65 Famous People Who Had to File For Bankruptcy

Transcription

Lewis Adams & Associates
Utah Bankruptcy Attorneys
Personal Reliable Professional
(801) 396-0856
www.utah-bankruptcy.org
65 Famous
People
Who
Had To
File For
Bankruptcy
Lewis Adams & Associates
Utah Bankruptcy Attorneys
Personal Reliable Professional
(801) 396-0856
www.utah-bankruptcy.org
65 Famous
People
Who
Had To
File For
Bankruptcy
Information presented herein does not constitute legal advice or create a client attorney relationship. Be sure to
always seek the advice of a competent attorney whenever you are considering taking legal action of any kind.
Lewis Adams & Associates – Utah Bankruptcy Attorneys - 801-396-0856
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Life happens to everyone, even if they are rich and famous. And sometimes
people make fortunes only to lose them later, for all sorts of reasons. If you are in a
situation where bankruptcy is the last resort, you’ll be in the same company as a lot of
other people who just happen to be very well known. Following is a list of 65 famous
people who found themselves in very tight financial situations either before or after
they were extremely well off. Some of them may surprise you.
1. Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold fought on the American side of the
Revolutionary War but didn’t get the attention he felt he
deserved so he switched to the British side. He went
bankrupt after the war when a failed financial venture
caused him to lose everything.
2. P.T. Barnum
P.T. Barnum is best known for being half of
the “Barnum & Bailey Circus” but he
actually didn’t get into that until he was 61years-old. He first opened a museum in
New York City showcasing nature’s oddities
like Tom Thumb who was only 2 feet 9
inches tall. He also put a bunch of dough
into the development of East Bridgeport,
Connecticut and went bankrupt when that
didn’t work out. He bounced back in four
years and got into the circus business.
3. Kim Basinger
Kim Basinger had to file for bankruptcy
in 1993 when a judge ordered the
actress to pay Main Line Pictures $8.1
million because she had backed out of
a verbal commitment to star in the
film Boxing Helena. She had to sell her
$20 million investment in Braselton, in
her native Georgia and only received
$1 million for it. She later appealed the
ruling, reached an out-of-court
settlement and went on to her wellknown role in L.A. Confidential a few
years later.
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4. George Best
George Best had a prolific career playing
soccer starting, when he was 17-yearsold, with the Manchester United team in
1963. He played soccer until 1984 and
unfortunately fell into a life of alcoholism,
which eventually caused liver problems
and his eventual death. He declared
bankruptcy in 1982 after he tried to get
treatment for alcoholism and was
discharged from bankruptcy in 1992.
5. John Wayne Bobbitt
John Wayne Bobbitt is best known for having a certain part of his
anatomy sliced off by his angry wife in 1993. Luckily, after a 12hour surgery things were sewed back on but Bobbitt couldn’t
handle the mounting doctors bills and had to declare bankruptcy.
He made a come back by getting into porn but he can’t seem to
stay out of trouble. (He’s been arrested more than seven times for
offenses ranging from assault to grand larceny.)
6. Lorraine Bracco
Lorraine Bracco played the mobpsychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Melfi in the
HBO hit The Sopranos. The
popularity of the show helped her
dig herself out of debt after she filed
for bankruptcy in 1999. Bracco
found herself in a five-year legal
battle with ex-Harvey Keitel over
custody of their daughter Stella.
The legal fees and taxes were
substantial and the cause for her
bankruptcy.
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7. Toni Braxton
Toni Braxton sold over 15 million albums
in the years leading up to her 1998 filing
for bankruptcy and some believe she
filed so she could get out of her
recording contract with record label
LaFace. When she filed, Braxton was
$3.9 million in debt and all of her
household possessions, including the
two Grammys she was awarded in 1997
were priced to sell so she could pay off
her creditors. Despite her conflict with
her label, she signed a new contract in
1999 worth $25 million with them.
8. Lenny Bruce
Lenny Bruce loved to shock audiences as a
comedian and was constantly in trouble on
obscenity charges. He was blacklisted from nearly
every comedy club in the United States near the
end of his life but it was the trial in 1961 for saying
a word that would be considered mild today that
caused him to go bankrupt. He ended up dying at
age 40 from a morphine overdose and in 2007,
was granted a posthumous pardon for his
obscenity conviction by New York Governor
George Pataki. Bruce would be blown away by
what people can get away with today.
