Jeff Daniels, the iconic actor, started with humble beginnings. In 1976, after moving from Philadelphia to New York City, he spent months crashing on his sister’s couch before finding a cheap “artist’s residence” in the Village. The rundown apartment cost just $150 a month and was shared with a classical pianist.

Growing up, Daniels always dreamed of becoming an actor. He loved dressing up as movie characters and using a box of old clothes to fuel his imagination. While living in New York, he appeared in a production at the Circle in the Square Theater School. He later reflected that the arts were everything to him, with business being “the devil’s work.”

Now, Daniels lives a peaceful life on a farm with his family, surrounded by animals and fresh vegetables—far from his early days in a New York “flophouse.”