Famous People Who Have Filed for
Bankruptcy Protection
If you're feeling alone or depressed because of financial problems, cheer up! You're in very good company. Below is a list of some of the famous people (including four U.S. Presidents!) who have filed for bankruptcy or had severe financial problems before the modern bankruptcy code was adopted. Please note that most of these folks had their great success and fame after their bankruptcies.
Donald Trump, financier
Michael Jackson, singer
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composer
Elton John, singer/composer
Kim Basinger, actress
John Wayne, actor
Mike Tyson, boxer
Mark Twain, humorist
Burt Reynolds, actor
Thomas Jefferson, 3rd President of the United States
Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States
Ulysses S. Grant, 18th President of the United States and Civil War general
Harry S Truman, 35th President of the United States
Gary Coleman, actor and star of TV show Diff'rent Strokes
MC Hammer, rap singer
Willie Nelson, country singer
Lorraine Bracco, star of The Sopranos
Charles Goodyear, founder of the Goodyear Tire Company
PT Barnum, circus promoter
L. Frank Baum, author of "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz"
Oscar Wilde, playwright
Jerry Lee Lewis, rock singer
Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motor Company
Johnny Unitas, football player
Wayne Newton, "Mr. Las Vegas"
Debbie Reynolds, actress (and mother of Carrie Fisher, Princess Leia of Star Wars)
Walt Disney, creator of Mickey Mouse
Richard Wagner, opera composer
Mick Fleetwood, member of rock group Fleetwood Mac
Merle Haggard, country singer
Dorothy Hamill, figure skater
Larry King, talk show host
Bowie Kuhn, former baseball commissioner
Millions of Americans, including (based on the numbers) at least three people you know personally — even if you don't realize it