As he struggled to make money wherever he could, Nicolas Cage filed a lawsuit against his business manager in 2009, accusing him of being so incompetent at running his company that he was left in serious debt.
This launched the Cagessance of cringe-worthy ventures and performances that came to characterize a period. However, he cannot deny that he played some role in his financial failure. Not unless his manager was a devil who appeared on his shoulder whenever he took out his wallet and muttered, "Do it. Be an icon.”
The Tyrannosaurus skull Nicolas Cage spent $276,000 for at an auction soon before his enterprise collapsed was unquestionably the most spectacular way he ever wasted money. He had to return it after learning that it had been stolen from the Mongolian people, but at least he prevented Leonardo DiCaprio from enjoying it by supposedly outbidding him. This man has had enough.
A "renowned" Martian meteorite that Cage paid $25,000 for turned out to be a bit of a letdown after two things happened: 1) scientists discovered it did not, in fact, demonstrate life on Mars, as previously believed; and 2) it was stolen. He believes it could have been stolen, though. You know how it is: occasionally, a rock that may pay off your college loans is simply misplaced.
When Cage had the chance to purchase a mint copy of the first Superman comic in 1995, he presumably just started dropping cash on it until someone ordered him to stop. Cage is known to be such a big Superman fan that he named his tragic son Kal-El.
When it was stolen from his home in 2000, he had to pay $150,000, which must have hurt. However, he sold it for more than $2 million in 2011 after it was found in a storage locker in Southern California, so he views it as a "positive investment."
The only thing we can surmise about Cage's crocodile is that it fled after just one day into the Los Angeles sewer system to pursue its aspirations of featuring in a Peter-Pan live action.
Sharks are surprisingly inexpensive, but Cage had to spend a lot of money on the 500-gallon tank he needed to keep the shark. However, it made up only a small portion of the genuine zoo he had amassed, and as the saying goes, "In for an octopus, in for a shark."
In addition, he spent $276,000 for a pair of king cobras, which you may think to be very cool. What possible objection could something with the word "king" have to being your loyal Disney sidekick?
Nevertheless, Cage was horrified to discover that the cobras were continually attempting to eat him. His neighbors became quite incensed when he told the story on Letterman and they learned that there were actually cobras living next door, so he was forced to give them up.
Although Cage did assert that it aided his acting, for $150,000, that must have been one talented octopus. Perhaps that Octopus Teacher was to blame.
The remaining two plots at a renowned New Orleans cemetery were purchased by Cage for around $50,000 in 2010, long after his financial problems were known to the public. For unspecified reasons, Cage then built a nine-foot pyramid-shaped tomb on top of one of the sites.
A chamber for regeneration? Removing a voodoo omen? A pleasant place to spend all of eternity? Perhaps the last one.
The Lamborghini that had formerly belonged to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the final Shah of Iran, was probably the thing in Cage's garage that raised the most eyebrows. In 1997 dollars, he spent close to $500,000 for it, which is roughly the worth of your soul now, but the possession of a deposed monarch just seems different.
Cage has owned more than 50 (likely legally acquired) historic cars, including nine Rolls Royces (Royce? Rice?), and 30 motorcycles in an obvious attempt to outperform his Gone in 60 Seconds character.
Even if driving more than two yachts at once would seem excessive, Cage noted that he stored them at four different beachfront properties across the world, so it makes sense. Nobody enjoys having their yachts Bojacked all over the world.
One of those residences was the Lalaurie Mansion in New Orleans, which was infamously held by Madame Lalaurie, a serial slave murderer. Maybe Cage believed that it was unnecessary to pursue ghosts when one could simply purchase them.
He claimed he was hoping the mansion would motivate him to compose a horror story, but it appears that the house only served to motivate him to spend more money.
Do you ever lose sight of where you reside? Cage most certainly has. Cage possessed fifteen separate homes at the height of his housing frenzy, ranging from California to Rhode Island, and resembling "This Land is Your Land" but with more Elvis paraphernalia.
When you reach a certain amount of wealth, you may think, "I'm tired of this private island. To my second private island is where I wish to go.” Cage purchased not one, not two, but three private islands in the Bahamas because of this. Perhaps all he wanted was his own Bermuda Triangle.
A young girl would probably suggest, "Buy a castle," but Nicolas Cage is a big girl, so he bought two, one each in England and Germany, because you can't have your castles in the same nation. That would be absurd.
This launched the Cagessance of cringe-worthy ventures and performances that came to characterize a period. However, he cannot deny that he played some role in his financial failure. Not unless his manager was a devil who appeared on his shoulder whenever he took out his wallet and muttered, "Do it. Be an icon.”
