Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context Main / DeadArtistsAreBetter

Go To

1%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1368840591044660100
2%% Please do not change or remove without starting a new thread.
3%%
4%% Real Life examples of Tear Jerker are not allowed. This also means no potholing to the page to emphasize how sad a real person's death is.
5%%
6%% Out-of-universe reactions go on PosthumousPopularityPotential
7
8[[quoteright:325:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dead_artist_3067.png]]
9[[caption-width-right:325:...not ''[[LiteralMinded quite]]'' what we meant.[[note]]James Ensor, ''The Painter Skeleton'', 1896[[/note]]]]
10
11->''"The overwhelming prerequisite for the greatness of an artist is that artist's death."''
12-->-- '''Thiessen's Law of Art'''
13
14The vast majority of shows that mention {{paintings}} will mention this trope at one point: Artists are never recognized until after they're dead. Though this [[TruthInTelevision has happened in many cases]], there have also been a lot of {{painters}} that were celebrated while still alive. Nor has the deceased gained fame immediately after their corpse hits the ground, as seems to happen when this trope is in effect. But nonetheless, it is a law of fiction-land that if your art is scorned and ignored while you live, it will be hung next to Picasso's or played along Mozart's when you die.
15
16In theory, the idea that dead artists are better may result from them dying at their peak: they will be forever associated with their "magnum opus" rather than having to suffer ToughActToFollow. They don't have time to get into an AudienceAlienatingEra of divisive or low-quality work. A dead artist also can't get into more [[OvershadowedByControversy scandals or controversies]], and NeverSpeakIllOfTheDead brings a moratorium on harsh criticism of them. And in a more general sense, an artist's death induces scarcity: since they definitely won't produce any more works, their existing ones become more precious.
17
18In 99% of the cases where this trope is mentioned, one character, either the artist or an associate, will come up with the "brilliant" idea of spreading rumors of the artist's death, which immediately causes said artist's work to skyrocket in popularity and sell like hotcakes. Of course, something inevitably goes wrong, [[ReportsOfMyDeathWereGreatlyExaggerated the artist is found to be alive]], and [[StatusQuoIsGod the status quo is restored]]. Fraud accusations are seldom made.
19
20The modern-day sentiment is probably "Dead Musicians Are Better". Streams of a freshly-deceased artist's songs usually skyrocket and social media can make people's opinions very apparent. (2016 was a good [[Music/DavidBowie year]]-[[Music/{{Prince}} long]] [[Music/GeorgeMichael example]], although it was mostly seen about already-famous musicians getting even more popularity after death.) PosthumousPopularityPotential is the version of this trope in real-life.
21
22Historically, this trope has affected most artists far less than people assume. Shakespeare was very successful in life, so was Beethoven. After all, only a few people would continue doing something for a long time without some kind of success. This is glaringly obvious for composers - of the top tier, only Bach and Tchaikovsky come even remotely close to this trope, and they were still far from starving in life.
23
24See also VindicatedByHistory, TrueArtIsAncient, and ShortLivedBigImpact. When a dead artist is celebrated through song, it's a CelebrityElegy. Such celebrities are good candidates to [[CelebritiesHangOutInHeaven hang out in heaven]]. Many examples below also fall under NeverSpeakIllOfTheDead, in that some artists who became greatly celebrated after their death were hated or ridiculed in life.
25
26!!As this is a {{Death Trope|s}}, [[Administrivia/SpoilersOff unmarked spoilers abound]]. [[Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned Beware]].
27----
28!Examples:
29
30[[foldercontrol]]
31
32[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
33* This trope is discussed in ''Manga/CaseClosed''. In [[KidDetective Conan]] and [[PhantomThief Kaito Kid]]'s first encounter, Kaito Kid suggests thieves are creative artists while detectives are merely art critics. Later in the case, as Conan attempts to unmask Kaito Kid's [[LatexPerfection disguise]]:
34-->'''Conan Edogawa''': Most talented artists gain fame only after death. I'll make you a renowned master, Kaito Kid... by burying you in a cemetery called '''prison'''.
35* The plot device with a faked death skyrocketing popularity and recognition is used in ''Anime/GalaxyAngel'' almost perfectly, although with a military officer instead of an artist.
36** A similar thing happens in ''Manga/CannonGodExaxxion'', though in this case the people playing up the war hero's death actually believed he was dead at first. When it turns out he wasn't, rather than admitting their mistake, they decide to make it come true.
