Is Scrooge McDuck the richest in the world or is it Mr. Burns or Jeff Bezos or Richie Rich or Bill Gates or Bruce Wayne or... ?

Funny you should ask. Latest count says the title goes to Scrooge McDuck. And in this era of believing everything we read, it is the fictional billionaires that give Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates a good run for their money.

Here's that eye-popping list compiled by MetaballsStudio of those who made their fortunes in books, movies, television and comic strips... and yes, it does include Christian Grey. It's no small wonder why Ana took great pains on the 'poor man' to help him work things out.

The Top 15... and bear in mind, Scrooge's fortune is in 1947 dollars and gold:

• Jay Gatsby: $1 billion (The Great Gatsby)
• Lady Mary Crawley: $1.1 billion (Downton Abbey)
• Mr. Monopoly: $1.2 billion (Board Game. He made his money in real estate)
• Lara Croft: $1.3 billion (Tomb Raider)
• Walden Schmidt: $1.3 billion (Two and a Half Men replacing Charlie Harper)
• C. Montgomery Burns: $1.5 billion (Homer Simpson's boss)
• Tywin Lannister: $1.8 billion (Game of Thrones)
• Christian Grey: $2.2 billion (50 Shades of Grey)
• Richie Rich: $5.8 billion ( 1953 comic book... world's richest kid)
• Bruce Wayne: $9.2 billion (Batman's alter ego)
• Charles Foster Kane: $11.2 billion (1941 Oscar winning movie. Do you know Rosebud?)
• Tony Stark: $12.4 billion (Iron Man's alter ego in Avengers movies)
• Carlisle Cullen: $46 billion (Vampire in The Twilight Series... his is blood money)
• Smaug: $54 billion (Fearsome dragon in The Hobbit. Proves any dragon can get rich.)
• Scrooge McDuck: $65.4 billion (Uncle of Donald and his nephews, Huey, Dewey and Louie)

Point of reference: Jeff Bezos used to be the world's richest at about $186 billion but his recent divorce took $760 billion or so putting his ex-wife in the chase, so those fictional billionaires still have some chasing to do. 

Now, a little more about real money from a blog post I wrote six years ago that is even truer today.

Money, Money, Money...

ABBA: Agnetha, Anni-Frid, Benny, Bjorg

Money, money, money
Must be funny
In the rich man's world
Money, money, money
Always sunny
In the rich man's world
Aha-ahaaa
All the things I could do
If I had a little money
It's a rich man's world


 ABBA had a ton of hits from the mid '70s to the late '90s. Its songs are the heart of the popular musical, Mama Mia. But perhaps no ABBA song has more relevance than its 1976 recording of  Money, Money, Money.

Maybe you've seen this story: 85 of the world's richest billionaires are as wealthy as the poorest 3.5 billion people in the world!

Forbes Magazine tells us there are l,426 billionaires in the world today. So minus the 85 super wealthiest, there are 1,341 'poorer' billionaires (not counting Scrooge McDuck or Richie Rich) on the outside looking in. How's it feel, you guys, to be poorer?

Bill & Melinda Gates with Warren Buffett

Now before you get the wrong idea, I really like the rich... and so should you. Even if, in our lesser status we are envious, make fun of them or notice a few may be jerks and worse, a world without rich couldn't work. I think that's been tried. Most rich have earned their fortunes by creating opportunities and providing services for others... and many are dramatically benevolent.

Not only have Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett already committed more than half of their billions through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, they have gotten 102 other 'very rich' to sign The Giving Pledge agreeing to do likewise. And they continually work to recruit others like themselves. Take a look... the Giving Pledge makes very interesting reading. 

Bill Gates once said he and his wife plan to leave their children a very small  (but still not bad) inheritance of their mega billions with the remainder to be used for continuing benevolence. These actions represent just some of the good that money can do.

And no, they and all their pals cannot solve all the world's unbalance. They have done, and will continue to do great things for humankind. Yet, there remain many, many below the poverty line that struggle mightily. These include the new poor--"not only  those laid-off blue collar workers but also downsized tech workers, managers, lawyers and other once-comfortable professionals," says The Atlantic. "Poverty is not a character failing or a lack of motivation. Poverty is a shortage of money... (which) arises largely from inadequate wages."

It is ironic though, that professional athletes in many sports regularly sign million-dollar contracts and in most states, the highest paid state employee is a football or basketball coach, yet a teacher often cannot make a wage great enough to support a family. And no, it is not the athlete's or coach's fault to take what is there but our misguided judgement of value to benefit which has deep roots. Give the rich their due, but money cannot buy everything... and it certainly cannot buy poverty.

The fact is, the spread between rich and poor is widening and the middle class is 'middling' at best and fading fast. The greatest benefit of a robust... or any economy, goes to the wealthy as did the mega-majority of benefits from the Trump tax cuts. It's expensive to be poor because a far great percentage of all dollars goes to just trying to get by... and sometimes, even with help, that is not enough. Poverty is a hole without luxury, opportunity or an easy out.

I hope and pray that those with the power to move mountains get on this case. Trickle down doesn't really trickle too far or too fast, it seems.

Money, money, money... it's a rich man's world...

Bjorn, Agnetha, Anni-Frid and Benny

Money, Money, Money is my ABBA favorite, though I liked all of their songs as did many. This  Swedish pop group was very popular in the '70s with their flashy clothes (like today's 'I can't believe they wore those clothes'), upbeat music and lyrics.

I work all night, I work all day
To pay the bills I have to pay
Ain't it sad
And still there never seems to be
A single penny left for me
That's too bad
In my dreams I have a plan
If I got me a wealthy man
I wouldn't have to work at all
I'd fool around and have a ball

Money, money, money
Must be funny
In the rich man's world
Money, money, money
Always sunny
In the rich man's world
Aha, aha
All the things I could do
If I had a little money
It's a rich man's world

This, a steal for only $159 million

I guess that pretty much explains why I can't afford the house of my dreams. 

The magic number for houses of the rich is now $100 million. And to think buying my first house for $14,500 was much more than I logically could afford... but I did it, then a few years later, made a killing when it sold for $14,900.

I have my eye on a nice little spec home in Los Angeles for $115 million, and I'm sure it's worth every penny. If things go right though, I can get it for $113.5 million, flip it and pocket the extra mill-and-a-half. Then I'll be a rich man too. Only problem.. I need $500 cash for earnest money to hold the deal til my financing comes through.

The $159 million bargain is in Hillsboro Beach, Florida and includes two 3,000 ft. guest quarters, an ice skating rink, a go-kart track, a private night club and a bowling alley. The house itself has $3 million-plus in gold leaf trim, six waterfalls--one 25 feet tall--a marble staircase, 11 bedrooms including a master suite with a heated plunge pool on the balcony, an 18-seat IMAX home theater, a 30-car subterranean garage, a wine cellar that will hold 3,000 bottles and a 1,300 gallon built-in aquarium. Builder's shrewd plan to cut back the expenses: two bathrooms. Smart.

Actually, I don't really want this house but I would like to build my $14,500 house right next door. In real estate you know, it's location, location, location.

Money, money, money... it's a rich man's world.

PS: ABBA also sung Dancing Queen, Take a Chance on Me, Knowing Me, Knowing You, Fernando, Honey, Honey, Name of the Game and Gimmie! Gimmie! Gimmie! to name a few. And of course, their signature song, Mamma Mia, made into a long-running stage play and movie. Love 'em.