7 rich and famous people who started out living in their cars

When Cameron was writing "The Terminator," he was "barely making ends meet, even living in his car for a time," according to IGN.

But his main concern at the time wasn't money. He was determined to direct his screenplay despite his limited experience.

When he pitched "The Terminator" at meetings, the production companies said they liked the script, but they didn't like the idea of him being in charge.

Cameron persevered and partnered with producer Gale Anne Hurd, who bought the rights to the screenplay for $1 and named Cameron the director.

The film went on to make $77 million worldwide.

According to the biography "Jim Carrey," the comedian dropped out of high school and lived in a VW bus with his family parked in different places throughout Canada. They eventually moved into a tent on his older sister's lawn and parked the van in the driveway.

Carrey said it was during these tough financial times growing up when he developed a sense of humor.

According to BusinessPundit, when Phil McGraw, aka Dr. Phil, was 12 years old, he was homeless and living in a car in Kansas City with his father, who was interning as a psychologist.

McGraw later went on to obtain his own bachelor's, master's, and Ph.D., and he joined his father's psychology practice in Texas.

In the 1990s, Oprah Winfrey invited McGraw to appear on her show. He later became a regular on "Oprah" and eventually launched his own syndicated advice program.

The well-known Emmy-winning financial adviser, who has published numerous New York Times bestsellers, could not afford to move out of her van when she first moved to Berkeley, California, in the 1970s, according to The Huffington Post.

For two months, Orman and a friend took a job clearing trees for $3.50 an hour and lived out of Orman's van. Today she is a multimillionaire.

The actor, TV personality, and author told People Magazine that when he was just starting out as a comedian in the late 1980s, "one or two gigs fell through," and he suddenly found himself homeless.

People reported that Harvey lived in his 1976 Ford Tempo for three years — he would wash up in hotel bathrooms, gas stations, or swimming pool showers — until he was called to appear on "Showtime at the Apollo."

That gig turned out to be Harvey's big break.

According to Time, Swank, who grew up in a trailer park, moved to California with her mother as a teenager to pursue a career in acting.

Before landing roles, she and her mom lived in a car and stayed in an empty house for a few months.

Swank told CBS News: "We had a friend who was selling their house. And so they said, 'You know, there's no furniture, but you can stay there at night. And then, during the day, you have to leave so we can try and sell it.' So we got air mattresses. Blew the air mattresses up. Slept on the air mattresses. And left in the morning."

She went on to win two Oscars by age 30.