Famous Bankruptcies

Noted Individuals Who Have Filed for Bankruptcy Protection
B

Lionel Bart . . . British composer-lyricist-playwright (1972).
Kim Basinger . . . Oscar-winning actress (1993).
Jay Black . . . rock star; lead member of “Jay and the Americans” (1986).
Lorraine Bracco . . . Oscar-nominated actress (1999).
Matthew Brady . . . portrait/U.S. Civil War photographer (1872).
Toni Braxton . . . rock star (1998).
Anita Bryant . . . singer; American author; 1958 Miss America 2nd runner-up (1997 and 2001).

C

George Clinton . . . rock star (1984) (note: this is not the composer George S. Clinton).
Samuel L. Clemens (“Mark Twain”) . . . best-selling American author-humorist (1894).
Natalie Cole . . . singer (19__) (sources: People magazine, February 24, 1997 / Dateline NBC, September 29, 1996 / et al.).
Gary Coleman . . . actor (1999).
Concrete Blonde . . . rock group (19__) (source: LA Weekly, March 26-April 1, 1999).
John Connally . . . former Texas governor; wounded in 1963 Kennedy assassination in Dallas (1987).
Francis Ford Coppola . . . Oscar-winning film writer-director-producer (1990).
Cathy Lee Crosby . . . actress; American author (1992).

D

Vic Damone . . . singer (1971).
Dorothy Dandridge . . . Oscar-nominated actress-singer (1963).
Lee de Forest . . . Oscar-winning film/sound synchronization pioneer; producer (1937).
Dino De Laurentis . . . Oscar-winning film producer (1988).
Walt Disney . . . Oscar-winning film producer; animation & theme park pioneer (1923).

E

Eddy “the Eagle” Edwards (Eddy Edwards) . . . Great Britain’s first Olympic ski jumper (1991).

F

Keith Famie . . . Survivor II: The Australian Outback contestant; chef-restauranter; American author (19__; 1996/97) (source: interview, CBS special Survivor: Back from the Outback, May 10, 2001).
Mick Fleetwood . . . rock star; lead member of “Fleetwood Mac” (1984).
Heidi Fleiss . . . Clothing line founder; American author (1999).
William Fox . . . co-founder of 20th Century Fox Film Corporation (1936).

G

Marvin Gaye . . . singer (19__;mid-late 1970s).
Andy Gibb . . . rock star (1987).
Ulysses S. Grant . . . 18th U.S. President; Civil War general;best-selling American author; face is pictured on the U.S. fifty dollar bill (1884, after leaving office).
Elizabeth Ward Gracen . . . actress; model; Miss America 1982 (1999).
Bob Guccione . . . publisher and founder of Penthouse magazine (see General Media below) (2003).

H

Merle Haggard . . . country music star (1993).
Corey Haim . . . actor (1997).
Dorothy Hamill . . . Olympic gold-medal ice-skater (1996).
M.C. Hammer . . . rock star (1996).
Richard Harris . . . Oscar-nominated actor-producer-director; Irish-born author (“twice bankrupt”) source: BBC World News).
Robert Harris . . . $275 million Mega Millions lottery winner on February 23, 2008, Georgia USA (1994 and 2000).
Isaac Hayes . . . Oscar-winning songwriter-composer-musician-singer (1976).
Sherman Hemsley . . . actor (2002).

I

Ron Isley . . . rhythm-and-blues singer (19__; mid-late 1990s).

J

La Toya Jackson . . . rock star (1995).
Don Johnson . . . actor-producer (2204).
Janice-Marie Johnson . . . rock star/disco diva (19__;1980s) (source: interview segment, Extra TV show, June 9, 2000).
Kacey Jones . . . country music star; musical humorist (19__) (sources: KaceyJones.com / Dish magazine, October 2000).
Clay Jordan . . . Survivor V: Thailand contestant; restauranter (2001).

K

Chaka Kahn . . . rock star (19__) (source: People magazine, February 24, 1997).
Larry King . . . talk-show host; best-selling American author (1978).
Bowie Kuhn . . . former U.S. baseball commissioner (19__).
Gary Kurtz . . . Oscar-nominated film producer (Star Wars, American Graffiti, etc.) (19__).

L

Veronica Lake . . . actress (1951).
Lorenzo Lamas . . . actor (2004).
Cyndi Lauper . . . rock star (1983).
Stan Lee . . . comic book industry pioneer; co-creator of “Spider Man,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “The X-Men,” etc. (2001).
Joanne Lopes and Jorge Lopes . . . Big Game multistate Lotto jackpot winners in 2002 in the U.S.; won a $110.3 million jackpot, which they took as a lump sum of $58.9 million before taxes; had debts of nearly $600,000 when they filed for chapter 13 bankruptcy protection; their petition was dismissed by a judge due to their failure to appear at their hearing (2001).

M

Meat Loaf . . . rock star (1983).
Ashley MacIsaac . . . musician-fiddler (2000).
Mindy McCready . . . country music star (1997).
Melba Moore . . . singer-actress (19__; 1990s).
Debelah Morgan . . . singer-songwriter-producer (2000).
Lorrie Morgan . . . country music star; American author (19__) (source: Current Biography Yearbook 2000).
Motor City Five/MC5 . . . rock group of the 1960s (1970).

