There have been a countless number of brilliant individuals who have changed the course of history or led iconic lives, but sadly, many of them were notable drug addicts as well.
Numerous inventors, philosophers, actors, and artists have found themselves entrenched in their creative process while also being held captive by an addiction to a detrimental substance.
Videos by PopCulture.com
One of the most unsuspecting brilliant drug addicts was Thomas Edison, the inventor of the light bulb. It’s been said that Edison would regularly consume an elixir of cocaine and other substances while he worked.
Below you’ll find a list of 26 more brilliant people who were also drug addicts, as adapted from Ranker. Scroll down to see some surprising names, as well as some not-so-surprising ones.
Stephen King
King is most well-known as one of the world’s all-time greatest horror authors.
The IT scribe doesn’t remember writingย all of his books, however, as he was previously addicted toย alcohol, cocaine, and Valium.
KURT COBAIN
Cobain is equally as famous for his death as he is for his life, which ended in suicide back in 1994.
It’s reported that in order to cope with physical and emotional pain, the grunge musicianย turned to heroin.
Marilyn Monroe
There may be no actress more iconic than Marilyn Monroe, as her classic styleย and glowing smile secured her place as a Hollywood star.
Tragically, the blondeย beauty was found dead in 1962 of a suspected suicide after overdosing onย Barbiturates. She was known to have been taking a “variety of sleeping pills.”
ROBERT DOWNEY JR.
The Iron Man actor famously struggled with drug and alcohol addiction having spent time in theย California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility as well as the State Prison.
After cleaning up his act and getting back on his feet, Downeyย Jr. has enjoyed an incredibleย rejuvenatedย career ever since.
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway’s legacy has lived on in books such as The Sun Also Rises, even though the authorย took his own life in 1961.
He was a notoriously heavyย drinking who might have spent more time drinking than he did writing.ย
CHARLES DICKENS
Dickens became a notable writerย with books like Great Expectationsย andย A Christmas Carol, but it was probablyย A Tale of Two Cities that really secured his positionย as a legend.
Interestingly, however, he suffered from an addictionย to opium and was knownย to frequent opium dens in London, England.
Edgar Allan Poe
One of the most influentialย macabre authors in the world, Poe is hugely famous for stories such as The Tell-Tale Heart and poems like The Raven.
He was also a frequentย user of drugs and alcohol, which many historians think may have contributed to hisย death.
HOWARD HUGHES
Famously played by Leonardo DiCaprioย The Aviator, Hughes was one of the most brilliant minds the world has ever known.
The Texas-born businessman was known to do cocaine as well as overuse opiates due to chronic pain.
Philip K. Dick
Most will know of Dick from his stories being adapted into films such asย Total Recall, Blade Runner,ย andย Minority Report.
However, the author, who died in 1982, also suffered fromย schizophrenia and self-medicatedย withย amphetamines and various other substances.
WINSTON CHURCHILL
Churchill was a world famous British politician who has been portrayed by some of the greatest actors of all time.
Historians will you that the former Prime Minister of England was also a very heavy drinker, and a frequent user ofย amphetamines.
Vincent van Gogh
This painter once infamouslyย cut off his ear and gave it to a prostitute.
Much of his erraticย behavior seems to have potentially been due to the fact that he was a regularย consumer of absinthe.
ULYSSES S. GRANT
Grant was a Civil War General and the 18th President of the United States. He was also a heavy drinker, and known to have been an alcoholic during his time at war.
Aleister Crowley
Like Poe before him, Crowley was a renowned occult writer who frequentlyย abused drugs.
He was known to be a heroin addict and even wrote a fictionalizedย account of his experienceย with drugsย in the bookย Diary of a Drug Fiend.
CARL SAGAN
Saganย was an astrophysicist who would be recognizable to most as the narratorย and host of the 1970s documentary seriesย Cosmos: A Personal Voyage.
He was also a marijuanaย user who smoked the drug regularly and advocated for it as a substanceย to push the humanย mind beyond its boundaries.
Miles Davis
Davis was a legendary jazz musician whose contribution to the genre is still felt heavily today.
Before locking himself away and beating his habit “cold turkey,” Davis was a heroin addict.
ANDY WARHOL
Warhol emerged as the most recognizable pop-cultural artist of the ’60s and ’70s.
In order to focus more on his work, he would consume an Adderall-type substance regularly.
Truman Capote
Truman Capote was an author whose most famous work was the true crime book In Cold Blood.
Capote was a habitualย user of drugs and alcohol, and whenย he passed away in 1984 doctors foundย multiple drugs in his system.
FRANCIS CRICK
Crick was a brilliant molecular biologist who discovered theย double-helix DNA model.
He was also reportedly high on LSDย when he made the world-changing revelation.
Jimi Hendrix
Jimiย Hendrixย was a world-famous guitar player whose impact on music is still felt in the modern era.
He famously used drugsย and alcohol for many year and after he died doctors foundย Barbiturates and wine in his system.
WILLIAM WILBERFORCE
A British politician who passed away in 1833, Wilberforce was said to have use opium for most of his life.
Related Posts
-
THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO — Episode 958 — Pictured: (l-r) Actor Phil Hartman during an interview with host Jay Leno on July 11, 1996 — (Photo by: Margaret C. Norton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank)
