Kyrex

Annie Knight was earning $60,000 a year in marketing and couldn't see how she'd ever afford a house. Five years later, she says she has made $6 million. Her dad found out when a Daily Mail reporter knocked on his door at 6 a.m. His first question was about the money. It started in lockdown. "It was boring. I was earning about $60,000 Australian dollars a year." She wanted a house one day. "How am I going to do that with this money?" So she opened an OnlyFans on the side. A couple of grand a month, saved for a deposit. Two years in, her employer found out. She was fired. She took it as a sign. Early 2022, she went full-time. Then she went viral. Her mom saw it in a Channel 7 article on Facebook. Her dad got the reporter at the door. Then he called her. "Is it true you're earning this amount of money per month?" "Yeah." "Fair enough. I'd probably do it, too." 13 years at a private Catholic girls' school. A marketing degree. A $60,000 salary. Now, in her words: "I'm financially free."

Fat Joe says he wired his accountant the money for his taxes. The accountant never paid. Fat Joe went to prison and came out "dead broke." He'd done everything wrong as a kid in the Bronx. Robbed people. Sold drugs. Then he went legit. And trusted the wrong guy. "An accountant f*cked me and didn't pay my taxes while I was sending them wire transfers." His lawyer showed the feds the wires. It didn't matter. "You as the leader of your household is responsible for whoever you hire." June 2013. A judge in Newark gives him 4 months. More than $3.3 million in income with no tax returns filed. $718,038 owed. "They took all my money, millions of dollars from me, and left me dead broke." Rich friends lined up with offers. A million here, a duffel bag of cash there. He said no to all of it. "I never borrowed money from nobody." So he took every show that paid. Yugoslavia. Africa. China. Poland. "Wherever you name that had a dollar attached to the bottom of the table, I was out there." In court, he said it differently. "It was my responsibility."

Michael Irvin got a $1 million signing check from the Dallas Cowboys. He didn't cash it. He left it on the table so everyone who walked in could see it. He came from Fort Lauderdale. He calls it Brokeville. "I was young, too, man. I was crazy." First, the house. He picked it for one reason: an 8-foot gate. "All I knew is I don't want nobody to see me in the pool." Then the check. "That million dollar check. I left that right there on the table." His financial people kept calling. Every day it sat there, he was losing money. "I'm winning. What you talking about?" Why leave it out? Because of where he came from. "I was getting $20 a weekend and mom took the first 15." $5 a weekend. Then $1 million on the table. And a big family waiting on it. Mom. Brothers. Sisters. Shannon Sharpe puts it plainly: "There ain't a whole lot left over." It took Irvin that whole first contract to learn the lesson. "Making money is one thing. How you let it go is as important."

Björn Borg won Wimbledon five years in a row. In 2006 he put all five trophies up for auction. July 1978. He has just beaten Jimmy Connors in the final. He's 22. How good was it? "I think probably was maybe one of my best matches I ever played." "Because it was the most important match for me in my life." "I had a lot of pressure." A year later he becomes the first player to earn over $1 million in prize money in a single season. At 26 he walks away from tennis. He launches a fashion brand with a friend. Luggage, sportswear, aftershave. In 1989 it goes bankrupt. 1997. Eleven creditors want more than $1 million. Friends help him avoid bankruptcy. 2006. He tells the auction house he's selling for "financial security." Years later, another version: "It wasn't a money thing, not at all." Then the phone calls start. John McEnroe, the man he beat in the 1980 final, calls him again and again. Borg buys the trophies back. His line about all of it: "The most disappointing thing was that people abused me."

T-Pain bought a $1.7 million Bugatti. Then his accountants called. They might have to sell his house. He had told them to send the money for the car. "When I bought that Bugatti, that was the last bit of my money and I had no idea." The call came after. "Hey, so we may have to sell your house." "What are you talking about? I have a Bugatti." That money was supposed to finish paying off the house. "My house is paid for." "Uh, yeah, not anymore." Was anyone watching the money? "I never knew what the hell was going on with my finances." People were stealing from him. He didn't care. "I should still have enough." Then his granddad pitched a business. Pants with the boxers already sagging out. He put in $150,000. "I didn't have it, but I gave it to him." The pants never got made. Years later, Balenciaga sold the same idea. Today, if $4 leaves one of his accounts, his phone alerts him. Back then, $1.7 million left without him noticing. "I had so much money that it was just like, why would I care?"

