We have a couple of comments to make before getting to the list of first jobs for famous people.
A few people have criticized us for our posts in the “Just For The Fun Of It” category. They think that ALL of our content should be about self-improvement and getting more out of life. Many publications with serious content have an occasional light-hearted item. We’re just doing the same.
We love sharing things such as interesting pictures and trivia with other people and this site allows us a wider reach. Many people enjoy this sort of thing – some like it because it gives them a chuckle and others like it because it’s a brief break from the hustle and bustle of their lives.
If you have no interest in this sort of thing, simply switch to a category that’s more to your liking.
Thank you!
Adam Brody
He worked at Blockbuster right after getting out of high school.
Alec Baldwin
He once worked as a bouncer.
Amy Adams
For a few months after getting out of high school, this Oscar-nominated actress worked at a Hooters restaurant.
Ashanti
She worked at a daycare center before her singing career took off.
Ben Affleck
He was in a Burger King ad and in a scene in 1992′s “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” as a basketball player (jersey #10). He was also in a 1984 series on PBS called “Voyage of the Mimi.”
Bill Cosby
When he was young, he sold produce and shined shoes. He joined the Navy and served at the Marine base in Quantico, Virginia and at the Bethesda Naval Hospital in Maryland.
Bill Gates
He attended Harvard and was a Congressional Page.
Billy Crystal
He was a substitute teacher after he graduated from New York University. His college career actually started at Marshall University, where he played baseball until that sport program ended after his freshmen year.
Billy Ray Cyrus
Before he focused on his career in country music, Bill Ray attended Georgetown College on a baseball scholarship.
Brandy
Her first job was in a hair salon.
Calista Flockhart
At one point, she was an aerobics instructor.
Carmen Electra
She once worked as a dancer at Kings Island amusement park in Ohio. Her big break came when Prince signed her to a singing contract with a female rap group.
Charles Bronson
He worked in a coal mine before his movie career began.
Christina Aguilera
As a child, she sang The Star-Spangled Banner at Pittsburgh sporting events including the Penguins, Steelers and Pirates. In 1990, she appeared (but did not win) on the TV show “Star Search.” In 1993 she became part of Disney’s variety show “The New Mickey Mouse Club” (along with Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake).
Christina Applegate
She appeared with her mother (Nancy Piddy) in a 1972 TV ad for Playtex when she was only a few months old.
Chubby Checker
He plucked chickens at a poultry market before his music recording career got going strong.
Cindy Crawford
She graduated from DeKalb High School in Dekalb, Illinois in 1984. She was valedictorian. She won an academic scholarship to study chemical engineering at Northwestern University. However, she only attended Northwestern for one quarter.
Clark Gable
He once sold neckties at a Meier & Frank department store.
Clay Aiken
Before he found fame through the TV show “American Idol” he worked as a counselor at a YMCA in North Carolina.
Clint Eastwood
He was a swimming pool installer before his acting career took off. Many of us are old enough to remember him as Rowdy Yates in the TV western “Rawhide” before he gained even more fame in the “Spaghetti Westerns.”
Coolio
He was a firefighter for a little while.
Courteney Cox
She was a spokesperson for Tampax tampons before becoming a big star. She was also featured in Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark” video in the 1980s.
Dakota Fanning
At the age of 5, she was in an ad for Tide detergent.
Dan Aykroyd
In his teen years, he was planning on becoming a Catholic priest. As a young man, Dan worked as a mail sorter for the National Postal Service in Canada.
Danny DeVito
He was a formally trained hair stylist before getting his break on the hit TV sitcom “Taxi.”
David Duchovny
He has an undergrad degree from Princeton and a master’s degree from Yale.
Dean Cain
Before he was on the TV show “Lois & Clark” (he was Superman / Clark Kent), he played football with the Buffalo Bills (until he suffered a knee injury).
Dennis Farina
For almost 20 years (from 1967 to 1985) he was a police officer with the Chicago Police Department. So, when he played a cop on TV, he had real-life experience. We believe he has also played characters on the other side of the law.
Drew Barrymore
Before her big role in the movie “E.T.” she was in TV ads for various products, including dog food, Rice Krispies cereal, and Pilsbury chocolate chip cookies.
Drew Carey
He had a small role as a taxi passenger in the movie “Coneheads” before he became well-known. He was in the Marine Corps Reserve in the early 1980s. He also worked at a Denny’s Restaurant in Nevada at one time.