1. A (Stolen) Dinosaur Skull
Source: Reuters
The Tyrannosaurus skull Nicolas Cage spent $276,000 for at an auction soon before his enterprise collapsed was unquestionably the most spectacular way he ever wasted money. He had to return it after learning that it had been stolen from the Mongolian people, but at least he prevented Leonardo DiCaprio from enjoying it by supposedly outbidding him. This man has had enough.
2. Meteorite
A "renowned" Martian meteorite that Cage paid $25,000 for turned out to be a bit of a letdown after two things happened: 1) scientists discovered it did not, in fact, demonstrate life on Mars, as previously believed; and 2) it was stolen. He believes it could have been stolen, though. You know how it is: occasionally, a rock that may pay off your college loans is simply misplaced.
3. The First Superman Comic
When Cage had the chance to purchase a mint copy of the first Superman comic in 1995, he presumably just started dropping cash on it until someone ordered him to stop. Cage is known to be such a big Superman fan that he named his tragic son Kal-El.
When it was stolen from his home in 2000, he had to pay $150,000, which must have hurt. However, he sold it for more than $2 million in 2011 after it was found in a storage locker in Southern California, so he views it as a "positive investment."
4. A Crocodile
Source: Vanity Fair
The only thing we can surmise about Cage's crocodile is that it fled after just one day into the Los Angeles sewer system to pursue its aspirations of featuring in a Peter-Pan live action.
5. A Shark
Sharks are surprisingly inexpensive, but Cage had to spend a lot of money on the 500-gallon tank he needed to keep the shark. However, it made up only a small portion of the genuine zoo he had amassed, and as the saying goes, "In for an octopus, in for a shark."
6. 2 Venomous Cobras
Source: Celebrity Pets
In addition, he spent $276,000 for a pair of king cobras, which you may think to be very cool. What possible objection could something with the word "king" have to being your loyal Disney sidekick?
Nevertheless, Cage was horrified to discover that the cobras were continually attempting to eat him. His neighbors became quite incensed when he told the story on Letterman and they learned that there were actually cobras living next door, so he was forced to give them up.
7. A $150,000 Octopus
Although Cage did assert that it aided his acting, for $150,000, that must have been one talented octopus. Perhaps that Octopus Teacher was to blame.
8. Nine-Foot Pyramid-Shaped Burial Tomb
Source: Nelo Hotsuma / Flickr
The remaining two plots at a renowned New Orleans cemetery were purchased by Cage for around $50,000 in 2010, long after his financial problems were known to the public. For unspecified reasons, Cage then built a nine-foot pyramid-shaped tomb on top of one of the sites.
A chamber for regeneration? Removing a voodoo omen? A pleasant place to spend all of eternity? Perhaps the last one.
9. The Lamborghini of the Last Shah of Iran
Source: Alexandre Prevot / Flickr
The Lamborghini that had formerly belonged to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the final Shah of Iran, was probably the thing in Cage's garage that raised the most eyebrows. In 1997 dollars, he spent close to $500,000 for it, which is roughly the worth of your soul now, but the possession of a deposed monarch just seems different.
10. Nine Rolls Royce
Cage has owned more than 50 (likely legally acquired) historic cars, including nine Rolls Royces (Royce? Rice?), and 30 motorcycles in an obvious attempt to outperform his Gone in 60 Seconds character.
11. Four Yachts
Even if driving more than two yachts at once would seem excessive, Cage noted that he stored them at four different beachfront properties across the world, so it makes sense. Nobody enjoys having their yachts Bojacked all over the world.
12. A Haunted Mansion (Yes It Is)
Source: Trip Advisor
One of those residences was the Lalaurie Mansion in New Orleans, which was infamously held by Madame Lalaurie, a serial slave murderer. Maybe Cage believed that it was unnecessary to pursue ghosts when one could simply purchase them.
He claimed he was hoping the mansion would motivate him to compose a horror story, but it appears that the house only served to motivate him to spend more money.
13. 15 Houses
Do you ever lose sight of where you reside? Cage most certainly has. Cage possessed fifteen separate homes at the height of his housing frenzy, ranging from California to Rhode Island, and resembling "This Land is Your Land" but with more Elvis paraphernalia.
14. Private Islands (Plural)
Source: Private Islands Inc.
When you reach a certain amount of wealth, you may think, "I'm tired of this private island. To my second private island is where I wish to go.” Cage purchased not one, not two, but three private islands in the Bahamas because of this. Perhaps all he wanted was his own Bermuda Triangle.
15. Castles (Yeah, Plural, Again)
Source: Wikimedia Commons
A young girl would probably suggest, "Buy a castle," but Nicolas Cage is a big girl, so he bought two, one each in England and Germany, because you can't have your castles in the same nation. That would be absurd.