The public often thinks that
celebrities and other famously wealthy individuals lead picture-perfect lifestyles. However, just like the life of any other human person, theirs are filled with a variety of different sorts of sorrow.
The following is a list of the seven most renowned persons in the world whose parents were either killed or committed suicide. You might also be interested in reading about "celebrities who killed their wives."
1. Charlize Theron
Source: Getty Images
Charlize Theron's mother, Gerda, fatally shot her father, Charles, in 1991. Gerda said a drunk Charles had threatened to murder both her and Charlize. The attorney general decided not to press charges against Gerda, the actress's mother, since she believed she had acted in self-defense when she shot Charles, saving her daughter's and herself's lives.
2. Michael Jordan
Source: Getty Images
James Jordan, Michael Jordan's father, was murdered in 1993. Michael was fatally shot in what seems to be a carjacking; his two championship rings from the NBA were stolen. Both Daniel Green and Larry Demery were given life sentences in 1996 for their roles in the crime.
3. Jennifer Hudson
Source: Getty Images
Jennifer Hudson lost her mother, Darnell Donerson, brother, Jason Hudson, and nephew, Julian King, to gun violence in 2008. William Balfour, Hudson's brother-in-law and Julia's ex-husband, was convicted of all three murders and given three consecutive life sentences.
4. Dylan McDermott
Source: Getty Images
When Dylan McDermott was five years old, in 1967, his mother Diane was killed in what authorities ruled to be an accident involving a gun. In 2011, McDermott contacted the police to inquire about his mother's death. At the time of her death, Diane's lover, John Sponza, was arrested and charged with murder. Sponza, involved in organized crime, was discovered dead in a vehicle trunk in 1972.
5. Patrick Duffy
Source: Getty Images
In 1986, Patrick Duffy's parents, Marie and Terence Duffy were gunned down in a heist at their Montana pub. Convicted killers Sean Wentz and Kenneth Miller were both given a life term in jail. In 2007, Miller received parole and was released.
6. Dave Navarro
Source: Getty Images
Dave Navarro's mom Constance was murdered in her West LA apartment in 1983. Another victim was her close friend Sue Jory. The 1991 arrest of Constance's ex-boyfriend John Riccardi was partly facilitated by America's Most Wanted.
7. Sean Lennon
Source: Getty Images
On December 8, 1980, John Lennon, leader of the Beatles and dad of musician Sean Lennon, was murdered. Second-degree murder is punishable by 20 years to life in prison for Mark David Chapman, who admitted to the crime.