In 2010 the Kardashians Made $65 Million

The Kardashians rose to prominence when Kim Kardashian leaked a sex tape which gave her enough heat to get her family deals to do a bunch of reality tv shows. Turns out they’re smarter than I give them credit for or they just have dumb luck because they parlayed that into Twitter endorsements, paid appearances, fragrances and other ventures which made them $65 million in 2010.

Kim now charges as much as $25,000 to simply mention and link to a brand or company in a tweet. It’s so effective a tool that businesses have begun including Twitter clauses in their contracts with the family, committing the girls to a set number of tweets about their product.

“I see a Twitter clause in almost every contract,” says APA’s Brian Dow, who works with the family on the majority of their commercial interests (WME represents the Kardashians as their talent agents). “It’s like having a photo run in a magazine. It’s another impression for a brand and another medium.”

The sisters get in the six-figure range —negotiated by Kris — for a cover story, photo op and interview, depending on the significance of the topic. News of Kourtney’s 2009 pregnancy was sold in a package deal for $300,000 to Life & Style magazine. That included multiple stories: the pregnancy announcement, sex of the baby, birth announcement, first baby photos and body-after-baby reveal. (Life & Style declined comment.)

It’s times like these when I wish I was born with a vagina to flash. Seems like you can’t get anywhere in this world unless some random guy rams their junk into your body on tape. It’s like I keep telling my sexy neighbor. Do you want to be famous or not.