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26 ‘90s Celebs Who Hit It Big Then Chose To Live Ordinary, Happy, And Private Lives
Historians say that the Roman Emperor Diocletian abdicated the throne one day and retired to his country estate to grow vegetables in his garden. When his courtiers came to literally beg him to return to Rome, the Emperor allegedly told them: "If you had seen the cabbage I grew, you would never have tried to persuade me to return!"
Why am I telling you all this? Well, here's why: sometimes, we think that the life of celebrities—outstanding movie actors, musicians, and athletes—is an ideal one to strive for and envy. A life on the red carpet, in the spotlight, and under the flashes of cameras... But, it turns out that not all showbiz stars actually agree with this.
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#1
Evan Adams
Evan Adams acted a lot in the nineties in Canada, but at the same time, he studied to be a doctor and graduated from the University of Calgary with his medical degree in 2002. Having made a decent medical career, today he is the Chief Medical Officer of the First Nations Health Authority in British Columbia.
Forrest Grump 6 months ago
The image on the left is from the movie Smoke Signals (1998). Good movie.
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#2
Rick Moranis
Rick Moranis' finest hour came mainly in the eighties, when he played in the Ghostbusters and Spaceballs, but in the first half of the nineties, he created a memorable image of the half-mad inventor Wayne Szalinski in the film Honey, I Shrunk The Kids and subsequent sequels.
However, in 1997, Moranis retired from filming. The fact is that in 1991, his wife Ann passed away from breast cancer, and the actor decided to devote his time to raising his two kids. Since then, he has not married, and periodically does voiceover work for cartoons.
#3
Bridget Fonda
It is not surprising that another representative of the glorious Fonda acting dynasty starred in films a lot and fruitfully in her youth, but at the beginning of the 21st century, Bridget Fonda finally left Hollywood. She married composer Danny Elfman, gave birth to a son, and reportedly leads a happy, calm life as a civilian.
History knows more than one, or even more than a dozen actors and musicians who one day simply stopped and, having thought over their life prospects, reasonably realized that they liked the everyday life of an ordinary civilian much more. And it is better to become, for example, an outstanding lawyer than a supporting or even third-rate actor or actress.
#4
Mara Wilson
As a child, she was the star of Matilda and Mrs. Doubtfire, but by the age of 13, Mara Wilson faced problems in her family and, unable to bear the fame that had fallen upon her, ended her acting career. Today, she is a writer and occasionally does voice-over work for cartoons.
Robin DJW 6 months ago
I'm not surprised. You have to be a fairly smart kid to perform so skillfully as a child. And she clearly made a smart decision, as well as a humane one: family before fame. BTW, Matilda is one of my all time fave films. Thank you, Mara, for a wonderful film. Kudos too to Danny DeVito for this and many delightful and/or thought-provoking films (e.g. Renaissance Man, also a fave).
#5
Yasmeen Ghauri
Yasmeen Ghauri was a catwalk superstar in the 1990s, being the face of Chanel and Jil Sander, Versace, and Valentino couture. However, in 1997, she stepped out of the Yves Saint Laurent show at the last minute, after which she retired from modeling.
Ghauri then married lawyer Ralph Bernstein, had two children with him, and now also works on issues in support of breast cancer research and environmental causes.
#6
Karyn Parsons
After starring on the NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air from 1990 to 1996 as Hilary Banks, Karyn Parsons attempted to launch her own comedy show and starred in the film Major Payne with Damon Wayans. She eventually moved to NYC, where she made a career as a children's writer. In 2005, she also founded Sweet Blackberry, a nonprofit that teaches kids about the lesser-known aspects of Black history.
Chewie Baron 6 months ago (edited)
Although I wasn’t (still don’t like it) much of a fan of Fresh Prince, Hilary Banks stole every scene she was in as far as I’m concerned.
This usually happens with star child actors who, by the time they reach their prime, either face professional "burnout" or realize that they just want to go to college and get a degree. For example, in the field of law—at least three of the nearly three dozen celebrities featured on this list from Bored Panda actually became lawyers—and quite successful ones.
#7
Josh Saviano
Josh Saviano, who played Kevin Arnold's best friend, Paul Pfeiffer, in the ABC television show The Wonder Years, did not pursue acting fame, and immediately went to study law after graduating from school. Today he is a well-known lawyer and the founder of several start-up endeavors.
Huddo's sister 6 months ago
His ex-girlfriend Crystal McKellar, who was also on The Wonder Years, also became a lawyer.
