Taylor tops our list this year thanks to Christie’s record-breaking sale of the late movie star’s jewelry and art. The massive sale, which took place in New York and London, brought in $184 million. The most expensive piece sold was a Van Gogh painting which sold for $24.6 million. Now that Taylor’s friends and family are set for life financially, her estate will turn its attention to how best to exploit Taylor’s image. There’s lots of potential in Taylor’s embodiment of old Hollywood glamour.

Music’s postmortem cash king has earned more than any single living artist since his death. Jackson continues to rake in revenues from the work of other artists (through his 50% stake in the Sony/ATV publishing catalog), his own material (the Mijac Music catalog), a Cirque du Soleil show (the Michael Jackson Immortal World Tour) and other sources. His total would be even higher if FORBES hadn’t credited the advance for the latter to last year’s $170 million total.

The King of Rock n’ Roll’s earnings are flat this year—the closure of his Viva Elvis show in Las Vegas was offset by an uptick in Graceland attendance due to last year’s unusually warm weather. The estate’s value was clear to billionaire Leon Black, whose Apollo Global Management purchased CKX, the parent company of American Idol and the estates of both Elvis and Muhammad Ali, for $509 million last year.

It’s been 67 years since the Peanuts comic strip debuted but Charlie Brown and his gang are as hot as ever. The estate, in a partnership with Iconix Brand Group , brings in plenty of money through licensing and advertisement deals with companies like Met Life. Next up for Peanuts: the big screen. Fox recently announced that a Peanuts movie is in the works from the makers of Ice Age.

Not necessarily known for commercial ventures during life, Bob Marley has become a diversified businessman from beyond the grave. In addition to selling over 75 million albums in the past 20 years, he’s recently added the Marley Beverage company (home to the “relaxation drink” known as Marley’s Mellow Mood) and House of Marley (producer of eco-friendly audio and lifestyle products) to his portfolio.

Imagine all the profits. The iconic Beatle continues to share in the group’s spoils—over 63 million albums sold in the U.S. alone since 1992—both as a performer and a songwriter. A Las Vegas Cirque Du Soleil show and licensing agreements with Cisco and others acts are further proof of the star’s longevity. Meanwhile, his passion for activism remains intact through son Sean and widow Yoko Ono, vocal opponents of the gas industry practice known as fracking.

Monroe is in the middle of a branding reboot. Authentic Brands Group bought the rights to license Monroe last year helping boost the star’s earnings to $27 million. She’s down to $10 million this year because we’re only looking at licensing money but expect to see her earn more money in the coming years. ABG is going with a less is more approach to Monroe licensing her name to select locations like a line of Monroe spas and a café line which is being tested in Toronto.

Albert Einstein owns “smart.” If you want your brand associated with being smart, Einstein is your spokesman. But the estate is careful about licensing the scientist’s image picking companies like Qatar National Bank. Expect big things from Einstein in 2015 which will be the 100th anniversary of his theory of relativity.