Gary Busey Net Worth and Salary: Gary Busey is an American film and stage actor who has a net worth of $500 thousand. Gary Busey built his net worth by acting in famous movies like ‘The Buddy Holly Story’, ‘The Firm’, ‘Lost Highway’, ‘Point Break’ and ‘Black Sheep’. He has also appeared in several television shows, including “Gunsmoke,” “Walker, Texas Ranger,” “Law & Order,” and “Entourage.” Busey is also known for being a wild card on reality shows such as “Celebrity Apprentice” (on which he appeared twice, in Season 4 and Season 6) and “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.”
Early Life: William Gary Busey was born on June 29, 1944, in Goose Creek, Texas. When he was in the fourth grade, the family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma. He attended Bell Junior High School and Nathan Hale High School. He enrolled at a community college in Kansas and then transferred to Pittsburg State University in Kansas on a football scholarship. He wanted to be a professional football player until he blew out his knee and lost his athletic scholarship. He transferred to Oklahoma State University and dropped just one class before graduation. He became interested in acting in college.
Career: Busey began working as an entertainer when he was a drummer in a band in the 1960s and 70s under the stage names “Teddy Jack Eddy” and “Sprunk”. Busey made his film debut in 1974 in “Thunderbolt and Lightfoot” as a supporting character opposite Clint Eastwood. He had his first breakthrough role in “The Buddy Holly Story” in 1978. Busey played the title character and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. He received the Best Actor Award from the National Society of Film Critics for this role. Throughout the 1980s, Busey worked regularly in the films “Silver Bullet”, “Insignificance”, “Barbarosa” and “Bulletproof”. Busey starred in ‘Lethal Weapon’
In the 1990s, Busey appeared in a number of high-profile films, including Point Break, Predator 2, Under Siege, Rookie of the Year, The Firm, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas . The 2000s saw Busey appearing on the Comedy Central reality show ‘I’m With Busey’, voicing an episode of ‘The Simpsons’ and singing in the television mini-series ‘Into the West’ , among others. TV and film roles. Busey also lent his voice-over talent to the game “Grand Theft Auto.” In 2006, Busey appeared in the controversial Turkish nationalist film “Valley of the Wolves.” The film was accused of being fascist, anti-Semitic and anti-American. In 2007, Busey appeared in three episodes of the HBO series The Entourage as an even more eccentric parody of himself.
In the late 2000s, Busey became a bit regular on a number of reality television shows, including “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew,” “Celebrity Apprentice 4,” “Celebrity Apprentice 6,” “Celebrity Paranormal Project,” and “Celebrity Fit Club.” In 2014, he was the first American to win the UK version of ‘Celebrity Big Brother’. In 2015, she was a contestant on the 21st season of Dancing with the Stars. Busey was associated with dancer Anna Trebunskaya. They were eliminated in the fourth week of the competition, which placed them in 10th place.
In the summer of 2019, it was announced that Busey would play God in the Off-Broadway musical Only Human.
In 220, Busey appeared in the television show Gary Busey: Pet Judge on Amazon Prime. In the show, Busey presides over a court where plaintiffs and defendants settle disputes about their pets. It’s not a reality show. This script and distributed with actors and as strange and hilarious as it sounds.
As of 2020, Busey is scheduled to appear in three upcoming projects: the documentary “The Gettysburg Address” and the films “Reggie: A Millenial Depression Comedy” and “Rabere.”
Money problems: Unfortunately, the actor recently fell on hard times. On February 6, 2012, Gary Busey filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in California, claiming more than $500,000 in debt. In filings, Busey states there are less than $50,000 in assets and approximately $500,000 – $1 million in liabilities to various parties, including the IRS, Wells Fargo, UCLA Medical Center and others.
Personal life: Busey first married Judy Helkenberg. They have a son, Jake Busey, who was born in 1971. Jake is an actor like his father. Busey and Helkenberg divorced in 1990.
Busey has two other children – a daughter named Alectra from a previous relationship and a son named Luke, who was born to his wife Steffanie Sampson in 2010. Steffanie is a comedian and clinical hypnotherapist.
In 1988, Busey was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident. He was not wearing a helmet and his skull was fractured. During brain surgery for the subdural hematoma he suffered in the accident, Busey died briefly. While dead, he claims to have gone to the other side and received spiritual information. Doctors believed the accident and fractured skull had resulted in permanent brain damage. Busey does not believe he has brain damage.
In 1997, Busey had a plum-sized cancerous tumor removed from his sinuses.
Busey has a pet bird named Greenie.
He has no sinuses or tear ducts due to cancer.
In the 1980s and early 1990s, Busey was addicted to cocaine. He died in May 1990 and claims he hasn’t touched cocaine since that day.
Real Estate: Gary Busey has a longtime home in Malibu, California. He can often be seen out shopping and at his businesses in Malibu.
