Kids today might recognize Charles Barkley as that portly, chubby fellow analyst with extremist hot takes on NBA on TNT. But despite his newfound fame in the color commentary world, he's one of the most ruthless dominant forwards to ever play the game. Hailing from Leeds, Alabama, Barkley himself once stated that he never believed he would become a Hall-of-Fame worthy professional basketball player. He thought his life would lead him straight to a local Alabama factory. Boy, was he wrong.
The man formally known as Sir Charles was selected fifth overall in the 1984 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. Throughout his illustrious NBA career, Charles Barkley was able to collect 11 NBA All-Star selections, an NBA Most Valuable (1993), 5x NBA First-Team honors, two Olympic Gold Medals, and so much more. In sixteen years in the NBA, Barkley was not able to win a single Championship ring but still is considered an NBA legend for his contributions to the game.
Most of your favorite celebrities either studied acting in college or went straight from high school into a life of the arts. But, hey, not all of them. Some celebrities actually have advanced college degrees.
Turns out Mayim Bialik is just as much of a genius as the one she plays on The Big Bang Theory. She earned her Ph.D. in neuroscience from the University of California, Los Angeles, focusing on obsessive compulsive disorder among people with Prader-Willi syndrome, a rare condition in which the hypothalamus malfunctions.
Little known fact: Natalie Portman skipped the premiere of Star Wars: Phantom Menace because she was studying for her high school exams. She had two papers published in scientific journals while she was still in high school, and graduated from Harvard University with a B.A. in Psychology.
Before he was looking for answers on X-Files, David Duchovny was just trying to find the answers for English finals at Princeton University90. David graduated from Princeton in 1982 with a B.A in English. He continued to feed his love of literature by receiving a master’s degree in English Literature at Yale University. David was an excellent writer and poet. His work consistently received praise by his fellow classmates and teachers at Yale. His writing was even nominated for a college prize by the Academy of American Poets.
Sigourney Weaver graduated from Stanford University in 1971 with a bachelor’s in Literature. It was while studying at Stanford that Sigourney realized her true passion in life was to become an actress. Shortly after graduation, she attended Yale for their well-known drama program. She would go on to receive a master’s in Acting from Yale University and become friends with fellow famous actress Meryl Streep.
Meryl Streep is considered one of the most successful actresses of all time. She is also one of the most highly educated. Before collecting an array of Oscars, Meryl collected diplomas. She graduated from Vassar College with a B.A. in 1971. Meryl has a habit of being unsatisfied with impressive accomplishments as her acting career has shown, so she attended Yale University and earned a master’s degree in Acting.