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50 Celebrities Who Had Surprising Jobs Before They Got Famous
When you see your favorite famous people on TV and in magazines, it's hard to believe they were ever people like us - working on getting by. But even the brightest stars had to start with their simple first jobs before making it big!
Whether you're a waitress, a cashier, even a janitor, or have a weird job like lion taming chances are that at least one of the famous actors and actresses you admire once worked a day job as crappy as yours. Some were also in the process of training to enter long-term careers, such as law and teaching, when their big career change came, while others were fresh out of jail after getting caught up in crime.
The moral of the story? You might be stuck doing shifts at a burger joint right now or working your ass off with manual labor, but you never know what opportunities lie ahead, so stay focused on your Hollywood dreams. Find out what stars were doing with their lives before they hit the screen below, and let us know which ones surprised you the most!
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#1
Steve Buscemi Was A Firefighter. During The 9/11 Attacks He Returned To His Former Job As A New York Firefighter To Help Out
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#2
Christopher Walken Was A Lion Tamer, He Was 16 At The Time And Would Perform With A Lioness Named Sheba
#3
Danny DeVito Was A Hairdresser For Corpses, He Would Style Women's Hair To Make Them Look Beautiful Before They Went Six Feet Under
Grace Barclay 9 years ago
Just laughed out loud. No wonder he turned to the funny...thanks Mr DeVito!
#4
Harrison Ford Was A Carpenter
#5
Christopher Lee Worked For The Intelligence Service
Anna Sheridan 9 years ago
This man is actually one of the most awesome people ever seriously look up his bio
#6
Johnny Depp Worked As A Telemarketer And Hated It, He Only Made One Sale - And Promptly Talked The Customer Out Of The Purchase
#7
Rihanna Was An Army Cadet
#8
Pierce Brosnan Was A Professional Fire Eater In His Teens And Performed Under The Big Top For Three Years
#9
Jim Carrey Quit School To Support His Family And Started Working As A Janitor
Master Markus 9 years ago
Probably should've stayed in school in order to not be gullible enough for your wife to convince you that vaccines cause autism!
#10
Brad Pitt Used To Dress Up As A Chicken For An El Pollo Loco Restaurant In Hollywood
#11
Barack Obama Was An Ice Cream Scooper At Baskin Robbins
#12
Hugh Jackman Used To Be A Gym Teacher
#13
Bob Ross Was A Sergeant In The Air Force
BREAK YOUr perceptions 9 years ago
more than that, i believe he was a drill sergeant. he actually hated it SO MUCH about yelling at people that when he quit he decided he was going to do something the complete opposite for the rest of his life. and so he went on to painting little trees and rivers in the most calming voice.
#14
George Clooney Sold Women's Shoes, Was A Door-To-Door Insurance Salesman, Stocked Shelves, Was A Construction Worker, Cut Tobacco
#15
Bill Murray Used To Sell Chestnuts Outside Of A Chicago Grocery Store
#16
Gal Gadot Served In The Israeli Defense Forces
Aahzmandus Pervect 9 years ago
In Israel, conscription was mandatory for men and women. It's not like it was her choice.
#17
David Bowie Worked As A Butcher's Delivery Boy
Agnes Jekyll 9 years ago
He drew up plans for his first band in grade 7 (or earlier!)--lights, outfits, hair--the whole thing!
#18
Katheryn Winnick Is An Accomplished Martial Artist Who Holds A Third-Degree Black Belt In Taekwondo And A Second-Degree Black Belt In Karate. By 21 She Had Founded And Owned 3 Martial Arts Schools
#19
Jason Lee Was A Professional Skateboarder
#20
Chris Pratt Worked As A Stripper While Struggling To Make A Living In Hawaii
#21
Helen Mirren Worked As A Promoter For An Amusement Park In Southend On Sea
Alusair Alustriel 9 years ago
She was such a lovely fint young girl! Love the fresh looks she had! And she's a beautiful woman now! That's aging with class.
#22
Tom Hanks Was A Popcorn And Peanuts Vendor
#23
Kate Winslet Was A Sandwich Maker In A Delicatessen
#24
Liam Neeson Trained To Be A Teacher
#25
Whoopi Goldberg Was A Morgue Beautician
#26
Sandra Bullock Worked As A Bartender And Waitress At A Restaurant In Manhattan
#27
Tim Allen Was A Drug Dealer
#28
Channing Tatum Used To Be A Stripper
#29
Nicole Kidman Studied Massage So She Could Help Her Mother, Who Was Diagnosed With Breast Cancer, With Physical Therapy
#30
Gerard Butler Was A Trainee Lawyer But Got Fired Due To His Partying And Frequently Missing Work
#31
Charlize Theron Studied At The Joffrey Ballet School In New York, But Had To Cut Her Dancing Career Short Due To A Knee Injury At The Age Of 19
#32
Jon Hamm Was A Set-Dresser For Porn Films
Brandon Collinsworth 9 years ago
If the rumors about him are true then he was equipped enough he could have starred in a few
#33
Victoria Beckham Played A Sperm On Roller Skates For A BBC Sex Education Show Called ‘Body Matters’
#34
Michelle Pfeiffer Was A Cashier At A Supermarket
Alusair Alustriel 9 years ago
I adore her looks. Ever since I was a kid I found her one of the prettiest women there were :D
#35
Jake Gyllenhaal Was A Lifeguard
#36
Sheryl Crow Was A Music Teacher In An Elementary School
