Late ‘Rocky’ Star Carl Weathers’ Left 6-Figure Sum in Safety Deposit Boxes

Since when is $900K a massive estate? Does his family think it's 1968?

Why would he keep all of that money in a safety deposit box, rather than in an interest bearing account?

He could have been making money with his money.

With that, you got a stew goin’ on.

He saved money by gettin' a stew on.

As someone who has been in banking most of my career, you would be surprised how many people feel safer keeping cash in a safe deposit box rather than in a savings account or even a CD. The interest rates have been close to zero for about 13 years so the interest that would have been earned was negligible. The rates have only finally been increased about 2 years ago.

R5, if you keep all that cash in a safety deposit box, can you take out all that money at once?

I know if you have a savings or checking account, you'd have to jump through hoops to make a very large withdrawal, but if you keep it all in a safety deposit box, are the rules different?

I'm assuming you can just grab all your cash and walk out.

Is that correct?

[quote]Why would he keep all of that money in a safety deposit box, rather than in an interest bearing account?

Taxes, of course. The IRS just LOVES to hear about cash hoards.

Can the IRS tax that money now?

[quote]Since when is $900K a massive estate? Does his family think it's 1968?

InTouch only phrased it that way as clickbait. Weathers was thrice-divorced; his estate would've been larger if not for that, assuming he wasn't a spendthrift. (I prefer to imagine him as his ultra-frugal Arrested Development persona.)

[quote] I'm assuming you can just grab all your cash and walk out.

Yes, you can. Some people don't trust banks and/or want to avoid the tax consequences that come with investments. The IRS does not tax estate transfers if estate value is less than $11mm.

r8 Depends on where it came from.

"Can the IRS tax that money now?

No. If he paid the taxes on it when he first EARNED it, the IRS has no right or reason to tax it again.

Suppose your employer paid you your annual NET (not gross) salary in one lump sum. You put it in a safety deposit box for safe keeping and forget about it. Two years later, you realize your mistake, withdraw the money and start spending it. The IRS has no right to tax that money again.

How did he accumulate so much cash? Every time he got a check he cashed it and walked the money over to the safe deposit boxes?

According to Fani Willis, holding cash like that is a black cultural phenomenon.

How is 870 Gs a "massive estate"?

I’m glad they listed his vehicle, and it’s potential worth.

“Potential” is generous.

Well, at least his two sons (heirs) won't have trouble liquidating his assets.

[quote] Why would he keep all of that money in a safety deposit box, rather than in an interest bearing account?

For a lot of people (mainly those who don't completely trust banks or the FDIC & NCUA, it's a way of safeguarding sums of money just in case of social collapse. People who come from poor backgrounds and obtain wealth later on are usually more apt to have these feelings. And then there are people who are involved in various sorts of illegal activities who live with the fear that the authorities are one day going to find out what they're up to and attach all their bank accounts.

This is an example of just how silly those net worth sites are. They claim that at the time of his death he had a net worth of $9.2 million.

Chump change

Massive? Less than a million dollars is hardly massive.

Frankly if it's true, I am shocked that he was worth less than $1 million after all his years in the business.

I thought it was illegal to keep cash in a safety deposit box. Also, why would his family divulge that he had?

The information comes from court filings in probate. They had to disclose the estate's value. Sounds like he didn't have a trust set up.

Thanks R25.

I worked in a bank in Pennsylvania from the late 1980s until the mid 1990s. Unless I’m totally misremembering, I thought a persons wasn’t supposed to keep cash in a box (although we bank employees always just turned our heads). I also tho Guy the main reason to keep cash in a box was to keep it a secret.

Aside: once a customer got really angry with the bank )can’t remember why) and filled his safety deposit box with fish — what a mess, but also sort of brilliant.

Dealing exclusively or nearly so with cash is very much a black thang.

[quote] According to Fani Willis, holding cash like that is a black cultural phenomenon.

I read on Datalounge that the reason Aretha Franklin carried a purse with her on-stage was because she demanded to be paid in cash at her performances, and she put the money in her purse and held it in her purse while she performed.

Why didn’t he keep the cash in his décolletage. That’s where Mother always kept her emergency money.

Same deal with Chuck Berry, R28 (minus the purse).

Aretha Franklin died with $1,000,000 in uncashed checks in her house. Why didn’t she take it to the bank? Avoiding taxes? But also avoiding income.

Fanni Willis said 'it's a black thing' to keep cash available to you, as they don't trust banks or investment houses.

She certainly debunked 25+ years of Judge Judy telling black litigants "You're lying" when they used to tell her they had no bank accounts, and only dealt with cash all their lives. So can you imagine Carl Weathers in front of Judge Judy, trying to prove his innocence as a defendant, saying he paid his debts to the plaintiff in cash ?

CW: Your honor, I paid him in cash.

JJ: You paid him $10,000 in cash for the boat ? Is that what you want me to believe ? Where did you get the cash ?

CW: From my safety deposit box at the bank.

JJ (fake laughing): You, sir, are a liar. And not a very good one. No one keeps cash in a safety deposit box these days. No one. You either have a savings account, a checking account or both. No one keeps cash in a house or a safety deposit box. You understand me ? So far you owe him $10,000 for the boat because you're a liar. You get where I'm going ?

He could've made a fortune on OnlyFans.

Yes he could've R33 in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

It's also possible that he had setup some sort of family trust where he kept most of his assets and this was just the "cash" he left behind.

He didn’t leave any to me, so a I don’t care.

[quote]it's a way of safeguarding sums of money just in case of social collapse.

But in the case of social collapse, he expected his safe deposit boxes to be safe?

I pays all my utility bills at the grocery store. We gonna be here a while...

If you want to see Carl Weathers at his finest he's on 'In The Heat Of The Night' every day now on MeTV at 11:00 EST.

RIP. I always yearned to see his dick.