Martin Shkreli paid $2 million for the only copy of a Wu-Tang Clan album. On camera, he joked the Feds might end up owning it. They did. Late 2015. His Midtown apartment. A VICE reporter, a bottle of wine, a chess game. A few months earlier he raised the price of an HIV drug from $13.50 a pill to $750. Is he evil? "I think I'm the opposite of evil." His view of the business is simple. Companies have owners. "Their owners demand that they extract as much profit as possible." "That's the way the world works." Then the album. Two CDs in an embossed case in his living room. Will anyone ever hear it? "I could see myself in a place where I break it." Snap it in half. Bury the pieces. "I just bought it a few months ago, and I was arrested a month ago." 2017. A jury convicts him of securities fraud. 7 years. The government seizes the album to pay what he owes. He bought it so nobody else could have it. "Who knows, maybe the Feds will own it soon."

Vince Young's mother told him he'd end up dead, crippled or in jail. He ended up with a $58 million NFL contract. Then bankruptcy. Houston. Middle school. A big fight after spring break. The police pick him out of the crowd and put him in handcuffs. His mom comes to get him. In the car, she's screaming. "You're going to end up dead, crippled or in jail." He looked around and saw she was right. Friends shot. Friends in and out of prison. "I didn't want to fall into that bunch. Be that stat." At home there was fighting. So he climbed out his bedroom window and sat in a tree. What did he think about up there? "Why is our family fighting all the time?" He knew the answer. "It was because we was broke." 2006. The Titans draft him third. $58 million, about $26 million guaranteed. 2012. He's out of the league. His lawyer: "Vince needs a job." 2014. Bankruptcy. The boy in the tree knew what broke does to a family. The man with $26 million guaranteed ended up there anyway. "It always goes back to not having income."

Michael Vick signed the biggest contract in NFL history. $130 million. From a federal prison cell, he handed $8 million to a financial adviser who turned out to be a med school graduate. 2007. Dogfighting. 23 months in federal prison. He says the hardest part wasn't the cell. "The toughest part was being in there and filing bankruptcy." He couldn't believe it. "I just gave eight million dollars to this guy over here. I'm not filing bankruptcy." He filed anyway. $16 million in assets. Over $20 million in debts. The Falcons wanted their signing bonus back. "I respect them for that." He had admitted in court he never balanced a checkbook or reconciled a bank statement. Inside, he made a promise. "I'm gonna make full restitution to everybody." He played again. And by 2017 he had paid back $17.4 million of the $17.6 million he owed. His reason was simple. If he paid everyone back, maybe the $8 million would come back too. "A lot of money came up missing." He paid back every creditor. Nobody paid him back. "Where's the rest of it?"

$80 million in the NFL. Two years after his last game, Terrell Owens told Dr. Phil he couldn't afford his child support. May 2012. Three of the four mothers of his kids are in the studio. One of them says they never needed a judge. "I never took Terrell to court ever." He says he kept raising her payments himself. "6,000 to 8 to 10 to 12 on my own." Then she found out another mother was getting $20,000. She hired a lawyer. "So I had to start paying her 20." Dr. Phil cuts to it. Can you afford all this? "Not at this moment in time, no I can't." She says he spent the money on fighting her in court instead. His answer to all three: "The only time any of you really have picked up the phone is because of money." The cars? The houses? "Well I did, and those were investment properties." "You're not going to see me popping bottles in the club." At his peak he paid about $45,000 a month. $80 million earned. Not enough for four kids. "It wasn't a plan."

Burt Reynolds was once the biggest box office star in Hollywood. At 79, his proof that he wasn't broke was a red tie. 2015. His Florida home. A TV crew asks him to set the record straight. "I'm not bankrupt. If I was bankrupt, I wouldn't have my red tie on." At his peak he made $10 million a year. Then came the restaurants. Po' Folks. Daisy's Diner. Both failed. $20 million gone, and he had signed for it personally. 1996. Chapter 11. His second wife, Loni Anderson? He says she maxed out a $45,000 credit card in half an hour. "She liked to spend money. Mine." "I really couldn't afford her." He turned down Han Solo, James Bond and Pretty Woman. Which one does he regret most? "All of those. I wish I had done them all." His advice: "Watch out who your friends are." In the '80s he was worth an estimated $200 million. When he died in 2018, about $500,000. Would he marry again? "No, ma'am." "Check, please."

