Bandleader's ex-wife keeps beat ... and half the estate.

NEVER mind beginning the beguine, Evelyn Keyes is ready for Artie Shaw's estate to begin making payments.

The famed jazz clarinetist and bandleader's eighth wife, Evelyn Keyes, was recently awarded $1.42 million by a Ventura jury. Keyes, now 89, is best known as Scarlett O'Hara's jilted sister in "Gone with the Wind." She was married to the "King of Swing" from 1957 to 1985, though they separated in 1970. Years after the separation, however, Shaw and Keyes signed a letter that each would be entitled to half of the other's estate.

Keyes liquidated all of her assets in the 1970s to help fund Shaw's lawsuits against music companies for additional revenues, her lawyer Henry Gradstein said.

Shaw, whose rendition of Cole Porter's "Begin the Beguine" is one of the best-selling records in history, died in 2004. Shaw had changed his will in 1988, leaving Keyes about $30,000 in watches and other jewelry. When his executor denied her request for half of the estate, she sued.

"The letter was a surprise to me," said the estate's attorney, A. Edward Ezor, adding that the decision was not. "I thought we were pretty much hamstrung because almost everyone who was around at the time was dead."

Ezor is the executor of the Shaw estate and trustee of Shaw's foundation, which gives college scholarships in the fields of arts and music to high school seniors. He said that litigation has temporarily halted the foundation's ability to dispense grants.

Gradstein said this was among the smallest victories of his 28-year career from a financial standpoint, but one of the most fun because of the parties involved.

"It was a cool win," Gradstein said. He's not worried about the appeal because he described the decision as "bulletproof." Still, he wishes it could be dropped. "The sad truth is, she's 89 and she's infirm, although she's in good health physically. She needs the money."

With the value of intellectual property rights skyrocketing over the past few years, celebrity estates have become hotly contested. The stars' turbulent lives often contribute to the confusion over who has rights to what. The ownership of Marilyn Monroe's image and licensing rights, which bring in about $8 million each year, continues to be one of the hottest battles.