From waiters and receptionists to the most famous Jersey Shore beach-goers, these business-minded gorillas and guidettes may be the laughingstocks of a state, but they're the ones that are really laughing...all the way to the bank. 

After mercilessly being touted by the MTV network through sneak peek TV spots and print campaigns, the series premiered in December of 2009 to more than 1.4 million viewers, according to Nielsen data. But with the dawning of a new race of 20-somethings came the backlash from Italian-American groups and New Jersey's governor himself, who were less than thrilled with the cast's representation of a culture and state. But the controversy only fueled the interest of the rest of America and the show's ratings tripled by early 2010. 

Soon everybody and their mother was tuning in to get a taste of The Situation's guide to getting tail or to see the cast's littlest member get socked in the face by a male bar patron. The show was an overnight success and with it came some major compensation for the gang's tough day job -- partying on the boardwalk. 

Although the cast is under contract with MTV for scheduled appearances and promotion of the show, they are free to pursue outside projects and event appearances to bulk up their bank accounts. Although the amount of hair products consumed in the Jersey Shore house might allude to brain damage, the cast members were certainly not blind to their earning potentials. 

The guidos and guidettes began raking in a minimum of $2,000 for their event appearances while more popular castmates could snag up to $10,000 per appearance. But the cast's personal rates only grew with their ratings and by season two the show was bringing in more than 8 million viewers per episode. 

The Jersey Shore empire had finally emerged and with it the endorsement deals came rolling in. Forget the $30,000 per episode that each cast member was pulling in by season three, the tanned Shore-lings began attaching their faces to everything from nuts to condiments to Justin Bieber. No wonder that in the season three premiere the cast rolled up to the Shore house in their BMWs, Cadillacs and Range Rovers. 

Check out what The Situation, Snooki, Pauly D, Ronnie and JWoWW have been up to when they haven't been trolling for juice heads or getting bombed with grenades. 

The Situation - Never Say Never

Professor Situation schools the youngsters of America on how to create a 'situation' of their own. Oh, and why they should go see Justin Bieber's movie, Never Say Never.

The Situation - Vitamin Water

How does The Situation create his own abdominal situation? By drinking Vitamin Water, of course. 

Snooki - Wonderful Pistachios

Snooki keeps things crackin' in this Wonderful Pistachios spot. 

Pauly D - Miracle Whip

Pauly D wouldn't go near a girl who eats Miracle Whip. So why did the condiment brand ask the blowout king to represent their special sauce? We're not quite sure. 

Ronnie - Xenadrine

From the looks of this commercial spot, Ronnie will be one castmate who won't ever make the jump from reality star to actor. 

JWoWW - Filthy Couture

Filthy Couture by JWoWW. Enough said.

-Kiki Von Glinow