When people become famous, they often start
living lives of excess that they aren’t psychologically prepared to deal with. Many stars turn to alcoholism after becoming
famous, whether as a result of performance anxiety or some other issue that may or may
not have anything to do with success itself. There are numerous stars that have passed
away from alcoholism over the years, and we’ll be looking at the most tragic tales in this
video! Join Facts Verse as we take a look at celebrities
who died from alcohol. Barbara Payton
The first star we’ll be taking a look at is Barbara Payton, whose tale involves one
of the most tragic deaths from alcoholism in Hollywood history! Not everyone will recognize the name, Barbara
Payton, as she wasn't as big of a star as some other celebrities. However, that wasn’t for lack of trying. At the height of Barbara’s fame, she was
a notable film star that could be seen socializing with such superstars as Gary Cooper, Gregory
Peck, and Frank Sinatra. Sadly, it turned out that the actress wasn’t
fit to handle her success. Barbara was born in 1927 and exhibited a streak
of rebellion from a young age. At the age of only 15, she ran away from her
comfortable life at home to marry her boyfriend, who was a man by the name of William Hodge. Not long after the two eloped, Barbara was
tracked down by her parents and brought back home. Several years later, Barbara married for a
second time, this time to a man by the name of John Payton. John Payton was an Air Force Captain, and
the two moved to California after getting married. The two had a child, after which point Barbara
took the child and ran off to Hollywood with hopes of becoming a movie star. Barbara was a beautiful young woman, and it
wasn't hard for her to get attention in Hollywood. However, she was perhaps a little bit too
willing to use her sexuality to get ahead. Barbara signed with Universal and started
finding some success, around which time she became involved with comedian Bob Hope. Bob set Barbara up in her own apartment, and
the two partook in an affair. Bob was married at the time, and when Universal
found out about the affair, they decided to fire Barbara out of fear that the affair was
going to hurt Bob's image. Bob was the bigger star, and Barbara found
herself out of work. After following Bob Hope around for a period
of time and begging him for money to no avail, other work thankfully came Barbara’s way. She appeared in a 1949 film by the name of
Trapped, which was fairly successful. Her appearance in the film secured her a role
alongside James Cagney in 1950’s Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye. The following year, she appeared alongside
Gary Cooper in the film Dallas and Gregory Peck in the film Only the Valiant. She could also be seen in nightclubs hanging
out with such superstars as Lana Turner and Frank Sinatra. Arguably, the burgeoning celebrity cared more
about partying than she did about performing, which didn’t prove a sustainable outlook. Barbara enjoyed sleeping around in Hollywood,
whether to further her career or just to pass the time. She continued the habit of sleeping around
after becoming involved with actor Franchot Tone. While dating Franchot, Barbara started an
affair with a boxer. When Franchot found out, he started a fistfight
with him that ended up putting Franchot in a coma! Barbara had developed a habit of heavy drinking
during her time in Hollywood, and things had gotten pretty bad by the 1950s. Barbara found herself out of work in the entertainment
industry and moved to Chicago to start up a prostitution ring with a fellow ex-actress. When the police busted up their ring, Barbara
narrowly escaped incarceration. Barbara’s business partner was put in prison,
forcing Barbara to continue working as a prostitute alone. Alone on the streets, Barbara lived for several
years as a drug-addicted prostitute before dying at the age of only 39. At the height of her desperation, she had
returned to the home of her parents. She collapsed on the floor of her parents’
bathroom in 1967, and was said to have died in the arms of her mother. At the time of her death, Barbara looked nothing
like her former self. She weighed 200 pounds, and her face had been
bloated from years of alcohol abuse. If you’re enjoying this video so far, be
sure to hit the like button to show your support! Also, subscribe to the channel if you’d
like to be among the first to know when more Facts Verse videos are on their way! Veronica Lake
Unlike Barbara Payton, Veronica Lake got to experience legitimate Hollywood stardom over
the course of her career. However, that doesn’t make her eventual
demise from alcoholism and schizophrenia much less tragic. During Veronica’s final years, she was holed
up in her home, believing that the government was spying on her. This came after the actress’s iconic appearances
