Did Jennifer Lopez Insure Her Butt for a Billion Dollars?

Multi-talented singer, dancer, actress Jennifer Lopez shot to fame not only for her prodigious musical and theatrical chops but also for her voluptuous figure. In fact, J-Lo's well-endowed gluteus maximus attracted so much admiration and attention, it became its own meme and may well have been the inspiration for a surge in women seeking surgical implants to enhance their own bottom lines. Word soon began to spread that Lopez had insured her greatest physical asset for a billion dollars—but was the rumor true?

If Jennifer Lopez did take out an insurance policy on her buttocks, she wouldn't have been the first famous person to get coverage for some or all of their most precious physical assets. In 2010, Business Insider ran a story listing 20 celebrities who'd allegedly insured body parts, including Jennifer Lopez—with an emphasis on the word allegedly.

While similar unsubstantiated claims continue to proliferate in multiple online outlets, a more credible source comes from London-based insurer Lloyd's, who include the following in their list of famous policyholders:

• Legs: When Hollywood pinup icon Betty Grable insured her famous gams back in the 1940s, it was big news—which is exactly what the studio press department had in mind to boost her box office boffo. Others famous folks who've insured their legs include dancers Rudolph Nureyev and Michael Flatley, and soccer star David Beckham.
• Breasts: Dolly Parton took out ample coverage for her ample bosom.
• Hands: Guitarist Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones made sure he'd get "Satisfaction" should his digits suffer undue impairment.
• Taste buds: Food critic Egon Ronay knows his money is where is mouth is.
• Smile or teeth: Music hall entertainer Ken Dodd insured his endearingly offbeat smile on his own but Aquafresh White Trays took out a policy safeguarding America Ferrera's pearly whites.
• Mustache: Australian cricket player Merv Hughes' will be compensated should his trademark facial hair ever face extinction.

In 1999, tabloids on both sides of the Atlantic—The Sun in London and the New York Post in the U.S.—ran items alleging that Jennifer Lopez had indemnified her body—her entire body, not just her backside—to the tune of $1 billion. Although according to the reports, pound-for-pound, the singer's breasts fetched a more generous appraisal than her butt ($100 million per breast vs. $300 million for legs and buttocks combined, according to the Post), it wasn't long before word on the street had it that her "abundant butt" alone had been valued at a cool billion bucks.

Lopez has long refuted the allegations, but her rebuttals are short of categorical. While her protests have run under unequivocal headlines such as "Lopez Denies Insurance for $1 Billion" and "Lopez: I'm No Billion-Dollar Babe," some members of the press refuse to put the scuttlebutt to bed. "I don't know where they got it from," Lopez told reporters when questioned about the tabloid rumors in 1999. "When I heard the story I thought it was very funny." Noncommittal as J-Lo's disclaimer may have been, her agent's tepid response wasn't even a denial: "At this time we cannot confirm or deny this information."

The closest to a straightforward public disclaimer appeared in an August 2000 interview with BeatBoxBetty.com in which Lopez was asked to name the wildest rumors she had heard about herself. "The craziest was the billion-dollar-butt one," she said. "It was on the front page of the paper here in New York. I happened to be in New York that week. It was funny."

"So you haven't insured your body?" pressed the interviewer.

"I think that's what I'm trying to say here," Lopez replied but are thinking you're trying to say something and actually saying it the same thing?

According to several news outlets, while Lopez does have an insurance policy on her buttocks, like the body part it pertains to, the sum has been greatly exaggerated. The dollar amount cited by press sources including CNN and a more recent Business Insider story is closer to $27 million rather than a billion—but that's still a pretty impressive figure to insure her pretty impressive figure.