Most people assume that once a star hits it big and starts banking that serious cash,
their life changes completely.
But what if that megawatt fame and fortune didn't alter their lives that much?
Here are some of the biggest names in showbusiness, who, in spite of stratospheric success, have
managed to stay down to earth.
Jay Leno
One of the most famous late-night talk show hosts of all time, the incomparable Jay Leno
has built up a considerable following over his thirty-year career, along with some major
bank, with an estimated net worth around $350 million.
However, Leno learned how to save in his formative years, reportedly working two jobs in his
youth, saying, "I’d spend the money from one job and save the money from the other."
That strategy has lasted a lifetime.
He later told 60 Minutes:
"I always tell new people in showbusiness, I say 'look… showbusiness will pay you a
lot of money.
But eventually you're going to get screwed.
And when you get screwed, you will have this pile of money off to the side, alright?"
Since retiring from The Tonight Show (the wages for which he reportedly put entirely
into savings), Leno has lived purely off the proceeds from his lucrative stand-up career.
He might have a serious predilection for collecting classic cars, but, according to the funnyman
himself, he has yet to spend even a dime of his television earnings.
Sarah Jessica Parker
She'll always be Carrie Bradshaw to most of her fans, a character who, in spite of submitting
maybe 1,000 words of copy a week, managed to live in a $7000-a-month apartment in New
York City while hoarding Manolos and throwing back cosmos on the daily.
According to The Richest, Sarah Jessica Parker is worth an estimated $90 million in real
life, so if she wanted to buy a new pair of Louboutins every week, she could.
However, in a 2008 interview with Parade, Parker extolled the virtues of working hard
for your money, revealing how she dressed her son, James Wilkie, in hand-me-down clothing
throughout his younger years.
The actress grew up on welfare and inherited a frugal outlook, now living in a modest brownstone
in NYC with her husband, Matthew Broderick, and their three kids.
As for dressing herself in the latest threads, Parker supposedly had her choice of Carrie's
clothes once Sex And The City wrapped, so she probably doesn't need to fork over for
new stuff for herself too often either.
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Another A-lister who learned to live frugally thanks to a difficult upbringing is Buffy
herself, Sarah Michelle Gellar.
Gellar, whose father left the family when she was a young child isn't ashamed of using
coupons and striving to get the best deal wherever she shops, crediting her mother with
teaching her to live modestly.
When she's not busy saving the world from encroaching vampires — or, more often these
days, being a mother to her two kids — the actor told Self that she frequently uses coupons
and buys fish at Whole Foods only when it's on sale.
She told the mag, "I clip coupons all the time.
Why should you pay more for something that someone else is paying less for?"
Tyra Banks
It's tough to imagine this multi-hyphenate business mogul, supermodel, Harvard Business
School grad, and creator of "smizing" as a simple-living person.
But in reality, Banks learned a lot from her mother, who travelled with her and assisted
in Banks' early career as a model, teaching her how to make her earnings last.
In a 2008 interview with The New York Times, Banks openly described herself as "frugal."
As a kid, she saved a little bit from her weekly allowance.
And she admits that these days, her only real indulgences are food and luxury toiletries.
Banks even admitted to Forbes, "I’ll ask my accountant if I can afford something,"
which seems crazy for a woman worth an estimated $90 million.
But, maybe that's how she keeps it!
Dave Grohl
He's a member of two of the biggest rock bands of all time, but Dave Grohl still lives like
a jobbing musician.
Although his stints with Nirvana and the Foo Fighters have netted him a cool $225 million,
Grohl fears spending too much, too fast.
In a 2003 interview, the rock star confessed that, in spite of having plenty of money to
live off, he's "afraid to spend it".
The multi-instrumentalist is reportedly wary of ending up broke because he never got his
high school diploma.
But as long as the Foos continue selling out arenas worldwide, there's no need to worry
about his career slowing down anytime soon.
Zooey Deschanel
She headlines a hugely successful TV show, but New Girl star Zooey Deschanel hasn't let
her considerable success go to her head.
Deschanel may currently be raking in a massive $125,000 per episode but she's anything but
flashy.
Court documents — revealed to tabloids in the midst of her 2012 divorce from Death Cab
For Cutie's Ben Gibbard — showcased a frugal spender with eyes set on future financial
security.
The TMZ-published report showed that, although the actor was bringing in almost a hundred
grand per month at the time, her expense sheet totalled just $22,500, including less than
$1,000 in utility bills, with another two grand dedicated to charitable donations.
On top of this, nearly half of her total assets were safely held in bank accounts, with the
rest spread out across stocks, bonds, and real estate.
And, her three credit cards had zero balances — not bad for someone who could easily afford
to max them all out each month without feeling the slightest pinch.
Jennifer Lawrence
J-Law is one of the most famous and highly-paid actors on the planet, scoring an Oscar for
her role in Silver Linings Playbook and spearheading the hugely lucrative Hunger Games franchise,
among a multitude of other projects.
Now reportedly worth $75 million, Lawrence claims not much has changed in her life since
her massive career explosion — with the Oscar winner even continuing to live in the
same apartment as before she was famous, until she recently bought Jessica Simpson's former
house in Beverly Hills.
She told Fabulous magazine in 2013, "I was raised to have value for money, to have respect
for money, even though you have a lot of it".
Lawrence also does not employ a personal assistant, and shops for bargains herself — all while
driving a sensible Chevy Volt.
Kristen Bell
She played Veronica Mars for years before graduating to massive movie mega-hits like
Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Frozen.
And now she's married to Parenthood star Dax Shepard, with two kids, to top it all off.
But Bell hasn't let fame alter her spending habits.
In spite of the couple's combined net worth of over $20 million, their wedding was very
low key, as the actress described to Ellen:
"It was the two of us, and $142 in legal fees, and we signed our name on a piece of paper."
And that included gas, to drive to their courthouse wedding.
She even joked with Flaunt magazine about how she and Shepard are "hillbillies at heart".
In an interview with Conan, Bell went into hilarious detail about how frugal she is,
sharing her hottest couponing tip with the host:
"The best coupon you can get, possibly in the world, is the Bed Bath & Beyond coupon."
Clearly, she's not just a master detective on TV, but one in real life too.
Ballin' on a budget
The old adage still applies: money doesn't buy you happiness.
Maybe true happiness comes from good family values, and spending within your means.
If Buffy doesn't want to pay more for her shopping than everyone else, why should we?
So, on that day when you hit the big time, consider taking a page out of these celebs'
super-frugal, down to earth playbooks and stay true to your roots.
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