Contrary to popular belief, the majority of actors and actresses who make it big in Hollywood weren’t born into fame. Sure, there are the rare actors’ children who dive into the family business continue to do well, but most of the people whose names you know worked their butts off on small stages or small screens before getting that big break.

So, it shouldn’t surprise you to learn that – like all people who toil at a profession that doesn’t pay squat while honing their craft and climbing the ladder (says the writer) – most actors needed jobs that weren’t acting in order to pay the bills. It might surprise you, however, to hear that they weren’t all waiting tables and/or slinging coffee. Read on!

#10. Pierce Brosnan

One of a couple of circus performers on our list, Pierce Brosnan performed as a fire-eater when he was a teen.

…there was a workshop and one night I looked in and some guy was teaching people to fire-eat. There was a big group of people in there but I noticed that there were women and they had their tops off. So I thought I’d join in. So I went to the workshop and I learnt how to fire-eat.

This might be the best “how I got the job” story ever.

#9. Barack Obama

Barack Obama is a man of many talents. Gifted orator, skilled politician, bestselling author, the list goes on and on. Before the future President of the United States left his native Hawaii, he had to learn that hard work is the key to getting ahead in life.

The future POTUS started his working career scooping ice cream at a Baskin-Robbins in Honolulu. There are definitely worse jobs, because I’m sure he was able to taste new flavors at his leisure. That’s what I call a perk.

Obama said about his first paid gig, “My first summer job wasn’t exactly glamorous, but it taught me some valuable lessons. Responsibility. Hard work. Balancing a job with friends, family, and school.” There are a lot of teenage jobs out there that are not as desirable, i.e. mowing lawns, babysitting, etc., so working at an ice cream parlor as a youngster kind of sounds like a sweet position.

Then again, POTUS claims that working at the ice cream shop kind of resulted in him losing his taste for the stuff, so maybe it’s not such a great idea. Oh well, you live and you learn. Still, scooping out ice cream in Hawaii sounds a lot better than working at a fast food joint in the Midwest, and I’m speaking from experience.

#8. Christopher Lee

Christopher Lee’s famed film career spanned over six decades and he appeared in such classics as The Lord of the Rings, The Wicker Man, and a whole lot of British horror films produced by the legendary Hammer company. Fun fact: Lee actually met The Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien once and was a big fan of his books.

Lee was born in London in 1922 and, like many young men of his generation, answered the call for duty when World War II broke out.

Sir Christopher Lee spent WWII in the British Intelligence Service and finished up the war years by hunting Nazis for prosecution. That’s all we know, because he was always cagey about his service, which makes sense since he served for the precursors of the legendary SAS.

I’ve been entrusted with many secrets during World War II… I was in the intelligence service, special ops, and I’m not going to tell much more. …if I’m asked to say nothing, I say nothing. Never.

Hmmm, all that does is make me want to know more. Too bad Lee didn’t write a tell-all about his time in the military. Might have even made a good Hollywood production, don’t you think?

#7. George Clooney

George Clooney is one of the most famous men in Hollywood. He was an actor for years before he became a household name, and his early credits include Return to Horror High, Grizzly II: The Predator, Return of the Killer Tomatoes, and Combat Academy. Let’s just say the guy paid his dues early in his acting career.

But it’s safe to assume that all of that early work made the man who he is today. Before he became a famous heartthrob, Clooney toiled at several jobs. They included shoe salesman, door-to-door salesman, grocery store clerk, construction worker, and tobacco farmer. All of those sound like jobs that A): would not be very much fun B): wouldn’t seem like precursors to becoming a leading man in Hollywood.

But Clooney stuck to it and pursued his dream of acting through the years. And because of that, we’ve seen him prevail on the big screen as an actor and director in Ocean’s Eleven, Good Night, and Good Luck, Argo, Up in the Air, and many others. Now that’s a Hollywood role model we can all look up to, whether we become famous or not. Perseverance and hard work pay off, no matter what job you do!

I do bet he was pretty good at selling stuff to women, though. Just saying…

#6. Harrison Ford

Another leading man who has reached legendary status, Harrison Ford is known for a number of iconic roles, most notably as Han Solo in Star Wars and as the unforgettable Indiana Jones.

Ford worked as an actor in bit parts for a long time, but still had to work a regular job until he could get his foot in the door permanently in Hollywood. Ford was a carpenter for many years, which was when he got his big break as far as acting. He was installing cabinets in George Lucas’s house when the director gave Ford a part in American Graffiti.

After that, Ford’s career skyrocketed and he has been in the spotlight ever since. In addition to the films already mentioned, his memorable roles include Apocalypse Now, Blade Runner, Witness, and Patriot Games. And who can ever forget him diving off the draining pipe into the river below in The Fugitive?

Ford even reprised his role from the science fiction classic Blade Runner for a sequel in 2017 entitled Blade Runner 2049 with Ryan Gosling. Ford is now 75-years-old but continues to make his presence known in Tinseltown. Word is still out about whether he continues to put his carpentry skills to use.

