12 Times Wealthy Turds Screwed Over the Folks Who Built Their Fortunes or Saved Their Asses
![12 Times Wealthy Turds Screwed Over the Folks Who Built Their Fortunes or Saved Their Asses](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/4/4/901144_320x180.jpg)
Ah, the stories of the famous and the forgotten. Of those who have been wronged, and those who have wronged. Of those who have been saved, and those who have been betrayed. Of those who have achieved greatness, and those who have been denied their due
It is a sad truth of life that those with power and wealth often abuse it, taking advantage of those less fortunate than themselves. This list is a testament to that fact, highlighting 12 examples of rich douchebags who have screwed over people who helped them. From Ravichandran Tharumalingam, who was saved from a dangerous situation on Mount Everest, to Stan Lee, who fought for his rightful share of the money made from movies and TV shows based on his Marvel Comics character, these stories of injustice are all too common.
We can only hope that, in the future, those in power will think twice before taking advantage of those who have helped them.
Click right here to get the best of Cracked sent to your inbox.
Ungrateful for heroic rescue.
![CRACKED SNUBBING THE GUY WHO SAVED YOUR LIFE A Malaysian climber was saved from a dangerous situation on Mount Everest by Sherpa Gelje Sherpa, who descended 1,900 feet while carrying Ravichandran on his back. Ravichandran didn't thank Gelje in social media posts, only his sponsors, and even apparently blocked him on Instagram for a while.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/8/901158.jpg)
Bonuses for bosses, layoffs for everyone else.
![CRACKED Munich Security Conference RISCHER HOF Münchner Sichert curity ence msc Sicherheitskonfer BAYERISCH GETTING BIG BONUSES DURING LAYOFFS The bosses at Meta got huge bonuses in 2022, even though lots of people were laid off and the company was trying to save money.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/3/901153.jpg)
Polley's Greed Kills.
![CRACKED SCREWING OVER THE BAND YOU'RE MANAGING Stan Polley, the manager of Badfinger, tricked the band into signing a terrible contract that gave him most of the money they made, leaving the band broke. This eventually drove the lead singer, Pete Ham, to take his own life.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/7/901157.jpg)
Tesla: no reward.
![CRACKED EDISON SCREWED OVER TESLA Even though Edison had promised Tesla a reward of $50,000 for improving his DC generation plants, Edison refused to pay him when the job was done.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/6/901156.jpg)
Stan Lee: "Spider-Man" to millions of dollars.
![CRACKED MARVEL SCREWED OVER STAN LEE Stan Lee, the creator of Spider-Man, had to take Marvel Comics to court and eventually won a huge victory. Не was awarded 10% of the profits from any movies or TV shows based on his Marvel Comics superheroes.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/4/901154.jpg)
Promises broken.
![CRACKED for U.S. We are E FIL VETERA BOYCOTTI THE U.S. SCREWED OVER WWII FILIPINO VETS In 1946, President Truman signed a law that took away the benefits that had been promised to Filipino veterans who had fought in World War II. Talk about a rug pull.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/2/901152.jpg)
Abandoned Allies.
![CRACKED Phillis THE U.S. ABANDONED AFGHAN INTERPRETERS Hundreds of Afghans who helped the U.S. military by interpreting and doing other services were left behind as the U.S. left Afghanistan. These people went into hiding, scared of what the Taliban might do to them.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/0/901150.jpg)
Jobs: $5,000. Wozniak: $350.
![CRACKED STEVE JOBS SCREWED OVER WOZ Steve Jobs got a $5,000 bonus for making a circuit board for the Breakout video game. Even though his buddy Steve Wozniak had done a lot of the work to reduce the number of chips in the machine, Jobs only gave him $350 of the bonus.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/4/8/901148.jpg)
Child's play, indeed.
![CRACKED A CHILD ACTOR'S PARENTS SPENT ALL HIS MONEY In 1938, actor Jackie Coogan tried to get back the money he had earned as a kid actor from his own parents, but it didn't work out and he only ended up with $35,000.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/5/901155.jpg)
Roxanne cashes in.
![CRACKED BURT'S BEES WAS TAKEN FROM BURT In the '90s, Burt Shavitz, the face of Burt's Bees, had to give up his stake in the company to his business partner and girlfriend, Roxanne Quimby, for much less than it was worth. Quimby then sold 80% of Burt's Bees for a whopping $177 million.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/4/7/901147.jpg)
Kroc cashes in.
![CRACKED MERE REGROW AGAIN RAY KROC SCREWED OVER THE MCDONALD BROTHERS In 1961, Ray Kroc bought the McDonald's brand from the McDonald brothers, and then opened a new McDonald's right next door. This meant the brothers had to first change the name of their restaurant to The Big M and, eventually, close down.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/4/9/901149.jpg)
Keya Morgan: Not So Super.
![CRACKED MARVEL SILLES AVENGERS INFINITY MA J CO WA ST AVE INFINI MARVEL COMI MO ST U by Qui AVI INFI MARVE VEN FINT STAN LEE'S MANAGER ABUSED AND DEFRAUDED HIM Keya Morgan, Stan Lee's former manager, was accused of mistreating the late comic book legend when he was 95 years old. Не faced five charges, including false imprisonment, fraud and forgery.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/1/5/1/901151.jpg)