Boris Becker won Wimbledon at 17 and made about $50 million on court. On the day he was sentenced, he wore a tie in Wimbledon's purple and green. April 29, 2022. London. "To make a matter even more dramatic, it was the birthday of my wife." Flowers in the morning. Then court. "There was a 50/50 chance I got a suspended sentence." His lawyers told him: "Get ready. You might have to go inside." He had been declared bankrupt in 2017. After that, he moved hundreds of thousands of pounds to other accounts, including his ex-wife's. The rent on his Wimbledon house was £22,000 a month. The sentence: 30 months. That night he became prisoner A2923EV. "Those numbers I'll never forget." Wandsworth didn't care who he was. "I was one of many." How did it start? Wimbledon at 17. Again at 18. "Everybody wanted a piece of me." At 17 he won Wimbledon unseeded. At 54 he was a number. "I'm a human being. I make mistakes."

Gary Coleman made about $18 million as a child star. When his trust was opened at 18, his parents' share was $770,000. His was $220,000. 1978. Diff'rent Strokes. He's 10, with failing kidneys. His parents set up the trust. Then they put themselves on the payroll of his production company. 1989. He's 21. His mother asks a court to take control of his $6 million fortune. She says he can't handle his affairs. His answer: "Obviously stems from her frustration at not being able to control my life." That same year he sues his parents and his business manager. $3.8 million. They deny all of it. 1993. A judge awards him $1.28 million. Taxes, lawyers and dialysis take most of it. That year, on TV: "If someone had told me... I would've got out." 1999. He files for bankruptcy. He takes a job as a security guard. He never speaks to his parents again. May 2010. He dies at 42. His mother tells People: "We loved Gary very much." They managed his money for 18 years. They hadn't heard his voice in over 10. "I'm sick of all of you people."

Jack Whittaker won $315M on Christmas 2002. He gave his 17-year-old granddaughter $2,000 a week and 4 cars. He was already a millionaire. His construction business was worth $17M. In the video below, he is asked whether 4 cars made sense for a teenager. "To a young kid cars mean a lot, and I'm very proud that she had four cars." Her name was Brandi. He calls her the shining star of his life. "She was very responsible with her money." Her boyfriend, Jesse Tribble, starts showing up in new clothes. His father notices. "I know firsthand she bought things for Jesse." Soon they are both on drugs. "Papa, all I care about is drugs." Jack checks her into 3 treatment programs. None of them work. September 2003. Jesse is found dead of an overdose in an empty house Jack owns. His father: "I blame her for my son's death." December 2004. Brandi disappears. On December 20, she is found dead behind a junked van. The cause of death is listed as unknown. "I really had my arms around her and protected her before I won the lottery." He could buy her 4 cars. He couldn't get her through 3 treatment programs. His wife said she wished she had torn the ticket up. "I wish that we had torn the ticket up too." Then he says this about himself. "I don't like Jack Whittaker."

Archie Karas turned $50 into $40M in Las Vegas. It took him almost 3 years. Losing it took 3 weeks. December 1992. He has just lost his whole bankroll at poker. He gets in his car with $50 in his wallet and drives to Vegas. First, pool. One man keeps raising the stakes. $40,000 a game. Karas walks away with $1.2M. Then poker. He beats Chip Reese. Only Johnny Chan beats him in a first round, for $900,000. Then dice, because dice are faster. "I ended up winning every $5,000 chip at Binion's Horseshoe." By 1995 he is up more than $40M. "Money means nothing to me." Then the 3 weeks. Craps: $11M. Back to Chip Reese: $2M. Baccarat: $17M. Total: $30M. He goes home to Greece, comes back, and bets $300,000 a roll until it is gone. Years later, he is asked how much he won in total. "I lost the money back anyway." "I consider myself the king of gamblers." Asked what he was most proud of in his life: "Not much, to tell you the truth." He died in 2024, at 73. $50 to $40M took almost 3 years. $40M back to nothing took 3 weeks.

