Compared to the prices some big-name actors paid for their islands, it sounds like all-time-great actor Leonardo DiCaprio got away with something of a bargain in 2005 when he paid $1.75 for the rights to an island in Belize. It's also quite large compared to some of the other islands in this list, covering 105 acres in total and stretching over two miles from one end to the other, close to the Barrier Reef. We're surprised that he feels comfortable being this close to the sea, given what happened to him in 'Titanic!'
DiCaprio is well known for his interest in environmental issues, having campaigned and raised money for various green causes in recent years. It therefore shouldn't surprise anybody to hear that he turned his island into an eco-paradise, containing a nature reserve where animals can live safely. He's spent millions of dollars on it, and he's not even going to live on it himself!
Chefs made their way into celebrity land a while ago. But how many celebrities that weren’t trained as professional cooks are actually whizzes in the kitchen? Here are several that come to mind.
Actress Julia Roberts is confident about her cooking skills. “I’m quite a good cook,” she told E! News. “I’m like a closet home ec teacher…I can really cook anything.” Roberts has said she often cooks fish for herself and her kids. And speaking of her three children, “They think that I’m a good cook,” Roberts told People. “They actually told me that I should open a restaurant.” She also relishes cooking for the holidays, particularly shredded Brussel sprouts. Roberts hasn’t published a cookbook, but we did find recipes attributed to her for peach crisp and banana hemp muffins. Or you can make the same summer salad the actress supposedly eats.
Chrissy Teigen started off as a supermodel. Then her love of cooking filtered into her professional life too. At this point, she’s created recipes for a limited Blue Apron release and also just launched her own home and cooking line at Target named “Cravings,” after the two cookbooks she’s released. Teigen describes cooking as “a time of peace” for herself. So maybe peace out to her tuna melt sandwich or the fried chicken wings that are a favorite of her husband, John Legend.
Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, comes from a cooking Italian family. Her father started his own restaurant in New York and also published a cookbook. And apparently, Lady Gaga has inherited the family’s cooking genes. Her Instagram account occasionally features photos of her culinary activities. Sure, sometimes it’s topless cooking. But other times it’s more poignant like in the post she shared about her bringing food to the family of her dear friend who passed away. Want to try a Gaga/Germanotta family favorite? Check out her recipe for whole wheat pasta with a sweet fennel sauce.