs, so that they will continue to have a high level of treatment and care. Sure, a cool $30 mil is more than you or I will ever see in our lifetimes, but compared to Oprah’s total estate it’s just a drop in the bucket. Plus, she plans to give the bulk of her $3 billion estate to charitable causes! “When I’m gone, everything that I have is going to go to charity because I don’t have children. And I believe that that’s what you should do,” she said. “To whom much is given, much should be given back.”

Animal Care Trust: Continued Care & Love for Your Pet

Janis Joplin, Rock Singer-Songwriter

The infamous Joplin tragically passed at the age of 27 in 1970 from a drug overdose. Joplin carried her nonstop party spirit into her will where she left behind $2,500 (which is like the 2018 equivalent of $16,000) for her best friends to have a rocking wake party. A few weeks after her death, the party was indeed thrown in California.

Adam Yauch, Singer, Beastie Boys Co-Founder

The talented artist’s will set the record straight for the future of his music. He provided limitations in the use of his likeness and his music with the provision: “in no event may my image or name or any music or any artistic property created by me be used for advertising purposes.” (Whether or not this request is enforceable, regarding a legal difference between publicity rights and copyrights is whole other story.)

William Randolf Hearst, Publisher

Apparently there were rumors circulating that the publishing powerhouse/politician who died in 1951 had fathered illegitimate children. He unequivocally denied this even in his last will and testament, offering anyone who could prove such would inherit $1: “that he or she is a child of mine . . . the sum of one dollar. I hereby declare that any such asserted claim . . . would be utterly false.” No claims came forward alleging paternity, so there must have been something true behind the provision!

Benjamin Franklin, Founding Father/Politician

Franklin devised a picture frame to his daughter containing more than 400 diamonds. He left the frame (and thus the gems) to his daughter Sarah under the express provision that she “not engage the expensive, vain and useless pastime of wearing jewels.” He apparently didn’t want her to remove the diamonds from the frame…apparently the request was not honored.

Think Estate Planning is Just for the Wealthy? Think Again!

Just like these interesting wills, your estate plan is entirely your own. You can elect to pass your assets on to whomever you wish including your pets, kids, and favorite charities. But, you can’t record these requests until you execute an estate plan! (Remember, a will is one of the multiple documents found in an estate plan.) Get started with my free Estate Plan Questionnaire and contact me for a free consult!

I was scrolling through Netflix the other night and finally landed on The Aviator, which I haven’t seen in a while. The 2004 Scorsese film starring Leonardo DiCaprio tells the story of the eccentric aviation magnate and movie producer, Howard Hughes, who tragically battled OCD, paranoia, and chronic pain (from a near-death plane crash) and spent his later life as a hermit. That led me down a rabbit hole of internet research into the real Howard Hughes. As an estate planner, I naturally wondered what happened to his estate when he passed away in 1976. (Perhaps fittingly the aviator passed away in an airplane.)

Even if You’re Not a Billionaire, You Need an Estate Plan

Unfortunately, the tale of the Hughes estate is a cautionary one of what NOT to do.

Terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea of NOT having a Will

Hughes—who was reputed to be one of the wealthiest men in the world—died intestate, meaning he died without a valid will. That can cause chaos, confusion, and cost ample time and money for regular folks. But, when your estate is worth billions like Hughes’ was, it causes a mass tangle of court proceedings. In the case of the Hughes estate, debate and disputes lasted a total of 34 years.

In the aftermath of his death, several documents were brought forth alleging to be the magnate’s will. All were deemed to be forgeries. A Nevada court determined Hughes died intestate, meaning the law determines how assets are distributed to heirs-at-law. However, Hughes died divorced (allegedly) and without any close relatives; he left no clear heir(s). This debacle of no will meant that many people came out of the woodwork claiming to be relatives.

5 Celebrities With Crazy Estate Plan Provisions

A Messy Web of Forgeries, Fraud, & Litigation

So, after years of attorneys, courts, and dubious claims, what actually transpired?

Eventually, $2.5 billion was split between 22 of Hughes legal cousins in 1983. (Undoubtedly he didn’t know some or even the majority of these people. It’s also been said he didn’t want his money to go to his distant relatives, but without an estate plan, his wishes were steamrolled by probate law.) In an interesting twist, a woman named Terry Moore came forth claiming she married Hughes on a boat in international in 1949 and that they were never divorced. She didn’t produce any proof of the marriage (like a marriage certificate), but the estate paid her a $400,000.

The Supreme Court even had to step in. They ruled in the messy dispersion of assets that the Howard Hughes Medical Institute owned Hughes Aircraft, which it then sold off in 1985 to General Motors for more than $5 billion. The Court also rejected lawsuits brought by Texas and California, claiming they were owed inheritance taxes, but the suits were eventually put to rest with settlements of $50 million and $150 million respectively in property and/or cash.

In 2010, more than three decades after Hughes passed, the last slice of Hughes pie (Summerlin residential development community near Las Vegas) was liquidated.

Think Estate Planning is Just for the Wealthy? Think Again!

Leave a Valuable Legacy

Undoubtedly, Hughes left his mark on 20th century American history. However, his legacy could have been cemented in the way he wanted (probably giving the bulk of his estate to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and nothing to long lost cousins) if he would have had a proper estate plan created completed with valuable strategic tools like different trusts and charitable giving vehicles. While most of us will never have an estate valued even close to the likes of Hughes, we can be smart with what we do have and make certain what we choose is dispersed to whom we choose, when we choose. There’s no need for your assets to be tied up in red tape or be dispersed in a way that’s not fitting with your wishes.

5 Celebrities Who Died Without a Will

Contact me with your estate planning questions, or get started with my free, no-obligation Estate Plan Questionnaire, which will help you organize important information needed for the plan in one place.

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