37* In ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'', Hyde is under the impression that people will not love his grim, macabre works of art until after he dies. This is a motive for his villainy in the first place, as he tries to find Mu to become immortal so that he may live to see people appreciate him. When this doesn't seem to be working out, he starts an art class for children to get them to appreciate the art when they grow older, but they all ignore him and simply come for the free food. Free food provided by Luna Platz at that, who is perhaps is his sole earnest student.
38* In one chapter of ''Manga/PetShopOfHorrors'', a has-been actor whose only success was a small role in a cult-classic sci-fi film dies of suicide by basilisk. At his funeral, people are already starting to speak of him as if he were a great actor whose immense talent was gone too soon from the world.
39* Manjimutt from ''Anime/YokaiWatch'' uses this as an excuse for why he has no friends. It should be noted Manjimutt is ''already dead'' and is not even an actual artist.
40-->'''Manjimutt:''' The snowflakes are my only friends. Artists are never appreciated in their lifetime.
41* Invoked in an episode of ''Anime/SorcererHunters'' where the VillainOfTheWeek tries to have an artist killed just to increase the value of his paintings.
42[[/folder]]
43
44[[folder:Comic Books]]
45* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' comic strip "Interstellar Overdrive 2" in ''Magazine/DoctorWhoMagazine'', the manager of a band plans to kill them all in a spaceship 'accident' so the record company can make a fortune reissuing new editions of their back catalogue.
46* In ''ComicBook/AdventureTimeMarcelineGoneAdrift'', an evil hipster takes advantage of Marceline's apparent death to appoint himself the keeper of her memory, produce unauthorised merch, and eventually loot her house for memorabilia.
47* In ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'', in one [[RightWayWrongWayPair Melvin and Jenkins]] feature, Melvin pockets a terminally ill boy's art, hoping that it will increase in value once the kid dies.
48[[/folder]]
49
50[[folder:Comic Strips]]
51* ''The New Yorker'' once ran a cartoon with a well-off couple asking a street artist "And how much more would this be worth if you died?"
52[[/folder]]
53
54[[folder:Fan Works]]
55* In ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/4145459/2/The-Horror-The-Horror The Horror! The Horror!]]'' Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel, having changed their names and professions after the Philosopher's Stone was (supposedly) destroyed, discuss doing it again in the hope of finding better ones than they currently have.
56-->'''Nicolas:''' Famous artist?\
57'''Perenelle:''' Maybe, but you'd have to die before your paintings would be worth anything.\
58'''Nicolas:''' [[JuliusBeethovenDaVinci Done it before.]] We could do it again.
59* In ''Fanfic/NoCompetition'' Ally consoles an eight-year-old Harry for his poor grade in art.
60-->'''Ally:''' No artist is truly famous unless they are dead, so it scarcely matters while you're alive.
61* In ''Fanfic/ClaroDeLuna'' it's mentioned that the famous cellist Colccherini wasn't well-recognized until after his death. This also foreshadows Octavia's own fate, as her lover Luna immortalizes her in history after her death.
62[[/folder]]
63
64[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
65* In ''Film/BringMeTheHeadOfMavisDavis'', a struggling record producer plots to invoke this trope by murdering his one remaining artist in order to boost flagging sales of her work. It... [[HilarityEnsues doesn't go]] [[BlackComedy according to plan]].
66* Discussed in ''Film/DieAnotherDay''. Jinx is meeting with a surgeon on the Cuban island, discussing a drastic procedure to change her looks. He says that he considers himself an artist, and she remarks that most great artists aren't celebrated until after their deaths, upon which she shoots him.
67* The movie ''Film/{{Pauly Shore is Dead}}'' shamelessly parodies this trope.
68* This trope is the subject of the song performed in the opening sequence of ''Film/PhantomOfTheParadise''.
69* In ''Film/ShesAllThat'', two girls in Lani's art class compliment her on how wonderful her paintings are. She thinks it's a genuine compliment until they suggest she invoke this trope and "off herself" as all the greats did.
70* The trope is the whole plot of the '60s movie ''Film/TheArtOfLove'', which has Dick Van Dyke staging his own death to increase the value of his paintings.
