Everyone knows that Hollywood actors get paid a ton of money in their line of work. However, before they reached that point, things were not always easy. Pursuing a Hollywood career from scratch would mean that you would have to make ends meet, even if it means dressing up as a chicken or a banana. Here are some Hollywood A-listers and what they did before they were popular.

Brad Pitt – Chicken Mascot and Chauffer for Strippers

Brad Pitt may be one of the most sought-after leading men in Hollywood. He definitely has been cemented into demi-god status and still is the embodiment of what handsomely is in human form. However, things were not always this way for him. Before he was Tyler Durden, Mr. Smith or Achilles, he was nothing more than a chicken.

Brad Pitt once worked for El Pollo Loco and he had to dress as a chicken and hand out flyers so that customers would be attracted to the restaurant. Of course, dressing up as a chicken would barely make enough money to make ends meet while pursuing his would-be Hollywood career. To earn more, he also chauffeured strippers in a limousine.

[su_quote cite=”Denzel Washington” class=”cust-pagination”]“You pray for rain, you gotta deal with the mud too. That’s a part of it. I’d be more frightened by not using whatever abilities I’d been given. I’d be more frightened by procrastination and laziness.”[/su_quote]

Whoopie Goldberg – Morgue Beautician and Phone “Dirty Talk” Operator

With a voice and a presence that goes so strong, Whoopie Goldberg surely is a Hollywood icon across ages. However, before she reached that status, she took on odd jobs. At one point, she worked as a mortuary beautician. The actress recounts an incident at work when her boss pranked her. While pretending to be dead and while he was being made up by Goldberg, he suddenly sat up to wave at her.

Goldberg also revealed in “The View” that she had a brief stint working as a phone “dirty talk” operator. She said that the money was great back then, but now, everyone would surely recognize her voice.

Hugh Jackman – Clown and PE Teacher

Hugh Jackman is a natural entertainer. Before he was Wolverine, he took on a lighter and funnier role as a party clown. During such, he used to earn $50 per show. “I just love making a fool out of myself,” says Jackman. During his clowning days, he went by the nickname “Coco the Clown” who had no magic tricks. At one party, a 6-year-old reportedly stood up and told his mother “Mummy, this clown is, terrible, he doesn’t know any tricks.” A little later, Jackman would find himself teaching PE at a school in Rutland, East Midlands.

Ellen Degeneres – Oyster Shucker

The lovable and outspoken talk show host also had her share of outrageous jobs before she became the star that she is right now. Some of her former jobs include being a vacuum salesperson, bartender, sales clerk, waitress, and house painter.

Of all these, the most outrageous would be being an oyster shucker, a job which most of us might not have even heard about. The work involved opening oysters with a knife. In her biography, she reveals that this could be bound to happen at one point of your life if you live in New Orleans where oysters are plenty.

Megan Fox – Banana Mascot

Before she was everyone’s object of desire, Megan Fox concealed all that beauty within the confines of an artificial banana. Before she was famous, she used to don a banana costume to attract customers to a smoothie shop in Florida, because apparently, a big banana was more attractive than Megan Fox back then.

Megan Fox revealed on “The Ellen Degeneres Show” that this was the only real job that she could have at that time. So DeGeneres took the opportunity to let her past haunt her by having a man dressed up as a banana sneak up behind her to surprise her.

Seeing how successful these actors are nowadays, it is always a good laugh looking back at the ridiculous things they had to do back in the day. Which entry in this list did you find the most outrageous? Know of any other Hollywood star with weird jobs before they were famous? Hit us up in the comments below.