#8
Ariana Richards
Ariana Richards also became popular in her childhood—the peak of her movie career was the role of Lex Murphy in Jurassic Park. And, as often happens with young movie stars, she left Hollywood relatively early, becoming a fairly well-known artist. At least, reportedly, one of her paintings decorates the office of Steven Spielberg, whom she has known since childhood.
#9
Leelee Sobieski
Leelee Sobieski was considered 'the next big thing' in Hollywood at the turn of the century, but eventually, in 2012, when she married fashion designer Adam Kimmel and gave birth to her first child (she now has two), she decided to end her acting career completely. A few years later, under the name Leelee Kimmel, she began a career as an artist and designer.
This selection includes mostly people who hit fame in the late '80s and '90s, otherwise Shirley Temple would’ve definitely been included here as one of the most famous children ever to appear on Hollywood screens, and who, as an adult, made a brilliant career in politics and diplomacy.
At the same time, Macaulay Culkin is not here—after all, he still keeps filming and, who knows, maybe one day he will also receive his Oscar, like his younger brother.
#10
Jaye Davidson
Jaye Davidson had a brilliant start to his acting career—with his debut film, The Crying Game, he received an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor. Then there was a promising sequel as Ra in Roland Emmerich's blockbuster Stargate... but that was pretty much the end of Davidson's film career. After that, he devoted himself to the modeling business, and today, he reportedly lives in Paris and works as a fashion stylist.
#11
Liesel Matthews
Liesel Matthews is known for her role as Sara Crewe in Alfonso Cuaron's A Little Princess and in the 1997 action film Air Force One. However, as a member of the famous and very wealthy Pritzker family (her actual last name), she eventually moved away from filming and is now known in the business world as a leader in impact investing.
#12
Charlie Korsmo
Interestingly, many child actors who hit fame very early later became successful lawyers. Another example is Charlie Korsmo, who, after portraying Sigmund 'Siggy' Marvin in the 1991 film What About Bob?, the Kid in the film adaptation of Dick Tracy, and Jack Banning in Hook, got two degrees—one in physics and a Juris Doctor degree—and is a successful and well-known lawyer today.
However, if you think that only young actors who faced a creative crisis after growing up are presented here, you are also definitely mistaken. For example, Vanilla Ice—one of the rap stars of the early nineties, survived this crisis over age 30—and today, in addition to music, he also works as a building contractor. I wonder if he turns on Ice Ice Baby at the construction site...?
#13
Jonathan Taylor Thomas
Jonathan Taylor Thomas is known for portraying Randy Taylor on Home Improvement, as well as voicing young Simba in The Lion King and Pinocchio in New Line Cinema's 1996 film The Adventures of Pinocchio. However, he eventually stepped away from acting to pursue a degree and now works primarily as a director, at the same time serving as a national board member of the media labor union SAG-AFTRA.
#14
Lisa Jakub
Lisa Jakub is best known for her role as the title character's daughter in Mrs. Doubtfire, but she retired from acting at the age of 22 to focus on her family and writing. She is currently the author of two non-fiction books and also contributes to online blogs.
#15
Mike Maronna
Mike Maronna hit fame in The Adventures of Pete & Pete (as Big Pete Wrigley) and made his film debut in Home Alone as Jeff McCallister. However, as he got older, he began acting less and quit acting completely in 2013. Since then, he has worked as an electrician on films and television in New York, and co-hosts the podcast The Adventures of Danny and Mike, with his Adventures of Pete and Pete co-star Danny Tamberelli.
In any case, we do believe that you will be interested in reading this selection and seeing what happened to the young movie stars whom we saw on TV in our childhood (or in the childhood of our parents, who knows?)
And who are additional confirmation that it’s not fame that actually makes a person happy. Although, concluding that ancient story—Emperor Diocletian nevertheless succumbed to the persuasion of the courtiers and returned to rule in Rome...
#16
Omri Katz
Known as John Ross Ewing III of Dallas and Max Denison of Hocus Pocus, Omri Katz moved to Israel in the early 21st century, where he worked, among other things, as a hairdresser. However, over time, the former actor returned to the United States and now operates a cannabis company.
#17
Ross Malinger
Ross Malinger, who as a child starred with Tom Hanks in Sleepless in Seattle, and in the 1997 Disney comedy film Toothless, together with Kirstie Alley, also didn’t have a big movie career after coming of age. Malinger is known to have worked for many years in the automobile business at a series of car dealerships in the Greater Los Angeles area.
#18
Ross Bagley
Remember the little boy shooting at an alien spaceship with a toy blaster in Independence Day? Today, Ross Bagley, who played the son of Will Smith's character, works as a real estate agent and has his own family and son, too.