#37
Evangeline Lilly Worked As A Flight Attendant
#38
Adrien Brody Performed Magic Shows At Children's Birthday Parties As "The Amazing Adrien"
#39
Rachel Mcadams Worked At McDonalds
#40
Lucy Liu Was A Secretary, Aerobics Instructor And A Hostess
#41
Jon Bon Jovi Worked As A Christmas Decoration Maker
CookieChep 9 years ago
At first I didn't read the 'maker, so I thought he work as a Christmas decoration XD
#42
Matthew Mcconaughey Cleaned Chicken Coops And Washed Dishes
#43
Julia Roberts Worked As A Baskin Robbins Ice Cream Scooper
#44
Bradley Cooper Worked As A Doorman At The Morgans Hotel
#45
Mick Jagger Was A Bexley Mental Hospital Porter
#46
Jennifer Aniston Was A Telemarketer
#47
Jennifer Lopez Worked In A Law Office
#48
Walt Disney Was A Paper Boy
#49
Halle Berry Used To Work At Daily Express
#50
Ashton Kutcher Swept Cereal Dust At A General Mills Factory, Sold His Blood For Extra Cash
#52
Kate Bosworth Was A Competitive Horse Rider
#53
Michael Fassbender Was An Altar Boy At Weddings And Baptisms, Conducted Market Research For Britain's Royal Mail And Had Numerous Bartending Positions
#54
Vince Vaughn Was A Lifeguard At The YMCA
#55
Patrick Dempsey Was A Juggler
#56
Jake Johnson Used To Sell Burritos Out Of A Van
#57
Ozzy Osbourne Used To Work At A Slaughterhouse
#58
Madonna Worked At Dunkin Donuts Until She Got Fired
#59
Demi Moore Was A Debt Collector
Ronja Rövardotter 9 years ago
Rumours say that she was really successful debt collector because everybody always paid her Moore :)
#60
Elon Musk Shoveled Dirt In A Boiler Room For $18/hour
Susan Forbes 9 years ago
Where was this boiler that he got $18 an hour for shoveling in? Not too shabby
#61
James Franco Worked At McDonalds
#62
Megan Fox Was A Waitress, She Quit Because Customers Couldn't Keep Their Hands Off Her Body
Alusair Alustriel 9 years ago
And she was way prettier then. She should not have undergone all those plastic surgeries. Her lips are awful now and she looks like an artificial doll. She used to be gorgeous.
#63
Gwen Stefani Worked At Dairy Queen
#64
Eva Mendes Worked In A Pizza Place And A Hot Dog Stand In Local Mall
#65
Courtney Cox Worked For A New York Concert Booking Agency
#66
Pink Worked At McDonalds
#67
Amy Adams Was A Hooters Waitress
#68
Nelly Furtado Used To Work As A Chambermaid
#69
Will Ferrell Was A Hotel Valet
#70
Lady Gaga Was A Waitress
#71
Tina Fey Was A Snack Bar Server At A Swim Club
John Polyak 9 years ago
She's one of the brightest, funniest people alive. She's beautiful to boot.
#72
Marisa Tomei Worked At A Tony Roma's Steakhouse
#73
Eminem Was A Short-Order Cook
#74
Blake Shelton Used To Paint Houses
#75
Julianne Moore Was A Waitress
#76
Ewan Mcgregor Was A Stagehand At Perth Repertory Theatre
#77
Mariah Carey Studied Cosmetology And Had Several Jobs In Salons Before She Gave Up On That Dream
#78
Harry Styles Worked At The W. Mandeville Bakery In Holmes Chapel
#79
Rooney Mara Was A Summer Camp Counselor
#80
Jennifer Garner Was A Restaurant Hostess
#81
Andrew Garfield Worked At Starbucks
#82
Beyoncé Used To Sweep Up Hair In Mama Tina Knowles' Hair Salon
#83
America Ferrera Worked As A Waitress While Attending The University Of Southern California
#84
Sarah Silverman Waited Tables At A Mexican Restaurant Called La Cantina
#85
Lana Del Rey Was A Waitress
#86
Jennifer Hudson Worked At Burger King
#87
Tom Cruise Attended Seminary With An Aspiration Of Becoming A Priest
#89
Chace Crawford Worked At Abercrombie & Fitch
#90
Simon Cowell Was A Post Boy At Emi Record Label
#91
Sarah Jessica Parker Trained In Singing And Ballet
#93
Ellen Pompeo Was A Bartender
As If 9 years ago
She still plays that role. Grey's Anatomy is about to kick off it's 14th season and is one of the most popular, well-written, most award-winning, and longest running medical dramas in American Television. I mean, I can believe someone in this country has never seen an episode, but to have never heard of it? I don't believe that for a second. I think those people are just trying to sound cool, being all "who? what? never heard of it". Kind of like I do with One Direction.
#94
Matthew Morrison Worked At Gap
#95
Gwyneth Paltrow Was A Waitress
#96
Kanye West Was A Sales Assistant At Gap
#97
Kelly Clarkson Worked As A Cocktail Waitress At Multiple Comedy Clubs In Texas
#98
50 Cent Used To Be A Dealer
#99
Naya Rivera Worked As A Waitress At Hooters
#100
Chelsea Handler Was A Waitress At A Morton's Steakhouse
#101
Jay-Z Was A Drug Dealer
#102
Nicki Minaj Was A Waitress
#103
Holy Madison Worked As A Waitress At Hooters
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What do you think ?
Aahzmandus Pervect 9 years ago
Many of those are not surprising at all. I mean, actors and actresses working as waiters? Hardly a surprise.
Amanda Avelar 9 years ago
Agreed! People need to stop praising her for that. The praise should go to those who actually volunteer for that type of work.
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Aahzmandus Pervect 9 years ago
Many of those are not surprising at all. I mean, actors and actresses working as waiters? Hardly a surprise.
Amanda Avelar 9 years ago
Agreed! People need to stop praising her for that. The praise should go to those who actually volunteer for that type of work.
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