Ellen DeGeneres dropped out of the University of New Orleans after one semester.
James Cameron, director of "Titanic" and "Avatar," studied physics at Fullerton College, but he dropped out to become a truck driver.
Thomas Edison, inventor of the light bulb, left school to work on the railroad at the age of 12.
Pablo Picasso dropped out of Spain's foremost art school, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts.
Matt Mullenweg, founder of the blogging site WordPress, dropped out of the University of Houston in 2004.
In 2007, Bill Gates got the best kind of degree from his would-be alma mater Harvard: an honorary one.
Walt Disney dropped out of high school at 16 to join the Army. When he was not accepted because of his young age, he joined the Red Cross and left for Europe. When he got back, he got to work.
Talk radio host Rush Limbaugh dropped out of Southeast Missouri State, where he had flunked ballroom dancing.
David Karp, creator of Tumblr, never graduated from high school.
Iconic fashion designer Coco Chanel left school at 18 to become a cabaret singer.
American novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of "The Great Gatsby," dropped out of Princeton. Apparently, his writing pursuits didn't translate into stellar grades.
John Mackey, founder of Whole Foods, dropped out of the University of Texas after being there for seven years. He then joined a vegetarian co-op to "meet women."
Yoko Ono, artist and wife of John Lennon, is a Sarah Lawrence College dropout.
Filmmaker Woody Allen was thrown out of New York University after one semester for poor grades. He later dropped out of City College of New York.
Mark Zuckerberg dropped out of Harvard to work full time on Facebook, which he launched in his dorm room.
Paul Thomas Anderson, writer and director of "There Will Be Blood" and five-time Academy Award nominee, dropped out of NYU film school after two days because one of his professors dissed "Terminator 2." We would have dropped out, too.
Steve Jobs dropped out of Reed College.
Ray Bradbury, author of "Fahrenheit 451," said he never went to college: He went to the library instead.
Fashion designer Ralph Lauren left City College of New York to design ties for Beau Brummell.
Former first lady of France Carla Bruni left school at 19 to pursue modeling.
Television and radio host Glenn Beck is a Yale dropout.
TV cook Paula Deen did not attend college but instead got married at 18.
Basically, every performer ever.
22 famous people who never finished school
3/18/2013As tuition prices skyrocket and a scary number of students find themselves majoring in debt, it's fair to question whether or not the cost of school will be worth it in the long run. While we can't answer that question for you, we can point you to many big names who skipped out on a formal education and, for the most part, did all right for themselves. (Well, a few of them probably could have really benefited from a couple extra years of schooling, but we won't name names.) Above, check out 22 almost-graduates who found incredible success, enormous fame or infamy despite never finishing school. [Source]
Update: This gallery was modified after publishing.
Which dropout do you find the most surprising?
Most Commented
Radio host makes vicious verbal attack on Hillary Clinton
Ancient sea creature with 'scissor-hands' named after Johnny Depp
Dolphins locate 19th-century torpedo off California coast
Japan's newest bizarro burger includes spaghetti, panda faces
Spot the spooky painted people in these photos