Ellen DeGeneres
Her early jobs included painter, oyster shucker, vacuum saleswoman and paralegal. She also worked in a glove factory, but that only lasted a half day.
Elvis Costello
He was a computer programmer before his music career..
Farrah Fawcett
Before gaining fame in the TV show “Charlie’s Angels” she was in a 1972 commercial for UltraBrite toothpaste. She was also in ads for products such as Winchester Cigars, Union 76 gasoline, and Head and Shoulders shampoo.
Garth Brooks
He was a salesman in a boot store right up until he got his big break. In college, he had a track scholarship as a javelin thrower.
Gloria Estefan
She worked as a translator at Miami International Airport in the Customs Department while she was attending the University of Miami. She studied communications and psychology.
Greta Garbo
She was a lather girl in a barbershop. Other jobs included working at a major department store in Stockholm, Sweden, in the 1920s before she became an actress.
Halle Berry
She worked in the children’s department at Higbee’s department store. Also, she was a contestant in several beauty contests including Miss Ohio USA, Miss Teen All-American, Miss USA (first runner-up in 1986), and Miss World 1986.
Harrison Ford
He was a carpenter before his acting career got into high gear. Carpentry was more than just a job, he actually had a good reputation for quality workmanship.
Henry Fonda
He worked for the Retail Credit Company while he was going to the University of Minnesota, where he studied journalism.
Jacques Chirac
In the 1950s, this President of France spent a summer in the United States taking classes at Harvard and he worked at Anheuser-Busch.
James Caan
Before his movie career took off, he was a steer roper traveling around the rodeo circuit.
Jason Alexander
In 1986 (before gaining fame as George in “Seinfeld”) he was featured in an upbeat TV ad for the McDLT sandwich at McDonald’s.
Jennifer Aniston
She worked as a waitress and a telemarketer before she struck it big.
Jennifer Garner
Prior to her acting career, she worked as a hostess at Isabella’s Restaurant, located on New York’s Upper West Side.
Jerome Bettis
Before his days as a football star, he worked at a restaurant called “Charly’s.”
Jessica Alba
In 1994, at the age of 13, she was in two TV ads. One was for Nintendo and the other was for J.C. Penney department store.
Jessica Biel
Just before getting her role in “7th Heaven,” she was in a 1996 McDonald’s ad for the Arch Deluxe sandwich.
Jim Carrey
At age 14, he was in an army cadet program. He also worked in a factory doing janitorial work.
Joan Crawford
She was an elevator operator in a Kansas City department store. She also worked in a laundromat.
John Cena
He was a chauffeur for a limousine company before being an entertainer with WWE (wrestling). Sorry, but some of us don’t think that kind of wrestling is the real deal. The wrestling done in high school, college and the Olympics is the real sport.
Johnny Depp
He once worked as an over-the-phone pen salesman.
Jon Bon Jovi
This rock star once worked at a job where he made Christmas decorations.
Kate Bosworth
She was in several ads for Revlon.
Kathy Bates
She worked in the gift shop at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. She also worked as a singing waitress at a resort in the Catskills.
Katie Couric
Her first job was at ABC as a desk assistant.
Kelly Clarkson
She had a variety of jobs – pharmacy clerk, waitress, a performer at Six Flags amusement park, telemarketer, vacuum salesperson, and a promoter for Red Bull energy drink.
Kenny Chesney
He was a parking valet, telemarketer and mail sorter before his big break in country music.
Kirsten Dunst
She was in dozens of TV ads starting when she was only 3 years old. At age 7, she was on Saturday Night Live where she played the granddaughter of George Bush in one of the SNL skits.
Kirstie Alley
She was a contestant on “Match Game” in 1979. She was also a contestant on “Password Plus” in 1980.
Lucille Ball
Because she could not remember to add bananas to a banana split, Lucy was fired from an ice cream shop. Also, early on, she modeled fur coats in New York City at Hattie Carnegie’s.
Madeleine Albright
Long before becoming Bill Clinton’s Secretary of State, she once worked in Denver at Jocelyn’s department store where she sold bras.
Mariah Carey
She started going to beauty school but ended up dropping out. She was once fired from a job where she was a hat checker.
Marlon Brando
He was expelled from military school. He also dug ditches for a living at one point.
Matthew Broderick
He appeared in a 1982 ad for Lanacane itch cream before gaining fame in the movies.
Michael Clarke Duncan
He once dug ditches for a utility company in Chicago. Later on, he was a bodyguard for several celebrities. Also, he once thought about becoming a policeman with the LAPD.