Evander Holyfield made $230 million in the ring. His own sister took out a second mortgage on his house without telling him. The house had 109 rooms. Outside Atlanta. The bank behind the loan goes under. The mansion goes to auction. Chase Manhattan buys it for $7 million. What happened? "One of the family members borrowed money off my house." The interviewer stops him. A second mortgage on a house she didn't even own? How much? "Too much." He's the youngest in the family. His older sisters were almost like a mother to him. "After my mama passed, now everybody want to steal from me." He didn't want to call them out. Would he press charges? "I wasn't going to put them in jail." Rick Ross ends up with the house for $5.8 million. He fought Mike Tyson for money. He wouldn't fight his sister for his house. "I made too much money to stoop that low."

Jack Whittaker won $315 million in the Powerball on Christmas 2002. Two years later, his granddaughter was found dead behind a junked van at a place called Scary Creek. Brandi was 17. The center of his life. He gave her about $2,000 a week. And four cars. "I'm very proud that she had four cars." New friends came with the money. Then drugs. "She said, Papa, all I care about is drugs." Three treatment programs. None of them worked. September 2003. Her boyfriend overdoses in an empty house Jack owns. December 2004. Brandi stops calling. "Brandi never went a day without calling me." His wife goes on local TV. "We need you here with us at Christmas time." December 20. They find her. "I really had my arms around her and protected her before I won the lottery." "Once I won the lottery, there wasn't enough of me to get my arms around everything." His wife says she wishes she'd torn the ticket up. "I wish that we had torn the ticket up too." He won on Christmas. He lost her five days before one. "I just don't like what I become."

Antoine Walker earned $110 million in the NBA. His first big check bought his mother a house. Years later, a million dollars of his checks bounced at three Las Vegas casinos. June 1996. The Celtics draft him sixth. He's 19. His mother raised six kids on welfare. He talks the team into paying him a lump sum up front. It goes on a home for her. Then the circle grows. Eight, nine guys from the neighborhood. "I actually wanted them to see the same lifestyle that I was enjoying." Five or six cars at once. Bentleys. Maybachs. Rolexes. Cancun. Puerto Rico. Vegas. "I would travel eight to 10 people with me and pay for their flights, hotel rooms." He had a financial advisor. "As any young arrogant kid, I didn't want to listen to him." 2008. He retires. The recession hits his real estate. "I lost the bulk of my money investing in real estate." And the rest? "I lost a significant portion of money gambling." 2010. He files for bankruptcy. $12.7 million in debts. $4.3 million left. One check bought his mother's house. Seven or eight banks came for the rest. Does he regret the career? "I would never take it back."

Nicolas Cage outbid Leonardo DiCaprio for a dinosaur skull. $276,000. Then he had to hand it back to Mongolia, and he never got his money back. At one point he was worth $150 million. Two castles. Homes in New Orleans, Malibu and the Caribbean. Then came the creditors and the IRS. April 2023. 60 Minutes finds him in Las Vegas. Was it the spending? "It wasn't because I spent $80 on an octopus." The real estate market crashed. He couldn't get out in time. "I paid them all back, but it was about $6 million. I never filed for bankruptcy." So he takes the roles. All of them. "Work was always my guardian angel." "It may not have been blue chip, but it was still work." The critics call it a paycheck. "Even if the movie ultimately is crummy, they know I'm not phoning it in." 2021. He plays a heartbroken chef in Pig. "I wasn't acting." "I think it's probably my best movie." He puts it up against Leaving Las Vegas. The one that won him the Oscar. The skull never came back. Nicolas Cage did.

George Lucas could have asked 20th Century Fox for a million dollars to make Star Wars. He asked for T-shirts instead. The studio does what it always does. Hands him a boilerplate contract. Here, sign this. His deal memo says a salary and 40% of the net profits. "If you have net you never see anything out of it." So he goes back and does what nobody had done before. He reads the entire agreement. "I want to change everything to be in my favor." He asks for the sequel rights. And the licensing. Fox shrugs. If the film flops, who cares about sequels? Licensing isn't worth anything. Nobody can license anything. Why does he want it? "I was only doing it really to get t-shirts and posters." He's afraid the studio won't promote the movie. He doesn't ask for the million. "So they thought they were getting a good deal." May 1977. Star Wars opens. 2012. Lucas sells Lucasfilm to Disney for $4 billion. Fox kept the million. Lucas kept the sequels. It started with T-shirts.