The world finds talent and beauty irresistible. Those who possess these qualities are considered special. They seem to have everything that one could ever want in life. There’s often one area where they fall short, though in sanity and self-discipline. The stars on this list are world famous. But for one reason or another, they let it all slip through their fingers.
1. Whitney Houston
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Beautiful actress and talented singer Whitney Houston married nearly retired R&B star Bobby Brown in 1992, at the height of her career. With her drug dependency problems, it may not have been a good move being together with someone with substance abuse issues of his own. Through their tumultuous marriage, Whitney Houston’s drug abuse only became worse. Brown and Huston divorced in 2007, Huston was about to record a new album and her life seemed to be going well. Two years later she appeared on Oprah Winfrey’s show and gave an interview that was recognized as one of the most expected and outspoken. Huston admitted that her drug addiction became all-absorbing after the thundering success of The Bodyguard in 1992.
Her world tour of 2010, entitled the Nothing but Love World Tour, didn’t salvage her career, though. Her fans were disappointed at the performance and the quality of her voice and she received numerous negative responses from critics. While she did go through rehab, she never overcame her habit entirely. In 2012, under the simultaneous influence of cocaine, marijuana and other drugs, she drowned in her bathtub. Anyway, Whitney Huston is one of the world’s best-selling singers with more than 200 million records sold over the years.
2. Michael Jackson
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Michael Jackson was the biggest name in popular music worldwide for years. For whatever reason, though, the star adopted a stranger and stranger lifestyle over time. With multiple cosmetic surgeries, a love of spending time with children, prescription drug abuse, and an out-of-control shopping habit, the star’s life gradually came apart. He was married two times and both his marriages were unhappy and short-lived.
In 2003 his reputation and name was tarnished, after the releasing of a documentary film Living with Michael Jackson. The film revealed the most scandalous details of his life including sleeping arrangements with a young boy. After the criminal investigation Jackson was arrested. During numerous court cases Jackson lost his fortune and was unable to cover even the most basic charges. The star burned through most of his money and his goodwill with his fans by the time he passed away in 2009.
3. Britney Spears
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Britney Spears is one of those rare talented people who are able to start out as a child star and then make the transformation to stardom as an adult. Britney started her career at the age of 11, when she was picked for The New Mickey Mouse Club with other would be stars such as Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera. After the show she focused on her solo career and released the first single in 1998. After becoming a worldwide sensation in pop music, she somehow let her life unwind.
In 2004 her reputation and name was ruined due to an odd 2-day marriage with Jason Alexander and the following scandalous love affair with backup dancer. Later that year she married him and gave birth to their first son. But their marriage didn’t last long and after the birth of their second son, they began divorce proceedings. Britney was acknowledged to be mentally ill and her ex-husband received full custody over their children. Over several instances, she was photographed by paparazzi drunk in public. Britney didn’t let her career completely crumble, though. She caught herself in time. Today, she has made an excellent comeback.
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4. Axl Rose
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From the late 80s to the early 90s, Axl Rose’s searing vocals took the heavy metal group Guns ‘n’ Roses to stratospheric heights. The group was so successful, it managed to turn the tide in popular music away from pop and dance music at the time, and towards rock. As rock musicians tend to do, Axl’s unstable behavior over the years led the band to completely squander its popularity.
The band’s success was stunning and comparatively short-term. The decline began in late 1990s, when the band actually broke up with the leaving of the majority of musicians. Axl appeared in 2004 with a new band and a tour but neither his tour nor a new album won the former recognition of the public. His personal life was unsteady as well. Rose was married to Erin Everly, and he was engaged to a supermodel, but neither of these relationships lasted for more than a year.
5. Tiger Woods
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Until November 2009, as far as the whole world was concerned, Tiger Woods was the perfect role model. He was the most talented golf player in the world, was clean cut and a family man. The star’s life came apart in a spectacular fashion, though, when tabloid newspapers in 2009 released all kinds of evidence of his repeated extramarital affairs.