9. Buffalo Bill
Buffalo Bill organized his “Wild West Show” in the late
1800’s and went on to become quite wealthy. Even
though he made millions touring the country, he was
also very generous and gave away so much money that
he had to file for bankruptcy in 1914. He died bankrupt
in 1917 and was buried on Lookout Mountain.
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10. Tia Carrere
Tia Carrere, best known for her role
in Wayne’s World, filed for bankruptcy in 1986
in an attempt to escape her contract
with General Hospital so she could join the
cast of A Team. Apparently the soap was no
longer giving Carrere enough work and was
forcing her to go into bankruptcy. She lost the
suit and the respect of her fellow cast mates
on the show. Carrere blames her young age
for the reason that she was so irresponsible
with her money.
11. George Clinton
George Clinton has been called one of the most
important innovators of funk music and was prevented
from profiting from the songs he wrote between 1976 and
1983. This is because when he filed for bankruptcy in
1984, he didn’t disclose them as a source of possible
future income. It’s estimated that he’s losing out on
royalties in the ballpark of $100 million!
12. Gary Coleman
Gary Coleman filed for bankruptcy in 1999
and cited long-term medical problems and
mismanagement of his funds as the
reason. Coleman stayed out of the
limelight after his bankruptcy until a recent
secret marriage followed by an
appearance on TV’s Divorce Court.
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13. Francis Ford Coppola
Responsible for directing the Godfather trilogy and
winner of five Academy Awards before he was 40,
Francis Ford Coppola was $300,000 in debt before the
first Godfather movie came out. He then was able to
rebound but began bankruptcy proceedings after his
1982 musicalOne From The Heart tanked. Luckily, he
borrowed the money from his mother to get into the wine
business and again turned his financial future around.
14. David Crosby
David Crosby, a member of the group
Crosby, Stills & Nash, filed for bankruptcy
in 1985 after his solo career cooled down.
He is still recording music and his third solo
album was released in 2006.
15. Walt Disney
Walt Disney’s name is synonymous with
Mickey Mouse and the “happiest place on
earth,” Disneyland. However, Disney’s
career wasn’t always a moneymaking
venture. In 1921, he began a company
called the Laugh-O-Gram Corporation in
Kansas City, Missouri but was forced to
file for bankruptcy two years later because
his financial backers pulled out. It must
have been fate because Disney then
headed to Hollywood and became one of
the highest paid animators in history.
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16. Jim Dooley
Jim Dooley played for the NFL’s Chicago Bears from 1952
until he retired in 1962 and switched to coaching. Dooley
sat out of the 1973 NFL season and landed a job one week
after filing for bankruptcy. At that point, he was nearly half a
million dollars in debt but rebounded by taking a job as a
sales manager and ended up back with the Bears in 1981
as an offensive consultant.
17. William C. Durant
William C. Durant founded General
Motors, Chevrolet and Durant Motors.
Durant Motors was established in 1921
but unfortunately failed in 1933 after the
Great Depression. Durant filed for
bankruptcy in 1936 being $914,231 in
debt and lived out the rest of his life
managing a bowling alley in Flint,
Michigan.
18. Mick Fleetwood
Mick Fleetwood, an original member of the band
Fleetwood Mac, filed for bankruptcy in 1984 and it
was rumored that it was due to an addiction to
cocaine. Fleetwood claims the real reason is
because he purchased too much real estate and
ran out of money.
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19. Heidi Fleiss
The “Hollywood Madam”, Heidi Fleiss, filed for
bankruptcy in 1999 after being released from jail.
She served 21 months for her connection with her
prostitution ring, which included charges of
pandering and tax evasion. But don’t worry, she’s
doing great now. She runs a 24-hour Laundromat
called Dirty Laundry in Pahrump, Nevada and is
working on opening a legal brothel for women.
20. Zsa Zsa Gabor
Zsa Zsa Gabor had to file for
bankruptcy after a catfight ended
in a libel suit against her.
Supposedly, it began when
actress Elke Sommer said that
Gabor had a big butt and Gabor
responded by telling the press that
Sommer’s career was washed up.
The suit came because Gabor’s
husband at the time said that
Sommer had said, “All German
men are pigs.” Who knew that
courts listened to ridiculous cases
like this but the joke was on Gabor
because she had to file for
bankruptcy.
21. Leif Garrett
Leif Garrett’s career dried up pretty much after he hit
puberty and he was forced to file for bankruptcy in
2001. At the time, he said that his only steady source
of income was the $1,000 per month allowance from
his mother.
