Oscartime is a lot of fun for everyone. There are artistic and popular merits to all the films and perfomances to argue and there are all those trivia questions to float around. One of the best things to find out every year is the price tag attached to the Oscar goodie bags. This year the estimate for all those weird and luxurious items is a cool $200,000. This proves that the economy seems to be going very well for the rich and famous who get all that swag just for showing up to see if they have won an award. The very rich really are different.
The tradition of giving goodie bags actually started in 2001 and quickly grew from a little bag full of odds and ends, candy or trinkets. Within a short time, things as complex as African safaris were being given away. Companies gladly paid several thousand dollars for the privilege of giving away goods and services to the rich and famous. One big, bad meanie didn't think much of this practice and started demanding accounting for this.
The IRS considered all this lucrative booty undeclared income and it turns out that not even Hollywood likes to pay the taxman. After quickly rising to somewhere around $150,000 in 2005 the value of the bags nosedived. The 2013 gift bag was valued at a measly $48,000. The rich goodies bag is back and really stuffed this year. It is estimated to be worth $200,000.
Taking a look inside will make you laugh and cry. According to The Daily Beast, there is a 10 first class trip to Israel, a walking trip in Japan. You get a year's worth of unlimited Audi car rentals in your bag and a lot of pricey skin creams. Best of all, you, if you're talented enough to be nominated, you will also get a roll of luxury toilet paper and a female "arouser." No one knows what sex toys and toilet paper have to do with the art of film.
