Famous People Who Filed for Bankruptcy

In spite of various debt relief options like debt settlement, debt consolidation, debt management plan etc, people still take resort to the last option called bankruptcy. When it comes to financial troubles and fiscal deficits, all people are humbled down to a same level irrespective of their social status or popularity and thus we can find a long list of celebrities and famous people whose economic disputes have led them to file for bankruptcy. Let us know about some of them:

1. Burt Reynolds: The famous actor who had become a household name by earning reputation through some of popular movies like ‘The Cannonball Run’ and ‘Boogie Nights’ etc was once famous for his bankruptcy cases. He was forced to file for bankruptcy after an expensive divorce in 1996 which made him sell his properties in order to repay the debt.

2. Kim Basinger: The famous actress made her mark on cinema with hits like ‘9½ Weeks’, ‘Batman’, ‘L.A. Confidential’. Her financial blunder of buying a small town called Braselton in hope of turning it into a tourist attraction, has turned out to be a fiasco, which landed her into heavy financial trouble and she ultimately sold the property. Later her controversial movie ‘Boxing Helena’ has led her to a controversy when she was hit with a lawsuit of $8m and eventually filed for bankruptcy.

3. Mike Tyson: The heavy weight world champion had an equal ability to pack a punch and to make expensive purchases. An addition to this was his poor financial decisions which landed him with a debt worth $27m, excluding taxes and he eventually filed for bankruptcy chapter 11.

4. Walt Disney: The famous creator of Mickey Mouse, Walt Disney had faced debt problems after being deceived by a New York based distribution company, which cheated him out of money that he could not afford to pay. And as a result his studio filed for bankruptcy in 1923.

5. Abraham Lincoln: Being an extra ordinary person does not save him from ordinary troubles and challenges. The former U.S. president failed to run a store that ran at a loss in Illinois and soon faced heavy debts due to his partner death, which made him sell his shop, as he was unable to pay his creditors. The situation left the president with $1000 debt which led him to sell his assets to his creditors.

6. Oscar Wilde: Bankruptcy did not spare even the world renowned and famous playwright Oscar Wilde who was charged with gross indecency and led a prisoner’s life. Soon after spending £600 as a heavy fee for the court proceedings he was left with no option than going bankrupt which forced him to sell off his popular books and artworks.