71* Discussed in ''Film/StrangeDays'':
72-->'''Lenny:''' Too bad about your guy Jeriko... well don't worry: his records will sell out now he's dead
73* ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'': Cal taunts Rose by saying "It's a pity I didn't keep that drawing. It'll be worth a lot more by morning". Unfortunately he's quite right -- Jack dies despite Rose making every effort to rescue him. Furthermore by the time of the film's modern-day FramingDevice, the drawing has been preserved in a safe on the wreck, and being a ''Titanic'' artefact combined with the fact that the artist died in the sinking, it's now a priceless treasure.
74* Robin Williams' son in ''Film/WorldsGreatestDad'' is a terrible person in life, but Robin takes advantage of his death to sell his own book, disguised as a journal the son wrote before death.
75[[/folder]]
76
77[[folder:Literature]]
78* ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'': {{Invoked|Trope}} by Edriss 562 in setting up [[{{Cult}} The Sharing]], though not involving an artist. She infested a charismatic real estate salesman named Lawrence Alter, changed his name to Lore David Altman, and when the group was large enough, killed him. She'd learned from human media that people will revere a dead leader, but living leaders could have their reputations ruined.
79* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' novel ''Literature/SoulMusic'', Music With Rocks In requires the early death of its first host (the singer Buddy) in order to spread further. "Everyone will remember the songs he never had a chance to sing. And they would be the greatest songs of all." See the quote page.
80* OlderThanRadio: In one of Creator/MarkTwain's short stories, two starving artists manufacture a great deal of art... and then manufacture a story about how the artist who painted these things is fatally ill. Naturally, the artist in question eventually "dies", and his paintings become valuable overnight. Note that said dead artist is François Millet.
81* ''[[Literature/LordPeterWimsey Strong Poison]]'' by Creator/DorothyLSayers is a murder mystery in which the victim and the prime suspect are both authors. The publicity from the trial substantially helps both their sales; the detective discusses this as a possible motive for the murder but doesn't pursue it because he's in love with the suspect and trying to clear her. As it turns out, she's innocent, and his murder had nothing to do with him being an author.
82* In Margaret Atwood's ''Literature/ResourcesOfTheIkarians'', the inhabitants of a barren island devoid of sources of income start cultivating dead artists.
83* Noted in Dumas' novel ''Literature/TheCountOfMonteCristo'', where the Count notes that the modern school of artists has one major failing -- "They have not had enough time to become Old Masters".
84* ''Literature/TheSecondDeadlySin'' (1977) by Lawrence Sanders uses this trope. The artist with the terminal illness has stockpiled paintings to provide for his family and agent. But he lives longer than expected and keeps on producing more paintings...
85* This was the entire motive of the killer in Literature/PhryneFisher novel ''Murder in Montparnasse''.
86* The first case Creator/KevinJAnderson's [[Literature/DanShambleZombiePI Dan Shamble]] is shown working on in ''Death Warmed Over'' is that of a ghost artist, who's having a feud with his heirs: they don't want him to start painting again, because his pre-mortem paintings' value will plummet if they ''aren't'' his "last work" anymore.
87* {{Averted| trope}} in Max Beerbohm's Victorian Era short story "Literature/EnochSoames". The titular obscure poet is convinced that his reputation will soar after his death, so he [[DealWithTheDevil sells his soul]] to travel 100 years into the future and bask in his posthumous glory. An afternoon spent in the Reading Room of the British Museum teaches him the bitter truth. Not only is he considered a mediocre poet; he's also believed to be a fictional character created by Beerbohm.
88* Invoked in the ''Webcomic/FeliciaSorceressOfKatara'' novella "The Cult of the Rubber Nose", the owner of an art gallery bought a bunch of crappy paintings at excessive prices, then attempted to make up his losses by assassinating the artists to make them more valuable.
89* In the novella ''Getting Even'' by Ray Brown, an entire extraterrestrial race (sometime before the story starts) got wiped out by a bomb dropped into their sun, causing a solar flare to wash over their planet; and the art of that race suddenly became quite valuable as a result.
90* In ''Literature/TheNewestPlutarch'', Walter Monks’ last movie was a major hit due to his NoStuntDouble policy getting him killed on set.