in films such as This Gun for Hire and The Hour Before Dawn. She had been one of the biggest names in Hollywood
during the 1940s, but her career suffered alongside her personal life in the 1950s. During the 1950s, Veronica began suffering
from schizophrenia. This schizophrenia was made worse by the fact
that the actress was a very heavy drinker. She died in 1973, at the age of only 50. She had only appeared in a small handful of
films since 1952 and had lived her final years in a state of alcohol addiction and loneliness. After her death, Veronica's family financially
struggled to bury her. Her estranged son reportedly had to take out
a loan to fly to where his mother's body was located, and she was then cremated. Some claim that her ashes were sold to fans. Billie Holiday
Hollywood actors and actresses certainly have a propensity for becoming addicted to alcohol,
but their counterparts in the music industry often outdo them. One musician that could've likely out-drunk
every one of her contemporaries in Hollywood was jazz singer Billie Holiday. Billie was addicted to alcohol and sex, as
well as a variety of illicit substances. She used her success to fund her partying
but tried her best not to let her various habits affect her artistic output. Still, she couldn’t stop the negative health
effects that her many years of partying were taking on her body. Billie had started out on the music scene
as a nightclub singer before finding some success and dropping out of high school. She started drinking at an early age and turned
to opium after being introduced by a partner. Billie ended up passing away in the late 1950s
after being admitted to the hospital with both liver and heart disease. Though the actress had been able to hold it
together for a good deal of her career, the final years of her life saw her on a downward
spiral. The singer had reportedly quit drinking soon
before her death on the advice of her doctor, but it was too late. Richard Burton
Richard Burton is another Hollywood star that ended up meeting his end at the hands of alcoholism. Besides acting, Richard was perhaps equally
well known for being romantically involved with actress Elizabeth Taylor. The two starred together in the box-office
failure Cleopatra, and their relationship didn’t prove healthy for either of them. Richard hated being a Hollywood actor, preferring
to be on the stage. Arguably, he also hated Elizabeth Taylor. Both his Hollywood career and his marriage
to Elizabeth inspired the actor to drink, and the habit eventually killed him. For a time, Richard was able to continue performing
successfully while drinking as many as four bottles of hard alcohol a day. This was during the 1970s when he starred
in such films as the Hollywood adaptation of the controversial play Equus. Richard Burton died at the age of only 58
after suffering from cirrhosis of the liver for a number of years. He famously underwent a surgical operation
to alleviate some back pain that he was experiencing, only for the doctors to find that there was
crystallized alcohol formed on his spine. Despite his poor health, the actor continued
to drink until his 1984 death, which was officially caused by a brain hemorrhage. Mickey Mantle
Mickey Mantle may be recognized as one of the greatest baseball players of all time,
but he was tormented by alcoholism. The athlete turned to the bottle soon after
the start of his career due to the death of his father. He continued drinking throughout the duration
of his fame before dying in 1995 from declining health related to his years of consumption. Although Mickey was apparently plagued by
demons during his career, those who knew him said he was always kind and considerate to
even his lowliest teammate. Hank Williams
Back in the days when country music actually meant something, the country music scene was
notorious for being filled with depressed and alcoholic singer-songwriters. Perhaps the most iconic depressed and alcoholic
singer-songwriter that ever graced the country music scene was Hank Williams, who became
the archetype that many followed. While his alcoholism made him appear authentic
to both his contemporaries and his audience, it ended up killing him. Hank died at the age of only 29 in 1953. He was being driven to a New Year's Day performance
in Ohio and had mixed alcohol with various illicit substances. While fame and success can bring with it plenty
of good qualities, there seems to be something about becoming a celebrity that makes people
more likely to turn to alcoholism. Now it’s time to hear from you: did you
know that many celebrities have died from alcoholism, or did you think that their fame
made them immune to such things? As always, like this video to show your support,
and subscribe and hit the notification bell if you’d like to be among the first to know
when more Facts Verse videos are on their way!
