A word of warning: 70 percent of the Michael Jackson autographs on eBay are forged or printed signatures, according to the International Autograph Collectors Club & Dealers Alliance (ADA-CC). Celebrities sometimes earn more dead than alive. Elvis Presley, the world's top-earning dead celebrity (so far), earned $52 million last year, according to Forbes magazine. Much of the money made by dead celebrities comes from music or art they created while alive. But some is from "manufactured" memorabilia, like visits to Graceland, souvenirs, use of the name and image, limited editions, jewelry, and more. But experts say that common Jackson memorabilia that has been going up in price will probably go down. One-of-a-kind items like costumes should stay high-priced. People were trying to scalp Michael Jackson's funeral tickets as soon as they were issued. They're another piece of memorabilia that some think will go up in price because only a limited number were printed.
