Lifestyle / Nicolas Cage How Nicolas Cage Really Went Broke Actor 'spent money like it was water,' friends say By Kevin Spak, Newser Staff Posted Nov 7, 2009 3:46 PM CST Copied Nicolas Cage speaks during a news conference for the movie "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans" at the Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2009. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Frank Gunn) Nicolas Cage’s money woes aren’t all his money manager’s fault. Cage “lived like a sheik,” a friend tells the Daily Beast. “Spent money like it was water.” Here’s a sample of what he spent it on: More than a dozen homes, including a castle in England, an 11th-century estate in Germany, and two entire Bahamian islands An untold number of cars, new and classic. He once paid $500,000 for a Lamborghini previously owned by the shah of Iran, nearly $300,000 more than its value. “He didn’t care,” says a friend. “Nic at an auction is dangerous.” A collection of pets one friend describes as “basically a zoo,” including two albino king cobras; he keeps antivenom nearby A dinosaur skull A collection of shrunken heads A $1 million donation to the Red Cross, and a $2 million contribution to Amnesty International (More Nicolas Cage stories.) Report an error