Wayne Newton Net Worth - Pulptastic

February 02, 2024

What is Wayne Newton’s Net Worth?

Wayne Newton, the American singer, actor and entertainer, has a net worth of $50 million dollars. He is widely recognized for his musical hits, including “Danke Schoen” and “Daddy Don’t You Walk So Fast”, as well as his popular sold-out Las Vegas performances, totaling over 30,000.

Despite his success, Newton filed for bankruptcy in 1992 and faced financial struggles again in 2010. However, he has since recovered financially.

Early Life and Career

Carson Wayne Newton was born on April 3, 1942, in Norfolk, Virginia to Patrick Newton and Evelyn Marie Smith. He began playing musical instruments at the age of six and entered the entertainment industry during his childhood. Newton and his elder brother performed in clubs, fairs, and theaters as the Rascals in Rhythm. They toured with the Grand Ole Opry roadshows and on television specials like “Ozark Jubilee,” and even performed in front of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. In 1958, Newton was discovered by a Las Vegas booking agent after appearing on the “Lew King Rangers Show” on local TV. For five years, he and his brother performed six shows a day.

Wayne Newton’s Career Highlights

Wayne Newton began his career in 1962 as an actor on the Jackie Gleason Show and landed a role on the TV series “Bonanza.” He signed with Capitol Records in 1963 and his first album, “Danke Schoen,” reached No. 13 on the Billboard charts. Newton’s recording of “Daddy, Don’t You Walk So Far” sold over 1 million copies in 1972. He replaced the Beach Boys and The Grass Roots at the 1983 Independence Day celebration at the Washington Mall. Newton had a 10-year deal with the Stardust Resort and Casino in Las Vegas starting in 1999, performing 40 weeks out of the year. He started a reality competition show on E! Entertainment network called “The Entertainer” in 2005. Newton received a Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service in 2008. In 2016, he returned to the stage with a lounge show, “Up Close & Personal.”

Newton’s Personal Life

Newton was married to Elaine Okamura from 1968-1985. They have one child, Erin Newton, born in 1976.

In 1994, Newton married lawyer Kathleen McCrone and they have one daughter, Lauren Ashley Newton, born in 2002.

Financial Struggles of Wayne Newton

In 1992, Wayne Newton filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to reorganize $20 million of debts, most of which he spent while suing NBC for libel. The bankruptcy included a $341,000 IRS tax lien. Although he recovered financially by 1999, in August 2005, the IRS filed a lawsuit against him and his wife claiming they owed more than $1.8 million in taxes and penalties. Later in 2009, officials at the Oakland County Airport in Waterford, Michigan, claimed Newton owed the airport more than $60,000 for unpaid parking fees after he abandoned a $2 million dollar private plane there more than three years prior. The monthly parking fee for the plane was $5,000, and he never paid the fines, causing the plane to become filled with mold and no longer viable as an aircraft.

Wayne Newton’s Former Estate, Casa de Shenandoah

Wayne Newton and his family lived at a 39-acre estate in Paradise, Nevada called “Casa de Shenandoah” from the 1960s until 2010. The property had a primary 11,000 square-foot mansion, seven additional houses, and equestrian facilities for over 100 horses. Newton also installed a zoo with exotic animals and had a jumbo jet terminal and runaway, heliport, car museum, tennis courts, gaming room, and production facilities. In 2010, Newton sold 80% of the property for $20 million to a development company planning to convert it to a theme park. The plans were eventually abandoned, and the property was listed for sale in 2013 for $70 million but had no takers. In 2019, Newton attempted to re-acquire 100% of Casa de Shenandoah for $6 million but was rebuffed. The property was sold to Smoketree LLC for $5.56 million, and Newton filed a lawsuit seeking to retrieve the estate’s contents and legal ownership of the name “Casa Shenandoah”.

In 2013, Newton and his wife purchased a new 10-acre property two miles down the road from their former estate for $8 million over three transactions.