They made millions — then lost it all. Some trusted the wrong people. Some simply couldn’t stop spending. A few gambled fortunes away, one dollar at a time, until the IRS came knocking or the bank seized everything. From child stars and chart-toppers to heavyweight champs and literary legends, these sixty icons prove that fame and fortune don’t always stick around. Some clawed their way back. Others never recovered.
Keep reading to see exactly how it all came crashing down — and who managed to rise from the ashes.
#1: Judy Garland
When 17-year-old Judy Garland sang “Over the Rainbow” in The Wizard of Oz, America fell in love. Hit musicals, sold-out concerts, and top-selling albums followed, and she earned millions. Behind the scenes, though, the people handling her money were not always looking out for her.
Years of bad management left Garland owing the government around $4 million in unpaid taxes. She worked herself ragged, hosting a weekly TV show and touring the world to pay it down. She never got there. She died in 1969, at just 47, still buried in debt.