91* In ''The Book of Basketball'', Creator/TheSportsGuy discusses how Usefulnotes/MichaelJordan's unretirement years were a blemish to a great career by comparing it to Music/KurtCobain: he says part of why Music/{{Nirvana}} attained legendary status was that their frontman killed himself at the band's peak. The last memory Cobain left was ''Music/MTVUnpluggedInNewYork'', but Jordan's wasn't sinking a last-minute 20-footer to win his sixth title in 8 years. Simmons even states Cobain could've outright ruined his legacy had he instead just sunk into drugs and insanity, leading to a tribulated personal life and albums of incoherent music that would make him be called just a wasted career rather than the father of alternative music. (he also points out Music/MichaelJackson was in 1987 considered the most talented pop artist ever, and then became OvershadowedByControversy enough that it took him dying for people to just focus on his music again).
92* ''Literature/TheHike2023'': While Joni certainly wasn't unsuccessful as a musician when she was alive, it's mentioned that following her death her last album stays at the top of the charts for seven weeks, Helena's video of Joni's final live performance gets 20 million views and Joni's ex-boyfriend/manager Kai seems to forget all the problems they had (including threatening to sue her for breach of contract when she walked out on him) and gives interviews where he bangs on about Joni being the love of his life, with the implication it's because in death she's making him even more money.
93[[/folder]]
94
95[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
96* Invoked in ''Series/FortyFiveRPM'': Robert's farewell letter to Maribel, as he says that his passing should make for great publicity for his second album if he doesn't make it out of the heart surgery alive.
97* ''Series/BarneyMiller'': In "[[Recap/BarneyMillerS8E04 Possession]]", Harris buys an abstract art painting because he heard the artist had a heart attack and is about to die, which should make the painting worth more. He's irritated when the artist recovers and goes home.
98* ''Series/TheDukesOfHazzard'': Season 6's "Dead and Alive," where Boss Hogg declares Hazzard County artist Artie Bender dead...shortly after he witnesses two crooks rob an armored car. While Boss is anticipating selling Artie's paintings at grossly inflated prices, Bo and Luke are trying to have their alibi credited to hard-nosed Sheriff Little, who has fingered them as the suspects.
99* Since one of the main characters of ''Series/CarolineInTheCity'' is a struggling artist, this trope was inevitable: Richard is mistakenly reported dead and his paintings start selling like hotcakes. Complications arise when a [[StrawCritic prominent critic]] demands to [[TheFunInFuneral go to the funeral]]. HilarityEnsues...
100** [[FollowTheLeader Also happens]] in the TV series ''Series/LushLife'', which the main character is an artist.
101** Hey, guess what? The same thing happened on ''Series/MyTwoDads'' with Joey, including the funeral. [[SarcasmMode What are the odds of that?]]
102* In ''Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'' Hilda sells Salem's paintings, passing them off as her own. When he changes his art style, the new paintings don't sell as well. His solution? Tell the newspapers Hilda died, hoping the paintings sell better. Unfortunately for her, the man she was dating reads the obituary and runs out of the house in terror when she comes into the room.
103--> '''Hilda:''' That's just great. I meet the man of my dreams. And then I die.
104* In ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}'', George buys a crappy painting from an artist who he expects to die soon, hoping that his death will cause the painting to go up in price. Instead, the artist recovers from his illness, [[{{Irony}} crediting George with saving his life because somebody finally buying one of his paintings had restored his will to live]].
105* On ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'', the girls hear that a famous artist is near death, so they buy one of his paintings to make a quick buck. Then Sophia ends up saving the guy's life with a blood transfusion.
106* In the ''Series/{{Bones}}'' episode "The Skull in the Sculpture" the murderer turned out to be banking on this trope.
107* On ''Series/TheMuppetShow'', Gonzo once gave Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge his autograph under the assumption that it would be believed that his last act had rendered him dead, and his autograph would be worth a lot more.
108* On ''Series/{{Taxi}}'', the Sunshine Cab Company employees bid on a painting by an artist Elaine knows is at death's door. He's announced dead right after the painting is sold to someone else, causing a priceless breakdown from Louie.
109* In a ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' sketch, a marketing consultant advises a past-his-peak rock star that this trope is the best way to increase his popularity. When the performer proves reluctant to take this route, the consultant shows him a line graph comparing Peter Frampton's and [[Music/TheDoors Jim Morrison's]] album sales for the same time period.
110* Parodied on an episode of ''Series/ICarly'': when Spencer (an amateur artist) is incorrectly reported dead in the newspaper for some unexplained reason, he (along with sister Carly) exploits this by milking thousands of dollars off of customers for his {{sculptures}}.
