"Steven Spielberg, the director famous for blockbuster films such as 2005's ""War of the Worlds"" and 1982's ""E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial"" was last year's highest-paid celebrity, reports Forbes Magazine.

With an estimated earnings of $340 million ? the equivalent of more than $10 a second. A radio personality, Howard Stern, took home the second place spot with an estimated $308 million, and the

""Star Wars"" franchise creator, George Lucas, took third with about $240 million, Forbes said.

The ""Harry Potter"" series author, J.K. Rowling, was the only non-American on the list, with an estimated income of $77 million. Ms. Rowling wrote the bestselling book in America last year, ""Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,"" which sold more than 7 million copies.

Source: /www.nysun.com"">NY Sun"