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Careers Before They Were Famous
| Published: 17th May 2008 17:32 |
Careers Before They Were Famous
More than just a pretty face
and a talented actress,
Natalie Portman also has
a degree in psychology.
There's no business like show business, but it is certainly the most difficult
to succeed in. Just ask any number of ex-soap stars or out-of-favour pop stars.
Becoming famous and staying in the public eye is a full-time career, but only
the children of the already rich and famous are born with a degree in stardom.
The rest of them have to work at it, like anyone. Before they hit the big time, all
celebrities need to make a living. Brad Pitt, for example, worked as a fully-clothed
chauffeur for a strip-a-gram business.
Sensible celebrities in the modern world are fully aware that very few make
it in the world of fame. They take the advice given by their parents and
teachers of having some alternative career opportunities under their belt, j
ust in case.
Here are some of the former career plans of some of Hollywood's biggest stars.
Matthew McConaughey as a lawyer: Instead of joining his
father's lucrative oil business, McConaughey attended the University
of Texas with the intention of becoming a lawyer. He reportedly
changed his course to acting after being inspired by an Og Mandino
book, The Greatest Salesman in the World.
Benicio del Toro as a lawyer: Before starring in Traffic and Sin City,
del Toro sensibly studied business at the University of California.
Although his father wanted him to become a lawyer, he secretly
changed his course to acting and later dropped out to study what
he now does best in New York.
Denzel Washington as a journalist: Washington attended Fordham
University to pursue a career in journalism before getting involved
in student drama productions and being drawn into acting. He finished
his degree and moved to San Francisco attending the American
Conservatory Theater for one year before pursuing acting work and
later earning multiple awards.
Will Ferrell as a sportscaster: After comedian Will Ferrell graduated
from the University of Southern California with a degree in sports
information, he took a job as a sportscaster on a weekly cable show.
When his stand-up shows and acting career took off, he coincidentally
evisited his former career playing a newscaster for a cable network in
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.
Queen Latifah as newscaster or lawyer: Before becoming an Academy
Award-nominated actress and hip hop artist, Queen Latifah (previously
Dana Owens) studied broadcast journalism in Manhattan. She considered
pursuing a career either as a newscaster or a lawyer before hitting the
big time, becoming Queen of the hip hop scene.
Natalie Portman as psychologist: Portman is one of the few celebrities
to keep the fires stoked on her previous career aspirations. At just 11 years
old, she was discovered by a modelling scout at a pizza parlour. Portman t
hen went into acting and bagged the role of Queen Amidala in Star Wars:
Episode I - The Phantom Menace and her Oscar-nominated role in Closer.
After a few years of Hollywood success, Portman unusually took a
career break to study at Harvard University, majoring in psychology.
Although she intends to continue acting, she also plans to practice psychology.
Lucy Liu as linguist: Before finding fame and admiration in Charlie's
Angels, Liu attended New York University before transferring to the
University of Michigan where she graduated in Asian languages. During her
last year of college, she took the lead role in her college's production of Alice
in Wonderland and becoming a linguist was history.
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