N

Willie Nelson . . . singer-songwriter-actor; American author (19__; est. 1990) (source: Sunday Morning, CBS-TV news program, September 30, 2001, interview conducted by Dan Rather).
Wayne Newton . . . singer-actor-entertainer (1992).
Jimmie Nicol . . . drummer who became a member of the music group “The Beatles” for 10 days in 1964 during a worldwide tour while Ringo Starr was being treated for tonsillitis (1965).
Immanuel Nobel . . . father of manufacturer-philanthropist Alfred Nobel, who founded the Nobel Prizes (twice: 1833/year Alfred was born; 1856/when Alfred was 23).
Mary Nolan . . . actress (1931).

O

Jennings Osborne . . . Arkansas businessman; Christmas light sponsor, including at DisneyWorld (1995).

P

Johnny Paycheck . . . country music star (1976).
Tom Petty . . . rock star (1979).
Susan Powter . . . exercise/fitness expert; talk-show host; best-selling American author (1995).
Burt Prelutsky . . . American television writer; screenwriter (1997).
R

Noreen Renier . . . Psychic (claimed); American author (2007).
Burt Reynolds . . . Oscar-nominated actor-director; American author (1995).
Debbie Reynolds . . . Oscar-nominated actress-singer; American author (1997).
Juan Rodriguez . . . $149 million Mega Millions lottery winner, New York City (2004, filed bankruptcy just before winning).
Mickey Rooney . . . Oscar-nominated actor; American author (1962).

S

Harry Saltzman . . . film producer (James Bond movies) (1975).
Ray Sawyer . . . rock star; member of “Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show” (1973).
Shenandoah . . . country music band (1991).
Anna Nicole Smith . . . model-actress; 1993 Playboy magazine “Playmate of the Year” (1996).
Lynne Spears . . . American author; mother of rock star Britney Spears (1998; filed with husband James prior to Britney’s stardom).
J. Fife Symington . . . Governor of Arizona (1995, while still in office).

T

TLC . . . rock group (1995).
Donald Trump . . . businessman (casinos: Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc.) (1992; 2004).
Mike Tyson . . . boxer (2003).

W

Tammy Wynette . . . country music star; American author (1988).
——————————————————————————–
Famous Corporations That Have Filed for Bankruptcy Protection
A

Aladdin Gaming, LLC (a Las Vegas hotel-casino) (2001)
American Banknote Corporation (1999).
American Federation of Television and Radio Artists/AFTRA (1982).
AMF Bowling Worldwide, Inc. (2001).

B

Baldwin Piano & Organ Company (2001).
Bethlehem Steel Corporation (2001).
Burlington Industries, Inc. (2001).

C

Carolco Pictures, Inc. (1995).
Chiquita Brands International, Inc. (2001).
Continental Airlines, Inc. (1967 & 1984).
Converse, Inc. (2001).
Cypress Gardens Adventure Park (2006) (one of the earliest Florida theme parks).

D

Dairy Mart Convenience Stores, Inc. (2001).
Delta Air Lines, Inc. (2005).
Dow Corning Corporation (1995).

E

Eastern Airlines, Inc. (1991).
Enron Corporation (2001) (second largest bankruptcy filing in U.S. history; WorldCom below largest).
eToys, Inc. (2001).
Excite@Home (2001).

F

FAO Inc. (FAO Schwarz toy stores) (2003).
Frederick’s of Hollywood, Inc. (2000).
Fruit of the Loom, Inc. (1999).

G

General Media (publisher of Penthouse magazine, 85% owned by Bob Guccione) (2003).

I

Interstate Bakeries Corporation (makers of “Twinkies,” “Wonder Bread,” et al.) (2004).

K

Kmart Corporation (2002).

L

Lionel Corporation (1967 & 1984).
Loews Cineplex Entertainment, Inc. (2000).

M

Maidenform, Inc. (1997).
Marvel Entertainment Group (1996).
McCrory Corporation (1992 & 2001).
Montgomery Ward, Inc. (1997 & 2000).

N

Northwest Airlines Corporation (2005).

O

Orion Pictures Corporation (1992).
Owens Corning Corporation (2000).

P

Pan Am Corporation (1998).
Paramount Studios (1932).
Planet Hollywood International, Inc. (1999 & 2001).
Polaroid Corporation (2001).
Purina Mills, Inc. (1999).

R

Regal Cinemas, Inc. (2001).
Resorts International, Inc. (1994).
Riviera Hotel and Casino (Las Vegas) (1984 & 1991).

S

Singer Company (1999).
Sizzler International, Inc. (1996).
Smith Corona Corporation (1995).
Southland Corporation (“7-11” stores) (1990).
Sunbeam Corporation (2001).
Swissair Group, Inc. (2001).

T

Texaco, Inc. (1987).
Toysmart.com (2000).
Trans World Airlines, Inc./TWA (1995 & 2000).
Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. (1992; 2004).

U

US Airways (2002).
U.S. Office Products Company (“Mail Boxes, Etc.” stores) (2001).

V

Vlasic Foods International, Inc. (2001).

W

Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. (2005).
Western Union Corporation (1993).
WorldCom, Inc. (2002) (largest bankruptcy filing in U.S. history).
W.R. Grace & Company (2001).

Z

Zenith Electronics Corporation (1999).