There are a few names right at the top of the list of Hollywood movie directors who you associate with success at the highest level. Spielberg is one. Ridley Scott is another. Francis Ford Coppola is another. With movies like 'Apocalypse Now,' and 'Bram Stoker's Dracula' under his belt, Coppola's work has made millions at the box office, large swathes of which went straight into his bank account. Despite that, it was the movie business which made him broke.
Coppola truly believed in a movie called 'One from The Heart,' so much so that he decided to make it with his own money when he couldn't find a studio willing to invest in it. It turned out that the judgment of the studios was better than his. It was a box office bomb in every imaginable way. Coppola had poured $27m into making the film, and made less than $4m back. His debts spiraled to a massive $98m, and in 1992 he had to file for bankruptcy protection. A few box office sensations since then have helped him get back on his feet.
Most of your favorite celebrities either studied acting in college or went straight from high school into a life of the arts. But, hey, not all of them. Some celebrities actually have advanced college degrees.
Turns out Mayim Bialik is just as much of a genius as the one she plays on The Big Bang Theory. She earned her Ph.D. in neuroscience from the University of California, Los Angeles, focusing on obsessive compulsive disorder among people with Prader-Willi syndrome, a rare condition in which the hypothalamus malfunctions.
Little known fact: Natalie Portman skipped the premiere of Star Wars: Phantom Menace because she was studying for her high school exams. She had two papers published in scientific journals while she was still in high school, and graduated from Harvard University with a B.A. in Psychology.
Before he was looking for answers on X-Files, David Duchovny was just trying to find the answers for English finals at Princeton University90. David graduated from Princeton in 1982 with a B.A in English. He continued to feed his love of literature by receiving a master’s degree in English Literature at Yale University. David was an excellent writer and poet. His work consistently received praise by his fellow classmates and teachers at Yale. His writing was even nominated for a college prize by the Academy of American Poets.
Sigourney Weaver graduated from Stanford University in 1971 with a bachelor’s in Literature. It was while studying at Stanford that Sigourney realized her true passion in life was to become an actress. Shortly after graduation, she attended Yale for their well-known drama program. She would go on to receive a master’s in Acting from Yale University and become friends with fellow famous actress Meryl Streep.
Meryl Streep is considered one of the most successful actresses of all time. She is also one of the most highly educated. Before collecting an array of Oscars, Meryl collected diplomas. She graduated from Vassar College with a B.A. in 1971. Meryl has a habit of being unsatisfied with impressive accomplishments as her acting career has shown, so she attended Yale University and earned a master’s degree in Acting.