111* The ''Series/HogansHeroes'' episode "Klink's Masterpiece" ends with Col. Hogan reminding Klink of this trope, noting that Creator/VincentVanGogh and Claude Gauguin starved, only becoming popular after their deaths.
112* ''Series/CriminalMinds'': The unsub in "Magnum Opus" dies of SuicideByCop for this reason.
113* ''Series/MidsomerMurders'': After an artist is murdered in "The Dagger Club", her dealer immediately triples the price of all of her artworks.
114* One VictimOfTheWeek in ''Series/{{iZombie}}'' is an artist. One of the leads turns out to be an offhand comment about this trope, but the lead turns out to be false (but it is used by the real killer to frame the artist's dealer). Several art admirers even mention that the greatest thing an artist can do for his career is to die.
115* On ''Series/ThirtyRock'', Jenna's BioPic about Music/JanisJoplin is getting terrible advance reviews, so Jack decides to fake her death to take advantage of this effect. Jenna ends up [[AttendingYourOwnFuneral blowing the whole thing in the middle of a live televised tribute]] because of a banner showing her birth and death year: "It has the year I was born on it. The real year, not the actress year."
116* ''Series/MajorCrimes'': In "Acting Out", a former child star is murdered while attempting to make a comeback. At the end of the episode, his agent remarks that this is the best career move he could have made, as sales of his old TV series, his [=CDs=] and even his unwatchable concert film are going through the roof.
117* ''Series/DeathInParadise'':
118** The motive for murder in "Music of Murder".
119** When an aging rock star is murdered in "Swimming in Murder", the killer arranges for him to die in the most rock-n-roll way possible: [[ElectrifiedBathtub being electrocuted in a swimming pool]]. The killer hopes this will make him a legend and ensure the band's comeback is successful.
120* ''Series/MurderSheWrote'': In "Angel of Death", when it is thought that a famous playwright has been murdered, his director remarks that his final, unpublished play will have a sellout season.
121* Lampshaded by the widow of a now-famous artist whose death is being re-investigated in ''Series/MissFishersMurderMysteries''.
122-->'''Veronique''': Now that he's famous, now they care about his death.
123* The ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E10VincentAndTheDoctor "Vincent and the Doctor"]] plays with the most famous real-life example by transporting Creator/VincentVanGogh to the present day; his paintings, which were worthless in his time, are the subject of a major art expo, and the man running it gushes about how Van Gogh is the greatest artist of all time. But seeing this apparently isn't enough to prevent his suicide.
124* The pilot episode of ''Series/Lucifer2016'' has this turn out to be the motive behind the pop star's murder.
125[[/folder]]
126
127[[folder:Music]]
128* Bill Drummond (later a member of Music/TheKLF) wrote a song that appeared on his solo album ''The Man'' dealing with just this. The title: "Julian Cope Is Dead". During the song, Julian Cope dies in order to make his band, The Teardrop Explodes, famous. Bill used to be the manager of the band and the song is a parody of Cope's own solo song "Bill Drummond Said". Drummond's frustration with the music industry (and Cope in particular) is quite well known.
129* The Music/DireStraits song "In the Gallery" relates the story of an artist driven to create but never gaining recognition, until... "I've got to say he passed away in obscurity / And now all the vultures are coming down from the tree / So he's going to be in the gallery"
130* The title of the Music/{{Nightwish|Band}} song "Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan" translates to "Death Makes an Artist". They also have "The Poet and the Pendulum", which is basically a 14-minute EpicRocking song about Tuomas dying, which was written by Tuomas himself.
131* The whole point of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZXzMDKEwqI "Self Suicide"]] by ''Goldie Lookin Chain'', the band sing about killing themselves to improve record sales and say how it worked for other celebrities.
132* "Schneller Leben" (Live Faster) by German punk band Music/DieArzte is all about parodying this trope.
133-->''"Kurt Cobain hat es gewusst, im alter droht Gesichtsverlust. Was glaubst du warum Jesu Christ, schon so jung gestorben ist. Music/JimiHendrix und Creator/BruceLee, alt geworden sind die nie. Lern von diesen Vorbildern, als Leiche hat dich jeder gern."''\
134(Kurt Cobain knew, with age comes loss of face. What do you think Jesus Christ died so young? Jimi Hendrix and Bruce Lee, they never got to grow old. Learn from these great examples, everyone likes you as a corpse.)
