Before he won a Primetime Emmy for his portrayal of Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential election, Alec Baldwin was making a name on screens both big and small. From 2006 to 2013, Baldwin was honored as the male performer with the most Screen Actors Guild awards for his role as Jack Donaghy on the hit NBC show "30 Rock". But the memorable performances go as far back as the early 1980s. His roles in "Beetlejuice" (1988) and "The Hunt for Red October" (1990, alongside Sean Connery) would make him a household name for the coming decades.
While he's aged a bit since this early headshot was taken, Baldwin still retains the charm and iconic smile that make his characters an integral part of any project he's on. Want to know a couple of little-known facts about Alec Baldwin? First, he's a columnist for The Huffington Post. Second, during his three-year tenure as spokesperson for Capital One, he donated nearly all of his $15-million in earnings (minus taxes and fees) to charity!
Not all celebrities have fame and fortune, some are just famous – and in a ton of debt. They came from rags to riches, then went back to rags. Whether they’ve filed bankruptcy, ended up in court, or just can’t stop spending, celebrities mismanage their money just like everyone else. They just hide it well.
50 Cent coined the term “wanksta,” then “partied like it was his birthday” until he filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2015. The rapper was said to be anywhere between $10 million and $50 million in debt. In 2016, a federal bankruptcy court judge in Connecticut approved a plan for the founder of G-Unit to pay his debts back. He was able to get his bankruptcy discharged in February of the following year.
Following a 45-year-long career in Hollywood, acting in more than 70 films, actor Gary Busey found himself in more debt than he was worth. In 2012, it was reported that Busey owed between $500,000 and $1 million worth of debt, but only had $50,000 to his name. The 74-year-old actor owed money to hospitals, banks, the L.A. Waterworks District, and even a storage company. He filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy that same year. Despite his longstanding career in Hollywood, Busey's net worth is now only $500,000.
Burt Reynolds is still worth five million dollars, but his battles with debt date back more than 20 years. Between bad investments and a pricey divorce from actress Loni Anderson, the 1970s superstar had to deal with over $10 million in debt and decided to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1996. While testifying in a 1994 custody hearing, the South Florida native said he spent $40 million getting through his divorce.
The former Hollywood bad boy, Charlie Sheen owes the IRS nearly $5 million. But that's not all. In 2016, his net worth was reportedly still as high as $150 million, but he was nonetheless $12 million in debt at the time – including mortgages, legal fees, and taxes. That same year, Debt.com reported Sheen owed nearly $300,000 on an American Express card alone.