Celebs Who Come From A Poor Background

Saturday, Aug 15, 2020, 4:13 pm

By:Tony Williams

1.Jewel

Country music singer Jewel endured a lot of hardships growing up. The singer grew up on her family's Alaska farm, which had no running water. When she was just six-years-old, Jewel began performing in Eskimo villages with her family. The singer eventually moved to California and got a few day jobs to make some money. But she quit those jobs and began living in her van while she toured. Her big break came in 1995 when she released her debut album,Pieces of You. The album went certified platinum 12 times.

2.Hilary Swank

Hilary Swank might have grown up in a trailer park, but now she parks her Oscars in her million-dollar home. Swank didn't live a charmed life. She was rejectedby her classmates because of how poor she was. Her father abandoned her family, and Swank dropped out of high school. At age 15, Hank's mom lost her job and the pair moved to California. They were forced to sleep in their car. The actress was able to make a better life for herself and is now worth more than $30 million.

3.Sean "P Diddy" Combs

Sean Combs has made a name (or rather a couple of names) for himself through hard work and dedication. The mogul was born in Harlem, NY, but he left after his father was murdered and moved in with his mother. Apparently, his mother worked several jobs to support them. Combs went from interning at Uptown Records to launching his own record label called Bad Boy. He is still close to his mother to this day, and often takes her to events as his guest.

4.Tom Cruise

Tom Cruise is a true rag to riches story. The actor was cared for by his single mother growing up. Though she was a special education teacher, it was hard for her to find work. Cruise's family moved around often just so his mother could get work. At one point in time, his mom reportedly held four jobs at once just to make ends meet. Cruise eventually made his way to NJ for high school, but dropped out to pursue an acting career. Cruise is now one of the most sought-after actors in Hollywood and Is worth more than $200 million.

5.Sarah Jessica Parker

Sarah Jessica Parker played the rich and glamorous Carrie Bradshaw for years on sex and the City. But her life growing up was anything but rich or glamorous. Parker was born into an impoverished family in a small town in Ohio. She was the youngest of four children, but her parents divorced when she was 2-years-old. Her mother then remarried and had four more children. Parker began singing and acting to help support her family. Her hard work paid off because with her perfume-line and acting endeavors, she is reportedly worth about $130 million.

6.J.K Rowling

J.K. Rowling briefly lived off welfare. She also lived in U.K. government housing while she wrote the first part of the Harry Potter series. Rowling, a single mom at the time, wrote the book in a local coffee shop, with her baby by her side in a stroller. During an interview with NPR News, Rowling spoke candidly about her days of living in poverty. She said, "I, too, have passed through a period of poverty in Britain and can understand some of those issues," she told NPR News in 2012. "I think I've had a very strange life." Rowling went on to become the first billionaire writer, in the U.S., thanks to her Harry Potter novels.

7.Leighton Meester

Children are normally born in hospitals, bathtubs or even mangers. But for actress Leighton Meester, she was born in one of the worse places in the world. The Gossip Girl actress was born in prison. Her mother was incarcerated in a Texas prison, where she was serving time for smuggling drugs. The two spent 12-weeks in a halfway house, and then Meester went to live with her grandmother. Her role on Gossip Girl gave the actress hope at having a stable income and career. She is now worth close to $5 million.

8.Jim Carrey

Jim Carrey has spent years making audiences around the world laugh, but his childhood is no laughing matter. The actor's family fell on hard times when he was a kid, and at 12-years-old, he was forced to get an after-school job. In regards to his childhood situation, he said "My father lost his job when he was 51 and that was the real 'wow', the kick in the guts. We lived in a van for a while, and we worked all together as security guards and janitors."

9.Demi Moore

Demi Moore is a successful actress in her own right, but her childhood was pretty dismal. Moore grew up in a trailer park in Roswell, New Mexico. She was raised by her alcoholicmother and stepfather. The actress and her family moved 30 times before she reached adulthood. Moore dropped out of high school at 16, and married musician Freddie Moore 2-years-later. She got her big break when she landed a role on ABC's General Hospital. Today, Moore is reportedly worth about $75 million.

10.Jay-Z

Jay-Z has turned his life around 10 times over. The emcee constantly refers to how he grew up poor and how he was able to make a name for himself in his lyrics. Jay-Z grew up in a rough area of Brooklyn, NY known as Bed-Stuy. To make ends meet, a 13-year-old Jay-Z began peddling narcotics on the streets of New York. Today, Jay-Z credits his years of peddling to helping him in becoming an established sports agent.

11.Stephen King

Stephen King is one of the most recognized authors in the world, but even he had to work to get where he is now. King's father abandoned his family when he was just 2-years-old. King was 11-years-old when his mother finally had a stable income. The author has revealed that it was because of his extended family's kindness - giving them groceries and old clothes-that he and his mother were able to survive. Those days are long gone and since penning his first best-seller "Carrie," King has gone on to write more than 30 books. He is said to be worth over $200 million.

12.Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey was raised by her grandmother until she was 6-years-old. Sadly, Winfrey was raped by a family member when she was just 9-years-old. After her grandmother passed, the talk show host moved to Milwaukee to live with her mother who worked as a maid, and relied on welfare at times to support the family. Winfrey went from beingnews anchor at a local station to becoming one of the most successful women of all time. She is now worth over $2.7 billion.

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