135* Music/TheSmiths song "Paint A Vulgar Picture" is about the record industry's tendency to do this with dead musicians.
136-->''At the record company meeting, on their hands a dead star.''
137* The ChristianRock band Dead Artist's Syndrome is named for this trope.
138* Mentioned in "If I Die Young" by The Band Perry: "Penny for my thoughts? Oh no, I'll sell them for a dollar / They're worth so much more now that I'm a goner / Maybe then you'll hear the words I've been singin' / Funny when you're dead, that's when people start listenin'"
139* "Fake My Own Death and Go Platinum" by Music/{{Psychostick}}.
140--> Well you see, I wanna sell a million records / But my music sucks so what am I to do? / [[LampshadeHanging They say an artist is appreciated after he's dead]] / I have no talent, but I bet that it's still true. / The lyrics all suck / and the chords are too funky / We're on a major label cuz / we're just plain lucky / We sold 4 albums to our own mothers / we have a few supporters / (but there aren't many others…) / What if I could live / When they all would think I'm dead / Oh just what if I could have me a cake / and eat it too? / I'd be set for life / No more struggles, no more strife / Let the money do the talking / I'm a dead man walking.
141* The Music/TwentyOnePilots song "Neon Gravestones" is about how people should stop doing this, especially in regards to romanticizing an artist's suicide.
142[[/folder]]
143
144[[folder:Radio]]
145* Invoked in ''Radio/TheGoonShow'' episode "Tales of Montmartre:"
146-->'''Gauguin:''' You can keep my paintings.\
147'''[[Creator/HenriDeToulouseLautrec Toulouse-Lautrec]]:''' What good are they?\
148'''Gauguin:''' Nothing now, they'll be worth a fortune after I'm dead.\
149'''Toulouse-Lautrec:''' After you're dead... ''[GUNSHOT]'' I'm rich!
150* The Hotblack Desiato story arc in ''Radio/TheHitchHikersGuideToTheGalaxy1978'' has the universe-famous rock star spend a year dead for "tax reasons". It doesn't do his music sales any harm, either.
151* ''Dead Famous'' is a Radio 4 documentary strand tracing artists' posthumous careers backwards from their current fame to their death in obscurity, looking at the mechanisms that make this happen.
152[[/folder]]
153
154[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
155* In one of the MultipleEndings for the ''TabletopGame/Cyberpunk2020'' module ''Eurotour'', the [[CorruptCorporateExecutive record label]] of rockstar Jack Entropy tries to invoke this trope by assassinating him before his [[SexDrugsAndRockAndRoll self-destructive lifestyle]] can make him stop being profitable. The module even comments, "There's no better way to make an artist popular than to have him die."
156[[/folder]]
157
158[[folder:Theatre]]
159* Timberlake Wertenbaker's play ''Three Birds Alighting on a Field'' invokes this trope repeatedly. One scene has an art dealer discussing the disappointing sales of a particular painter. The artist had died young, which the dealer mentions as a "good thing, from a marketing point of view".
160* A discovered play by Creator/MarkTwain, ''Is He Dead?'', is based on the short story described above with a smattering of AttractiveBentGender and some rather funny {{Melodrama}}.
161* In ''Theatre/{{Pippin}}'', the title character tries to succeed at life by taking up art, only to discover that "you got to be dead to you find out if you were any good."
162[[/folder]]
163
164[[folder:Video Games]]
165* The title character of ''VideoGame/AlanWake'' was already a best-selling crime novelist before the events of the game, but by the time the events of ''VideoGame/{{Control}}'' roll around, his disappearance seems to have sparked renewed interest in his work, so much so that his latest published novel, ''The Sudden Stop'', was adapted into a film, implied to be the most recent in a series, as indicated by this line from Langston:
166-->'''Langston:''' ''The Sudden Stop'' hits theaters tonight. Can't believe I'm missing an Alex Casey movie for this.
167* In Creator/WadjetEyeGames' ''[[VideoGame/TheBlackwellSeries The Blackwell Convergence]]'', the antagonist of the story is using a power he doesn't fully understand to strategically kill people in ways that will help his investments do well. At a couple of points, he kills an actor so the movie he stars in will get more promotion, and he kills an artist on the opening night of his art show. The movie becomes a smash success for the small company that produced it and the artist's paintings all sell immediately for a lot more than the original asking prices.