#19
Jimmy Workman
Playing Pugsley Addams in any version of The Addams Family can be really tough—you're always in the shadow of your sister, Wednesday. That's what also happened to Jimmy Workman, who retired from acting in 2011 and switched to working behind the camera on the technical staff of film and television production.
#20
Danny Tamberelli
Even if you haven't seen The Adventures of Pete & Pete, where Danny Tamberelli played Little Pete Wrigley, you probably know what he looks like now. That's because Tamberelli, as an adult, portrayed Jimmy De Santa in the 2013 video game Grand Theft Auto V. He's also a fairly successful musician, and hosts a podcast with his former The Adventures of Pete & Pete co-star, Mike Maroona.
#21
Phoebe Cates
Phoebe Cates was a star actress and model back in the '80s, and her exit from a pool in a red bikini in Fast Times at Ridgemont High was definitely one of the most memorable moments in movie history for the entire decade. In 1989, Cates married fellow actor Kevin Kline and eventually retired from acting to focus on her family and raising kids.
#22
Troy Slaten
Troy Slaten is a former child actor best known for his work depicting Jerry Steiner on the series Parker Lewis Can't Lose, and Michael Lacey on ‘’Cagney and Lacey.’ Now try to guess what field Slaten has made his career in since he quit acting in 1999? That's right, he’s now an attorney and a legal analyst for several broadcast networks and their subsidiaries!
#23
Chris Owen
Chris Owen entered the folklore of the nineties as "Sherminator" from American Pie, however, with the exception of, of course, participation in numerous sequels of the cult film, his acting career didn't develop in the best way. Moreover, in one of the interviews about ten years ago, Owen admitted that he worked as a server in a sushi restaurant in Santa Monica, California. Since then, Chris has starred in episodic roles in many more films, TV series and musical videos.
Moxitron Jazz 6 months ago
He never stepped away. Just another of thousands who don't make it. Sadly he is still trying and only getting but parts, hence the hospitality work...
#24
MC Hammer
Another commercial rap superstar of the early nineties, MC Hammer faced a creative crisis and even went bankrupt in the second half of the decade. After that, he turned to religion, became an ordained priest, and although he still occasionally appears on stage as a guest star on various music shows, his musical career is long over, irrevocably.
El Cucuy 6 months ago
Part of his downfall fortune-wise was the size of his posse - he paid for everything for all of them all the time. I ran into him several years ago in Oakland when Mike Tyson was doing his one-man speaking show. He still had like 5 guys in tow with him. Tyson called him out repeatedly while on stage. It was hilarious.
#25
Vanilla Ice
A rap star in the early nineties, Vanilla Ice then made a not-so-successful switch to rock before returning to school to study design and construction, while developing his contractor career alongside music. On weekends, he can be booked as a star attraction for a party, and on weekdays, he's back to work.
The Majestic Opossum 6 months ago
He's actually a very successful contractor and I believe he even had his own home improvement show a few years back
#26
Mary-Kate And Ashley Olsen
The Olsen twins hit fame at about nine months old on the Full House sitcom. Throughout the '90s, they were arguably the most popular kid actors in Hollywood, along with Macaulay Culkin, but in 2004, after receiving their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the sisters moved into the world of fashion and business. Their last name, however, hasn't disappeared from movie credits—after all, their younger sister, Elizabeth Olsen, has had a stellar film career.
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Cronecast AtTheRisingMoon 6 months ago
Fun list, thank you for it! Might want to correct the Chris Kline/Kevin Kline thing but other than that I love a good where are they now list.
Lesley Byfield-Papworth 5 months ago
Kevin Kline is a Actor [older].....look him up. Quite well know in an older age group
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Huddo's sister 6 months ago
Danica McKellar, who was in The Wonder Years, still acts sometimes but is primarily a mathematician and author who focusses on getting girls interested in maths.
Nova Rook 6 months ago
I dunno, how many? Never heard his name attached to any of these people.
Load More Replies... Cronecast AtTheRisingMoon 6 months ago
Fun list, thank you for it! Might want to correct the Chris Kline/Kevin Kline thing but other than that I love a good where are they now list.
Lesley Byfield-Papworth 5 months ago
Kevin Kline is a Actor [older].....look him up. Quite well know in an older age group
Load More Replies... Huddo's sister 6 months ago
Danica McKellar, who was in The Wonder Years, still acts sometimes but is primarily a mathematician and author who focusses on getting girls interested in maths.
Nova Rook 6 months ago
I dunno, how many? Never heard his name attached to any of these people.
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