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22. Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gaye had to file for bankruptcy in 1976
after a court ruling promised the $600,000 in
royalties from his next album to his ex-wife to
make up for overdue alimony payments. The
album was titled Here, My Dear and detailed the
personal details of his rocky marriage. He moved
to Europe in 1981 and lived out a tumultuous
remaining three years until his father shot him to
death in 1984.
23. Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th
President of the United States,
became a partner in a
financial firm which went
bankrupt. Dying from throat
cancer, Grant wrote a memoir
to pay off his debts.
24. Archie Griffin
Archie Griffin is college football’s only two-time
Heisman trophy winner and played for Ohio State
University from 1972-1975. Unfortunately, he had
to file for bankruptcy in 1981 after an investment in
six athletic shoe stores failed and caused him to
have debts of $519,568.
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25. Corey Haim
Corey Haim was one of the “two Coreys” that
climbed to heartthrob status after appearing in a
number of films in the 1980s. In 1997, years of drug
problems took their toll and caused Haim to file for
bankruptcy. He listed his only assets as his 10-yearold BMW, $100 in cash and royalties and residuals
valued at $7,500.
26. Dorothy Hamill
Dorothy Hamill was the 1976
National, World and Olympic
champion and moved on after that to
the Ice Capades. She purchased the
struggling company and tried to get it
going again but she had to sell in
1995 and filed for bankruptcy herself
in 1996.
27. MC Hammer
MC Hammer was “too legit to quit” in the late
80’s and early 90’s but then headed to
bankruptcy court in 1996 $13.7 million in debt.
Hammer aka Stanley Burrell let his quick rise
to fame encourage a new and lavish lifestyle
like a $30 million mansion and a $500,000-amonth payroll. He is now a preacher, a
television host and hopefully still wears the
Hammer pants around the house.
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28. Isaac Hayes
Isaac Hayes is known by many as the voice of “Chef”
on South Park and made a stink when he left the show
because of how they chose to make fun of Scientology.
(Apparently all the other topics and people the show made
fun of were OK but they crossed the line with Scientology.)
Hayes also wrote and performed music back in the 60’s and
70’s and had to file for bankruptcy in 1976. His record label
went broke and since they owed over $6 million, so did he.
He lost his house, most of his personal property and the
rights to future royalties from all his music.
29. Milton Snavely Hershey
Milton Snavely Hershey founded
Hershey’s Foods Corporation in
1903 but didn’t find success
immediately in life. Hershey
dropped out of school after 4th
grade, because his family
moved around a lot, and got an
apprenticeship as a printer. He
wasn’t keen on the business
and tried his hand at candy. His
first four attempts failed and
forced him to file for bankruptcy
but his fifth resulted in a major
corporation that’s doing pretty
darn good to this day.
30. Perez Hilton
Perez Hilton, not to be confused with heiress Paris
Hilton, is an Internet blogger who loves to shake
up the world of celeb gossip on his website
PerezHilton.com. Hilton, real name Mario
Lavandeira, ran up a world of debt while in college
and dependent on credit cards. He was more than
$50,000 in debt when he filed for bankruptcy in
2005.
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31. Ronald Isley
The lead singer of the Isley Brothers, Ronald Isley,
66, declared bankruptcy in 1997 after the IRS
seized his yacht, cars and other property. He was
discharged four years later but didn’t file tax
returns for five years. He is currently serving a 37month sentence in Indiana for five counts of tax
evasion and one count of failing to file a tax return.
32. LaToya Jackson
La Toya Jackson is supposedly the “crazy”
member of the Jackson clan but I’m sure many
would argue otherwise. She tried the whole
singing thing in the form of a solo career but
didn’t find much success and had to file for
bankruptcy in 1995. She was on TV for the reality
show Armed and Famous in 2007 and went
through an emotional therapeutic attempt to
relieve her of her phobia of cats.
33. Don Johnson
Don Johnson, of Miami Vice fame, filed for
bankruptcy in 2004 to save his $20 million
Pitkin County ranch in Colorado from being
sold at auction. He was able to save his ranch
and later paid off his debts including $930,000
to City National Bank and $7,345 to Aspen
Valley Hospital.
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34. Margot Kidder
Margot Kidder’s fame is mainly thanks to her role of Lois
Lane in the Superman films opposite Christopher Reeve
but unfortunately her career went downhill after that. She
was badly injured in an accident in the late 80’s and was
also diagnosed at manic-depressive. She refused
treatment for either predicament until two years after the
accident, when she decided to go through with the surgery
needed. Kidder’s insurance didn’t cover the surgery and
she sold her house and her jewelry and declared
bankruptcy in 1992.
