Rich Polk/Getty Images for IMDb
Forget credit cards. Kevin Bacon is pictured.
Forget credit cards - Kevin Bacon is a cash guy."I never walk around with less than $200 or $300," he told Wealthsimple.
He traces his affection for cash back to his early days in the workforce, when he moved to New York City after high school to work as a busboy and waiter.
"My relationship with money was very loose," the actor, currently starring in the Amazon series "I Love Dick," told Wealthsimple. "I had no budget, no savings, no credit cards, and no bank accounts. I was a cash-only kind of guy."
He continued:
"I'd get paid out at the end of the night, spend some of it at the bar, wake up the next day, and check my pockets to see how much money I had left. There was never a budget or any kind of longer-term financial plan. I'd make money, spend it, pay rent, spend more money, and hope that when the end of the month came around, I'd have enough to put up another month's rent."
There are two schools of thought when it comes to carrying cash: One argues that since it's more psychologically difficult to part with the paper rather than swipe a card, it makes you think twice about purchases and spend less over all.
The other school finds the built-in spending tracker element of using a debit or credit card incredibly handy. Wondering where your money went? All you have to do is log into your bank's site. (As far as debit versus credit, credit cards are generally considered preferable because they're insured, and because you get rewards. Just as long as you're paying them off every month in full!)
Bacon told Wealthsimple that he's made a real effort to understand how his money is managed, rather than outsourcing it. "Understanding money may not be everyone's idea of a good time, but it's a necessary evil," he said. "If you're a creative person who doesn't understand money easily, you may not want to admit how essential it is. But ultimately if you stick your head in the sand, you'll be sorry."