Michael Dell
The founder of Dell Computers was once paid $2.30 per hour for washing dishes at a Chinese restaurant.
Michael Douglas
He once worked as a gas station attendant.
Morgan Freeman
He was a student at Los Angeles Community College before he served in the US Air Force in the 1950s (he was a mechanic in the Air Force).
Neve Campbell
She gave up pursuing a career as a ballerina after she suffered some injuries. Also, she worked as a linguist for the Canadian Department of Indian and Northern Affairs.
Orlando Bloom
At age 13, he worked as a clay trapper at his local pigeon shooting range.
Paula Abdul
Starting at age 19, she was a cheerleader for the L.A. Lakers pro basketball team. At the auditions, she was picked from more than 700 other young women that tried out.
Redd Foxx
Before becoming a comedian, he was worked in a small restaurant in New York as a dishwasher. One of his best friends, Malcolm X, also worked in that same restaurant as a waiter.
Richard Gere
Before he dropped out of college to pursue an acting career, he studied philosophy at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, where he had a gymnastics scholarship.
Robert Duvall
He worked as a post office clerk while trying to get his foot in door and get acting roles.
Sandra Bullock
She had a variety of jobs before hitting it big – bartender, cocktail waitress, and coat checker.
Sarah Michelle Gellar
In her early years, she was in an ad for Duncan Hines (cake mix) along with Seth Green. She also did guest appearances on a daytime soap opera. At age 5, she was in a Burger King ad. It was the first ad that bashed the competition by name, and that led to a lawsuit filed by McDonalds.
Sean Combs (Diddy)
He worked at Uptown Records where he was an intern and did grunt work such as washing cars and getting coffee for others.
Sean Connery
His first job was delivering milk for a dairy co-operative in Scotland. He was in the Royal Navy for 3 years and then had a series of odd jobs, such as truck driver, brick layer, lifeguard, coffin polisher, and artist’s model at the Edinburgh College of Art. He also pursued a career in bodybuilding and won 3rd place in the 1953 Mr. Universe competition.
Sheryl Crow
She once taught at an elementary school in St. Louis, Missouri. She was also a backup singer for Michael Jackson as well as a song writer for Eric Clapton, Tina Turner and Celine Dion.
Simon Cowell
He was a mail clerk for EMI Music Publishing when he was just starting out (his father worked there).
Steve Buscemi
In the early 1980s, he was a New York City Fireman. Also, he has worked as a bartender, an ice cream truck driver, and he did stand-up comedy.
Steve Carell
He worked for a few months as a mail sorter in Acton, Massachusetts. He quit after a few months because he says he was “very, very bad at it.”
Tara Conner
She was a waitress and a bikini model before she was crowned Miss USA in 2006.
Thora Birch
She was in an ad for California Raisins when she was 4 years old. She also appeared in ads for Quaker Oats and Campbell’s Soup.
Tim Allen
In the late 1970s, he was in prison for two years for dealing cocaine. Fortunately, he was able to get his life turned around. In 1985, He was in a TV ad where he played a mechanic and was reportedly paid $200.
Tina Fey
When she was 14, she worked at a swim club’s snack bar.
Tom Cruise
He delivered newspapers as a young boy. While still quite young, he joined a seminary with the idea of becoming a priest.
Tori Amos
In 1985, before her music career kicked in, she was in an ad for Just Right cereal by Kelloggs.
Vin Diesel
He worked as a bouncer for 9 years in New York. Also, when he was in his teens, he performed in an instructional video about breakdancing.
Walt Disney
He was an ambulance driver for the Red Cross during World War I.
Walter Cronkite
When he was in his teens in Kansas City, he sold newspapers and magazines.
Warren Beatty
We found no details about this, but he is reported to have worked as a rat catcher at some point.
Whoopi Goldberg
She worked as a bank teller and a bricklayer.
Wilford Brimley
He served in the U.S. Marine Corps near the end of the Korean War. He was a bodyguard for Howard Hughes at some point in the 1950s. He has also been a rancher, a rodeo cowboy and a blacksmith.
Will Ferrell
He was a record-setting place kicker for his high school’s varsity football team.
Here are links to some resources with good information that’s related to our main topics.
Also, there are links to other posts on this site you might enjoy (recommended reading).
Ways To Build Self-Esteem
Developing Self-Esteem And A Positive Attitude
Balance is Within Reach
The Importance of Emotions
Recommended Reading