#5. David Bowie

Sadly, the great David Bowie passed away in January 2016 at the age of 69. He left behind an impressive body of work that influenced countless artists who came after him. Bowie burst onto the scene in the late 1960s and symbolized the glam era of rock n’ roll with his alter ego, Ziggy Stardust. His album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is regarded as a classic and one of the defining records of the 1970s. Bowie’s sound continued to evolve through the decades and he made music right up until his death.

So what was the job that set Bowie on his meandering path of creating music that people around the world loved? Bowie worked as a delivery boy for a butcher. I feel as if this had to be a smelly job? Either way, he spent that cash on his first saxophone, so I think most people would agree that it was worth it.

Can you picture a young Bowie walking through the streets of London in full glam regalia and a painted face delivering meat to stores? Kind of hard to imagine, but, hey, I think that would actually make a pretty good idea for a movie, don’t you?

#4. Christopher Walken

Christopher Walken continues to shine on the big screen at the age of 75. The native New Yorker has been a movie mainstay since the 1960s, and over the years he’s proven he can do it all. Walken can play a tough, intimidating guy, a sensitive guy, and he can switch gears into comedy at the drop of a hat, as evidenced by his Saturday Night Live appearances. That cowbell skit is now burned into everyone’s brain who’s ever turned on a TV. His notable movie credits include The Deer Hunter, True Romance, Catch Me if you Can, and who can forget his memorable appearance in Pulp Fiction?

But before Walken became a famous actor, he had a very unusual job. When he was 16, he worked in the circus “taming” a lion named Sheba. Truly. He talked about it with Indiewire:

…he would do this big act with a dozen big cats. And then he would send them all out at the end and just leave this one old girl, and I would come in with my whip and I’d go like that and she’d sit up. But she was really more like a dog. It wasn’t really lion taming. She was very sweet.

Sweet or not, that’s pretty crazy, right?

#3. Chris Pratt

To the benefit of women’s imaginations everywhere, Chris Pratt worked as a stripper to pay the bills while living in Hawaii before he hit the big time. He lived in a van at the time and claims he wasn’t very successful at the stripping game.

I’m also willing to bet that he wasn’t the only Hollywood celeb who took off their clothes for money before they got famous, but let’s give him some credit for actually admitting it.

Pratt had other jobs early on as well. He said, “I cleaned peoples’ cars, painted murals, worked for my dad, worked at a burger joint, was a room service waiter, worked at the snack bar at a bingo hall. I babysat and mowed lawns; I picked blackberries and sold them. I was always very enterprising as a kid. I was always trying to find some way to make money.”

Good thing for Pratt that he no longer has to worry about stripping or other menial jobs. Pratt is now a huge star, having starred in such hits as Zero Dark Thirty, Guardians of the Galaxy, Jurassic World, and The Lego Movie. He’s had success on the small screen as well, with Parks and Recreation.

#2. Steve Buscemi

Before Steve Buscemi appeared in dozens of films and TV shows, he started out as a 22-year-old firefighter in New York City. He was with Engine Co. 55 in Little Italy starting in 1980. He talked about it with a Salon interviewer:

…I had gone to school for acting and had done some stand-up comedy before I took the job. But after I had been on the job for about a year, I started going back to acting classes. I was constantly doing theater, and the first couple of films I did, I was still with the fire department.

Not only that, but after 9/11 he showed up at his old firehouse and assisted with the rescue efforts, working 12 hour shifts for days on end. He refused all interviews and photo ops during that time, and later said that he was glad to have been busy so that he had time to fully process the enormity of what had just happened.

Buscemi is one of the most recognizable character actors in the business. His credits include Reservoir Dogs, Fargo, The Big Lebowksi, and Ghost World. Buscemi is also a talented director and has helmed such films as Trees Lounge and Animal Factory.

#1. Brad Pitt

Now this one ought to give every one of us hope. Brad Pitt is one of the most famous men in the universe, but he comes from humble beginnings. The native of Springfield, Missouri headed to Hollywood when he was a young man and paid his dues before becoming the object of daydreams.

Pitt used to dress up as a giant chicken to entice people to eat at Los Angeles’s Pollo Loco. I don’t really know what else to say about that. I guess if Brad Pitt can go from giant waving chicken to famous actor and husband-to-the-stars, don’t give up on your dreams.

His resume is pretty damn impressive. Let’s take a look at some of the hits: Se7en, A River Runs Through It, Fight Club, Ocean’s Eleven, Inglorious Basterds, the list goes on and on. Of course, Pitt’s personal life has been tabloid fodder for years now as well, so he is firmly in the spotlight constantly.

So remember, one day you might be stripping or trying to get people to eat at a fast food joint, and the next you could be starring in a Hollywood blockbuster. It doesn’t matter where you start, it’s all about where you end up!