35. Larry King
Larry King has interviewed
over 30,000 people during his
career but his rise to fame for
radio work in the 60’s derailed
him financially. He was in
debt $352,000, charged with
grand larceny and accused of
stealing $5,000 from a
business partner. The
charges were dropped but he
struggled to get back on his
feet and ended up claiming
bankruptcy in 1978.
36. Suge Knight
Suge Knight filed for bankruptcy in 2006 and had
$11 dollars in his bank account at the time. Lydia
Harris was suing him for $107 million because she
claimed to have been cheated out of a 50% stake in
Death Row Records even though Knight claims
they settled the matter for $1 million. Neilson is
operating Death Row Records during the
bankruptcy proceedings so Knight can focus on
getting back on his feet financially.
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37. Cyndi Lauper
Before her hit song “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” came
out, Cyndi Lauper was in a group called Blue Angel with
John Turi. The band broke up after a record flopped and
their manager at the time sued them for $80,000.
Lauper was forced into bankruptcy in 1980
but recovered quickly and became an 80’s icon.
38. Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis is the only musician to
have two songs go to number one on the
charts in all fields of music: Pop, Country
and R&B. Unfortunately his career took a
nosedive after that and in 1988 he filed for
bankruptcy with $3 million of debt and no
assets.
39. Abraham Lincoln
The 16th President of the
United States, Abraham
Lincoln, declared bankruptcy in
1833 and spent 17 years
paying off the money that he
borrowed from friends to start
his business. It took Lincoln 30
years to achieve his goal of
becoming President of the
United States.
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40. Meat Loaf
Meat Loaf’s 1977 album Bat Out of Hell still sells
around 200,000 copies a year and you may also
recognize him from roles in Fight Club and The
Rocky Horror Picture Show but in 1983 he
wasn’t doing so well and had to declare
bankruptcy. He was $1.6 million in debt at the
time.
41. Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes
Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, one-third of the 90’s
group TLC and soared to success when their
CD “CrazySexyCool” sold over 15 million
records worldwide. In 1994, she hit headlines
by herself for torching her boyfriend, Andre
Rison’s house after a fight. In 1995, she
declared bankruptcy due to poor royalties and
a debt owed for breach of contract.
42. William McKinley
William McKinley, the 25th President of the
United States, found himself $130,000 in
debt after he co-signed on a loan for a friend
and the friend went bankrupt.
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43. Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson declared bankruptcy
in 1990 and claimed to owe the IRS
$16.7 million. The IRS seized his
bank accounts and real estate that
he had in six states and in turn
Nelson released an album titled
“The IRS Tapes: Who’ll Buy My
Memories?” to pay them what he
owed.
44. Wayne Newton
The Las Vegas crooner, Wayne Newton, found
himself in more than $20 million in debt in 1992
and was forced to file for bankruptcy. Luckily, he
found his way out of debt in Vegas: performing at
the Stardust hotel not at the craps table
45. Ted Nugent
Guitar player Ted Nugent found himself bankrupt
in 1980 because of several failed business
ventures and poor management but continued to
tour and crank out albums well into the 21st
century. He’s now on the Board of Directors of
the National Rifle Association and sells his own
beef jerky called Gonzo Meat Biltong.
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46. Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine, known for the
pamphlet Common Sense, greatly benefited
from his move to America in 1774. He was
broke and facing bankruptcy and to top it off,
his second marriage had just ended, so
moving across the ocean was a logical next
move.
47. Tom Petty
Tom Petty filed for bankruptcy in May of 1979
after a legal dispute when ABC Records was sold
to MCA Records. Petty refused to be transferred
to another record label without his consent and
ended up signed with Backstreet Records which
was a new MCA subsidiary.
48. Bud Post
Bud Post is the 66-year-old who won the lottery in
1988 for $16.2 million and was bankrupt eight
years later. Apparently quite a few people came
out of the woodwork to ask their old pal Bud to
give them money since he was now stinking rich.
He spent everything he had buying homes, three
cars, a truck, two Harley-Davidson motorcycles,
two 62-inch Sony TVs, a camper, computers and a
boat among other things. He died in 2006,
miserable and broke. I guess money doesn’t
always buy happiness.
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49. Tammy Wynette
Country music singer, Tammy Wynette, was forced
into bankruptcy as a result of an investment in two
Florida malls going sour.
