How much are Taylor Swift’s legs worth?

How much are Taylor Swift’s legs worth? What about Gordon Ramsay’s tongue, Nick Cannon’s balls and J.Lo’s butt? All of these celebrity body parts would have been insured for millions in case something happened that was both improbable and horrible.

But as you’ll soon find out, while some celebrity liability coverage stories are legitimate, most were either one-off publicity stunts or have been debunked. (Which of the above examples are false? The answer, as they say, may surprise you.)

Take the crazy recent story that Cannon, a father of 12, just got an insurance policy protecting his nuts for $10 million, lest the world be denied more cannon fodder. “The haters say it’s time for me to stop having kids and put that super sperm to rest, but I’m doubling down on those precious balls,” Cannon said. The policy is apparently real, but it also involves promoting a line of ball care products.

This report is similar to the porn studio Brazzers which in 2012 took out an insurance policy on their star Keiran Lee which insured his penis for 1 million dollars (or, as we have the duty to clarify for the curious: 100,000 dollars per inch). As Lee assured his fans at the time, “I have no plans to lose my penis anytime soon.”

Here’s a more innocent example: In 2007, America Ferrera made headlines for her confident smile for $10 million, even though it was all part of a promotion for Aquafresh. “It’s very flattering,” Ferrera said, “[and] This is not something I would have imagined happening.

Ferrera’s insurance policy was through Lloyds of London, which has positioned itself as the go-to insurer of celebrity body parts since the 1940s, when it insured Betty Grable’s legs for $1 million. of dollars. It is rarely reported against which potential calamities the famous appendages are actually insured (fire? flood? Certainly not theft!). Skeptics point out that standard long-term disability insurance can cover an artist who becomes disabled, but what’s the point in a policy that doesn’t distinguish your best-known asset?

More credible examples include singers allegedly purchasing insurance against the threat of losing their voices. In 2010, Time reported that Bruce Springsteen insured his voice for $6 million. (The Boss never confirmed this.)

Most recently, Ramsay reportedly insured his tongue for $10 million if his expert palate diminished. Judging by Ramsay’s new frozen food line, the chef might even already have a complaint. Ramsay had no comment on the report, but “taste assurance” is a reality among some high-profile chefs and tasters. Once again, many examples fall into the realm of self-promotion – like that of the great wine taster Ilja Gort who insured his nose for $8 million in 2008.

There are also several models and singer-dancers who have had…