William Shatner at the 2010 A&E Upfront at the IAC Building in New York (5/5)

Laugh all you want at William Shatner and those goofy Priceline.com commercials, but be warned -- if you piss him off, he's made more than enough money to hire a professional team of assassins to take your ass out. From the Daily Mail:

William Shatner has struck it rich, but not just by playing Captain James T Kirk in Star Trek. It's revealed the 79-year-old actor has made a fortune from a most unlikely source as the voice and face of an online travel company. A smart bit of contract negotiation in 1997 has meant that the star is estimated to have earned $600m (£397m) from advertisements for Priceline.com.

The astonishing sum is down to Shatner agreeing to take shares as part of his payment.  At first shares fell during the dot-com bust to $1.80 in 2000. But over the last ten years the firm's fortunes have turned around and the shares are now worth almost $300 each. While Priceline has not said how much Shatner is paid, reports from Wall Street have put his fortune at $600m, according to The Times.

He made $600 million? Really? You're telling me he could blow $100 million on a year-long coke-fueled hooker bender worthy charity and still have half-a-billion left? No wonder he hasn't retired. For that much money, don't be surprised if he keeps filming commercials when he's 105, bed-ridden, and has more tubes coming out of him than a Borg.

*11 pics total in the gallery:

[WENN]