50. Susan Powter
Susan Powter wrote three books in the
1990s, which became New York Times
best sellers, and made Powter the diet
and exercise go-to girl.(“Stop the
Insanity!”) The crew-cutted, bleach blonde
Powter filed for bankruptcy in 1995
because legal fees “have wiped me out.”
51. Randy Quaid
Randy Quaid is known for his role as Cousin
Eddie in the Vacation film series and is Dennis
Quaid’s big brother. His wife directed him in the
1999 movie The Debtors but unfortunately it was
never released and the couple had to file for
bankruptcy because they were $1 million in debt.
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52. Rembrandt
Rembrandt went bankrupt in
1656 and his house and
collections were auctioned.
Unfortunately, the money
raised wasn’t enough to cover
his debt so he set up an artdealing business to keep his
creditors at bay.
53. Tommy Rettig
Tommy Rettig portrayed the character “Jeff Miller”
in the popular Lassie TV series from 1954 to 1957
and went down a similar path that many child
actors tread. He got into drugs and went bankrupt
as a result of being unable to find work as an adult
actor
54. Burt Reynolds
Burt Reynolds was $10 million in debt when he
filed for bankruptcy after his 1996 divorce. He went
on to win a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor
in the movie Boogie Nights.
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55. Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney filed for bankruptcy in
1996 because he owed over $1.75 million
to the IRS.
56. Anna Nicole Smith
Anna Nicole Smith was ordered to pay
$850,000 to an employee for a judgment
against her for sexual harassment in 1996
and since she had yet to be given any of her
late husband’s billions, she had to file for
bankruptcy.
57. Dee Snider
Dee Snider, lead singer of Twisted Sister, went
bankrupt in the late 90’s after he was unable to follow
the success of his 80’s career with a band that sold
records.
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58. Lynn Spears
Lynn Spears and her husband filed for
bankruptcy in 1998 right before her daughter,
Britney, became a superstar.
59. Sheryl Swoopes
Sheryl Swoopes, a three-time Olympic gold
medallist and three-time MVP of the WNBA,
filed for bankruptcy in 2004 reportedly owing
$711,050. She blamed mismanagement of
her money as the cause.
60. Lawrence Taylor
Lawrence Taylor played for the New
York Giants from 1981 to 1993 and
then substance abuse took over his
life. He was arrested in 1998 for
failing to pay child support and had to
file for bankruptcy because of the
high amount that he owed to support
his kids each year. He was still voted
into the NFL Hall of Fame in 1999
despite his personal problems and
has been clean ever since.
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61. Donald Trump
Donald Trump found
himself $900 million in debt
in 1990 and lost a lot of his
business ventures but
somehow restructured his
debt to be back on top
running a billion-dollar
empire.
62. Mark Twain
Mark Twain went bankrupt in 1894 thanks to
bad investments, especially in new inventions,
and his publishing house going under. Twain
went on an around-the-world lecture tour to pay
off his creditors and did so in full in 1898.
63. Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson earned a reported $300 million in his
boxing career but it somehow wasn’t enough for his
lavish lifestyle. He filed for bankruptcy in 2003 owing
a debt of $27 million. Tyson’s lifestyle cost $400,000
a month to maintain and during his divorce, he paid
$9 million in legal fees alone.
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64. Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde, in trouble for “gross
indecencies,” was forced to declare
bankruptcy in 1895 and lost some of his
prized possessions including first editions
of his own books. After serving his prison
term, his friends helped him to bring his
estate out of bankruptcy.
65. Ray Winstone
Ray Winstone started his acting career with a
riveting performance in the 1979 movie Scum.
Unfortunately, he had trouble after that getting
work and forced into bankruptcy at the end of
the 80’s. He was most recently seen
in Beowulf and Indiana Jones and the
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
This compilation courtesy of POPCRUNCH.COM. The article can be reached at
http://www.popcrunch.com/bankrupt-65-famous-people-who-lost-it-all/
Lewis Adams & Associates believes the information contained herein to be reasonably correct but has not verified
it’s accuracy nor do they assume liability for any unintentional errors or misrepresentations.
Lewis Adams & Assocates is a Utah Bankruptcy Firm that helps individuals get their life
back through bankruptcy after a financial setback or other life event has created a situation from which
they might not otherwise recover. Call 801-396-0856 for a free consultation any time.

65 Famous People Who Had to File For Bankruptcy

Transcription

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