Today, Jim Carrey is one of the world’s most famous comedy actors, the star of classics such as The Mask, Ace Ventura and Dumb and Dumber. However, long before conquering Hollywood, his life was far from glamorous.
Everything changed when his father, Percy Carrey, lost the job that financially supported the family. Suddenly, they went from having a modest life to facing a deep financial crisis that forced them to leave their home.
Jim was only 14 years old.
With no money to pay for a house, the family lived for a time in a Volkswagen van. At other times, Jim and his siblings also slept in a tent set up in a park in Ontario, Canada.
With the goal of getting ahead, the whole family began working at a tire factory.
Jim worked shifts of approximately eight hours cleaning bathrooms, hallways and offices, in addition to doing security work at night. After that, he had to attend school.
The exhaustion became so great that he dropped out of school at 16 to help support his parents.
When he was still an unknown actor, Jim made a gesture that eventually became legendary.
He wrote a check to himself for $10 million and noted that it was for “acting services”. He kept it in his wallet, convinced that one day he would be able to cash such an amount thanks to his work.
Years later, Hollywood ended up making it a reality.