13 Expensive Useless Things Celebrities Buy
Emily Bell Quick Links
Most of us feel pretty darn bad after realizing we've just spent a lot of money of some item we don't even need. However, some show no remorse whatsoever. It's no secret that celebrities make more money than the average Joe, but does that mean they have to spend it all in the most unpractical ways? They do throw away most of their money on huge mansions, expensive cars, and designer clothes. That's not even half of it. Some celebrities have become quite famous for their extravagant spending habits, acquiring plenty of ridiculously expensive things that prove completely useless. Why buy them? Because they can.
They tell you not to become too attached to material possessions because they are not what matter most in life. Apparently, nobody told this to the following celebrities. Some fancy exotic animals, others feel they need a ghost-busting machine to chase away bad spirits, some wear golden pants, others soak in solid gold bathtubs. They are not just useless, they are plain ridiculous. I mean, who in the world needs a Bengal tiger in their home? Let's have a look at the flashiest and most extravagant items and worldly possessions you can imagine and find out.
13.Lady Gaga - Ghost Busting Gizmo: $50,000
“I ain't afraid of no ghost. If you're seeing things running through your head. Who can you call? Ghostbusters...” Apparently Lady Gaga is afraid and is seeing things. She dropped $50,000 on a ghost busting gizmo, some sort of an Electro-Magnetic Field Reader that keeps the ghosts away. She has been known to pay paranormal experts and ghost hunters to check her hotel rooms for evil spirits and other spiritual presences, in which case a ghost busting machine sounds like a good investment, right?
12. Beyonce - Leggings: $100,000
While most of us buy their leggings from the nearest department store, Beyonce buys hers from Balenciaga. In case you didn't get it, she spends $100,000 for one pair of tights. However, they aren't your everyday pants, they are embellished in pure gold. That must be a happy pair of legs. Beyonce wore such a pair of Balenciaga golden leggings in 2007, when she performed on the stage of the BET Awards.
11. Mike Tyson - White Bengal Tigers: $150,000
Remember The Hangover, when those guys woke up in the morning with no clue to what happened the previous night, and discovered a tiger in their bathroom? Soon after, Mike Tyson showed up to get his pet back. Well, that's not all fiction. Back in the day, Mike Tyson was worth $300 million. That's a lot of money to spend. When asked about his splurges, Mike Tyson himself admitted that “there was some dumb s**t.”. He bought two Bengal tigers for $150,000, and they were not cheap to take care of, running close to $4,000 a month.
10. Jay Z - 75 Bottles of Bubbly: $250,000
When Jay Z put an end to his contract with flamboyant champagne brand Cristal, he opted for Armand de Brignac, a ridiculously expensive luxury brand connoisseurs know as the “Ace of Spades.” While celebrating at Club Liv in Miami with his entourage, he bought 75 bottles of “Ace of Spades” champagne, dropping $250,000. Now, Jay Z holds the record for the most bottles popped in one night. What's really outrageous is the $50,000 tip he left. Those were some lucky bartenders.
9. Nicolas Cage - An Octopus and Two King Cobras: $275,000
Nicolas Cage is known for owning too many exotic pets. His most outrageous acquisitions in terms of animal friends were two extremely rare albino King Cobra snakes and an octopus, for which he paid $275,000. The King Cobra is the world's longest venomous snake. Nic called his Moby and Sheba. He also kept an antidote serum nearby at all times in case he got bitten. When the whole financial hell broke loose in 2007, he was forced to return his beloved pets to the zoo.
8. Nicolas Cage - Dinosaur Skull: $276,000
In 2007, Nicolas Cage spent $276,000 on a dinosaur skull. However, what's really funny is that he wasn't the only one interested in it. That's right, he had to fight for it. Nicolas Cage outbid fellow actor Leonardo DiCaprio for the unusual collectible item. The lucky bidder brought home the 67 million year old dinosaur skull of a Tyrannosaurus bataar, a close cousin of the fearful T-Rex. However, it seems that all these ridiculous splurges are coming back to haunt him.
7. Paris Hilton - Dog House: $325,000
We have come to associate Paris Hilton with her miniature dogs she always carries around in her purse. I'm not sure whether they're actual living beings or just funny-looking toys, but apparently she loves them very much. What other reason could she have for buying a $325,000 dog house? Don't judge too soon. It's not your average dog house, it was custom-built and designed to reproduce her multi-million dollars mansion. What does her dogs' crib boast? Miniature designer furniture, air conditioning, heating, and even a chandelier. Those dogs are living better than most of us.
6. Rihanna - Hairdos: $1 Million
We all know Rihanna for her beautiful voice, but we also know her for her ever-changing style. Now she's brunette, now she's a redhead, long, short, curly, straight. Who can keep up with her? Ever wondered what it costs to keep her hair as joyful and playful? A jaw-dropping $1 million a year just for hairdos. That's 250 times more than what the average American spends on hair-care a year.
5. Nicolas Cage - Comic Book Collection: $1.6 Million
It's Nicolas Cage again, the most frivolous spender on our list. He bought a Bavarian castle, two yachts, a fleet of 50 exotic cars, two islands in the Bahamas, and a dozen mansions. Didn't anybody tell this guy when to stop? At least these were all acquisitions he could live in, drive in, or at least spend some quality time on. However, a comic book collection worth over $1 million? Of course, these all happened prior to his 2007 financial difficulties. After finding himself with a $13 million debt to the IRS, he sold his collection for $1.6 million.
4. Celine Dion - Humidifier: $2 Million
Celine Dion's marvelous voice is not easy to care for. The My Heart Will Go On singer and Vegas performer needs to train her vocal cords and pamper them in style if she wants to get the most out of them. In this case, a humidifier might seem a good investment, but to drop $2 million on one? Last time I saw a humidifier at my local depot it was a mere $20. What could possibly explain the price? Does it run on diamonds?
3. Mike Tyson - Solid Gold Bathtub: $2.3 Million
Is it any surprise that Mike Tyson made it on our list twice? The former boxer is universally known as a lavish spender. Back in the day when he thought his money laid in a bottomless bag, he bought his first wife Robin Givens a 24-karat solid gold bathtub for their mansion in Ohio. The price tag? A solid gold $2.3 million. That's a lot of cash for a bathtub to soak away in and it's not like all that gold was able to save their marriage.
2. Akon - Diamond Mine: undisclosed price
We all know rapping would not be the same if not for the bling, but Akon put a whole new meaning to the iced up metaphor when he purchased an entire diamond mine in South Africa in 2007. Now, the famous singer can use the pickaxe to dig for his own diamonds. How many musicians can brag about something like that? Akon prefers to keep the price of his lavish acquisition and exact location a secret.
1. Kim Basinger - A Town: $20 Million
Can celebrity splurges be any more outrageous? Kim Basinger bought a whole town in Georgia back in 1989 for a whopping $20 million. The Hollywood star became interested in the town of Braselton while stuck in a traffic jam, and purchased it with the intention of turning it into a grand tourist attraction, where people could attend film festivals and visit makeshift movie studios. It soon proved to be a very bad investment, and the whole thing turned out to be a massive failure. Five years later, she sold the town for $1 million and had to declare bankruptcy.