With his reputation destroyed, many of his biggest commercial sponsors withdrew their support. His wife divorced him, too and achieved full custody of their children. He decided to withdraw temporarily from golf and enter therapy. He has since taken significant steps towards making a comeback. In 2013 Woods made a statement that he’s dating professional alpine ski racer Lindcey Vonn. They’ve been close friends for a long time but over the last few months their relationship has developed into something bigger.
6. Mel Gibson
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Fans always found Mel Gibson irresistible. His insanely fun Mad Max movies made him one of the most loved stars of his time. When he directed Braveheart and won an Oscar for it, he seemed to make an indelible mark on the world of film. Behind his professional front, though, Mel Gibson always had a huge drinking problem. Gibson admitted that he started drinking when he was a teenager. Ever since 1996, he has been repeatedly involved in incidents of drunken driving, domestic violence and hate speech. He divorced his first wife after 26 years of marriage. They welcomed one daughter and six sons. But after splitting with Russian pianist Oksana Grigorieva, his life and career really came apart.
Taking repeated hits to his reputation, Gibson has professionally been on the wane. He has been sentences to 16 hours of community service, probation period and received numerous fines. Consequently his colleagues turned their back on him and he lost the contract with William Morris Endeavor Entertainment.
7. Charlie Sheen
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Charlie Sheen was never serious about his acting. He chose a life of alcoholism, partying and occasional acting, instead. He got one thing out of his long-term lifestyle as a party animal — a solid reputation as a selfish, air-headed person no deeper than a puddle. He could parlay this persona into a great role in the hit sitcom Two-and-a-Half Men, where he practically played himself. Unfortunately, Charlie Sheen’s unpredictable behavior got him into trouble with the creator of his show, and he found himself fired.
Following his dismissal, Sheen suffered a meltdown in which he went on YouTube, posting messages about how he was a warlock with tiger blood and a rock star from Mars. His career never recovered. He was married three times, but the father of five children has never been a good father and husband.
8. Lindsay Lohan
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Lindsay Lohan started her professional life as a gifted actress and then as a singer. Unfortunately, as it happens with many young stars, Lohan wasn’t able to take the pressure of stardom. Somewhere along the way, she began to go off the rails with terrible drug and alcohol problems. She’s been under arrest many times and has been fired from movies for being undependable. Her career has been a promising career that’s been sadly wasted. All in all, she has undergone 250 days of rehab since 2007, she has faced 20 court cases before four judges and she has performed about 70 days of community service.
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9. Macaulay Culkin
Once Macaulay Culkin left his Home Alone and The Good Son years behind, his career fizzled out. He didn’t seem to try to bring it back, either. He married at 17, took to drugs and only acted occasionally. He was influenced a lot by the legal issues of his parents who were never married. When their relationship collapsed, however, they started fighting over the custody of their children and Culkin’s fortune.
At the age of 16 a young star made a statement that he wouldn’t accept any roles until his parents settle the conflict. That was a crucial moment in his career as he hasn’t acted in any successful film since that time. His personal life wasn’t successful either. His first marriage collapsed in two years and his long-lasting relationship with Mila Kunis came to nothing. While Culkin is incredibly talented, he simply didn’t appear to have the self-control that one needs to make something of oneself.
10. Kurt Cobain
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Kurt Cobain wrote Smells like the Team Spirit for Nirvana’s 1991 album Nevermind. The song was hailed as sheer genius and he attained worldwide stardom. He wasn’t built to handle that kind of success, though. His heroin use and his mental troubles got the better of him one day, and he died from an overdose at age 27.
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The lesson to learn from these stories is obvious: you may succeed in life without talent, but not without discipline and sanity. Sometimes fame and fortune are too hard to bear and that’s the reason why many talented and prospective artists lose their way. Alcohol, drugs, parties and out-of-control expenses are all the appanages of wealth and success and many people just cannot refuse it. But self-discipline and consciousness can really help to overcome all the temptations.