168* One of the newspaper clippings you can get at the end of ''Dyscourse'', [[MultipleEndings depending on your choices]]:
169-->ISLAND VICTIM, GEORGE HATFIELD, RECEIVES CRITICAL ACCLAIM FOR RECENTLY DISCOVERED LOVE NOTES AND POEMS\
170"I liked his work BEFORE he died." - Radek Smektala
171* A pair of side missions in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'' have you helping out an aspiring rapper. At the start of the second mission, he gets shot, and you have to take him to a hospital before he dies. While he's in the car with you, the rapper contemplates how, now that he's had a brush with death in the form of getting shot in the street, more people will take him seriously, meaning that his shot at the big time is now right in front of him. It's not quite death, but it's close enough.
172* Details during one of the mission briefings in ''VideoGame/Hitman2016'' reveal that after Agent 47's assassination of fashion mogul Viktor Novikov during one of his fashion shows, his clothing brand Sanguine has actually risen in popularity. The game's [[VideoGame/Hitman2 sequel]] also reveals that 47's murder of the famed author Craig Black has heavily increased the popularity of his popular franchise of fiction novels, Cassandra Snow (ironic, considering Black held such deep hatred for the franchise that he joined in on a doomsday cult's bioterrorism plot just to make sure he wouldn't be remembered for it).
173* Played with in ''VideoGame/Left4Dead2''. It is initially believed by some wall writers that the Midnight Riders have been overwhelmed by the horde, as evidenced by various writings mourning their deaths. When it is announced that the band is still alive, the wall is then filled with bashings and criticisms of their work.
174* In ''VideoGame/NoUmbrellasAllowed'', artwork made by deceased artists ([[LegallyDead including Fixies]] due to their EmotionSuppression) is seen as highly valuable, adding 1,500V to its base price.
175* The price of a painting in ''VideoGame/TheSims'' skyrockets after the sim who painted it dies.
176* Both discussed and parodied in ''VideoGame/TalesOfMonkeyIsland Chapter 4: The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood'':
177-->'''Guybrush:''' How're sales going?\
178'''Stan:''' Great! Celebrity merchandise is always a good investment, especially if you suspect that the celebrity in question is about to become a wind chime in the gallows! NOTHING sells like dead celebrities.\
179'''Guybrush:''' Yeah, well, [[ScrewDestiny I don't]] [[ProphecyTwist plan on]] [[{{Foreshadowing}} dying today]].
180* In the supplementary comic ''Unhappy Returns'' for ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'', Scout spends all of his and his mother's savings on 12 cubic-yards of Music/TomJones memorabilia with plans to resell them after Jones dies. Spy points out how idiotic this is: Jones is in his twenties (the game being set in the '60s), in perfect health and has no enemies, making dying soon extremely unlikely. Scout says that the plan is "a get-rich-slow scheme". Five months later, [[ItMakesSenseInContext Tom Jones gets killed by the Soldier while in a squabble with his ex-roommate Merasmus]].
181[[/folder]]
182
183[[folder:Visual Novels]]
184* This forms part of the plot of the VisualNovel ''VisualNovel/HotelDuskRoom215'' for the Nintendo DS; an artist who is very much alive and his partner had been [[InvokedTrope exploiting this effect]], getting high prices for the artist's paintings by making up a dead artist named "Osterzone" and saying that Osterzone was the one who painted them.
185[[/folder]]
186
187[[folder:Webcomics]]
188* Subverted in ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'' where Torg's attempts to get his dead friend Bert's painting into a gallery are [[http://www.sluggy.com/daily.php?date=021218 wildly unsuccessful.]]
189* In one ''Webcomic/DorkTower'' strip describing comic book convention tips, an artist has just drawn a sketch for a fan, who remarks "Wow, if you die on the way home, this'll be worth LOTS!"
190* In ''Webcomic/IrregularWebcomic'', after being killed by his future self, [[BreakingTheFourthWall David Morgan-Mar]] speaks to the Head Death about how his death would affect his comic's popularity as shown [[http://www.irregularwebcomic.net/1890.html here.]]
191* Spoofed in ''Webcomic/CyanideAndHappiness'', where an artist insists he will be "more famous after he dies", then hangs himself with his own intestinal tract. A subsequent newspaper headline still describes him as "pretty bad".
192* This is invoked in ''Webcomic/SamAndFuzzy'', where CorruptCorporateExecutive Mr. Sin routinely "kills" his label's artists if they become unmanageable, and uses this trope to get more sales out of them, while the actual artist, still alive, is transported to a deserted island and held there. It's implied the entire recording industry in that universe does it since it happened to Elvis in 1977. He's still on the island thirty years later, and quite bitter about it.
193* Butch of ''Webcomic/ChoppingBlock'' takes advantage of this, [[http://choppingblock.keenspot.com/d/20010108.html buying paintings from artists before he kills them.]]
194* Invoked by Amelia Travoria in ''Webcomic/DominicDeegan''. She used her enchantment magic to drive Michael Cao to produce darker pictures until he was DrivenToSuicide, so she could sell his last works at a markup.
195[[/folder]]
196
197[[folder:Web Original]]
198* ''Literature/TheDayTheMusicDied'': The ''Carverquest'' fandom quickly turns on author Damon Lars Eldrich after finding out about the ending of the last book. As soon as his death is reported, they instantly reverse their opinions and make numerous tributes to him.
199* [[http://www.engrish.com/2003/09/get-noticed/ This shirt]] explains it rather bluntly by saying "GET KILLED GET NOTICED".
200[[/folder]]
201
202[[folder:Western Animation]]
203* A ''WesternAnimation/PinkyAndTheBrain'' episode had Pinky become a hugely successful artist named "Pinkasso", with Brain collecting the money made from his paintings to fund his latest scheme. Naturally, Brain makes "Pinkasso's" popularity skyrocket by announcing his death, but it backfires when Pinky stupidly walks into the auction of the "deceased" artist's work.
204* [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': Lisa is outraged that a record of her deceased idol, Bleeding Gums Murphy, costs $250. When Comic Book Guy learns the man is dead, he immediately doubles the price to $500.
205** In the show's parody of ''Film/{{Amadeus}}'', the dying Mozart (Bart) comments to his sister (Lisa, the Salieri figure) that he thought she was the more talented artist, but now that he is dying young he'll "be cool forever".
206* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'', Dino Spumoni tried to increase his popularity again by faking his death - he got the idea from a book he read about van Gogh. His plan backfired when an imitator took in all his business instead.
207* Parodied in ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'' when it was shown that Stan had a collection of Tara Reid commemorative plates. His son Steve says it will be worth a lot once she dies in a few months.
208* In ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooMysteryInc'', Daphne describes Fred as "one of those geniuses who nobody understands until they're dead." Her description's debatable, though this incarnation of Fred is, at the least, definitely a CloudCuckooLander.
209* ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'':
210** Parodied in the episode "Roswell That Ends Well", where Farnsworth grumbles that being trapped in the 20th century means he'll have to "endure the horrible music of Music/TheBigBopper, and then the terrible tragedy of his death."
211** ''Completely'' averted in the seventh season episode where Bender becomes a paparazzo. Calculon needs to beat a famous actor named Langdon Cobb [[ItMakesSenseInContext so he can weaken his ego]]. He drinks a bottle of food coloring (which is ''very poisonous'' to robots) so he can make a believable death scene. Langdon still wins unanimously.
212* In the ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck'' episode "Paint Misbehavin'" after Splatter Phoenix is splashed with turpentine and begins to [[ImMelting melt]] she comments that at the very least her paintings may now be worth something after she's dead.
213* Used for a joke in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Archer}}''. Archer casually mentions that his long-suffering valet Woodhouse is a genius at what he does.
214-->'''Woodhouse:''' Though like so many other geniuses; unappreciated in his time.
215* In the ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "Out of the Picture", an art critic makes the mistake of informing [[MoneyFetish Mr. Krabs]] of this trope, prompting him to make repeated attempts at getting Squidward "[[DeadlyEuphemism out of the picture]]" so he can resell Squidward's worthless paintings for a huge profit.
216* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Invincible|2021}}'', after Omni-Man leaves Earth at the end of Season One, Cecil tells his wife Debbie that the official story for his civilian identity Nolan Grayson is that [[GasLeakCoverup he died in a gas leak explosion]] and that the travel books he wrote will see a significant rise in purchases, ensuring that she and Mark will be financially secure for the future.
217[[/folder]]

Top