It’s safe to say that plumbers keep this country going, ensuring any water flowing in or wastewater flowing out of your home or business happens routinely. There have been some pretty easily recognizable plumbers over the years, from Mario Mario – yes, his last name is actually the same as his first name – to Thomas Crapper but did you know there have been several plumbers who went on to have illustrious careers in something other than the trades?
Let’s take a look at six famous people you might not realize were once plumbers.
Sir Michael Caine
Long before he won two Academy Awards, Michael Caine actually worked as a plumber’s assistant after his time serving in the Korean War. It was just prior to the British actor’s film career and Caine was looking for an apprenticeship to begin his path in the trades but instead jumped into acting, appearing in such notable films as Hannah And Her Sisters, The Cider House Rules, The Dark Knight and, one of our personal favorites, The Muppet Christmas Carol.
Ozzy Osbourne
Everyone knows Ozzy Osbourne as the Prince of Darkness, the lead singer of Black Sabbath whose outrageous stage presence, and reality show, made him a legend in the hard rock realm. What you might not know is that the British bad boy actually dropped out of school to work as a plumber’s assistant – but didn’t last too long as he turned to a life of crime, which included jail time. It all obviously worked out for Osbourne who went on to sell over 100 million records and was inducted into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland and the UK’s Music Hall of Fame.
Bob Hoskins
Well respected British actor and director Bob Hoskins won his fair share of awards, while appearing in cult-classics and famous films alike, including Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, Mona Lisa and Hook. At the beginning of his career, while he struggled to find work, Hoskins had a number of manual labor jobs including as a plumbing assistant. Ironically, years later, Hoskins would play a plumber in the notorious bomb Super Mario Bros. based on the 1980s video game.
Conor McGregor
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Heralded as one of the greatest Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial artists of all-time, Conor McGregor won in both the featherweight and lightweight divisions. While the Irish athlete was fine-tuning his skills as a fighter, he left school at 17 to begin working as a plumber’s apprentice. After 18 months on the job, McGregor decided to turn his focus to fighting full-time, much to the disapproval of his parents – now he’s one of the world’s most recognizable athletes, who is in the process of transitioning out of the sport and building his own Irish whiskey brand.
Jon Gotti
Stories of the mob in New York and New Jersey throughout the 1970s and 1980s are legendary – and no name might be more notorious than Jon Gotti. The crime boss of the Gambino family, who earned the nickname “The Teflon Don” because his charges never seemed to stick, wasn’t actually an experienced plumber. Instead, he posed as a plumbing supplier to stay off the radar and launder money. It’s unclear if he ever did any actual plumbing work in this disguise, before he was arrested, and later convicted, in 1992 of conspiracy to commit murder and racketeering.
Albert Einstein
So, this one is really more of a technicality. Famed theoretical physicist Albert Einstein was never actually a plumber, though he wanted to build a career in the trades. Einstein is famously quoted as saying: “If I could do it all again, I’d be a plumber.” We’re pretty sure the Nobel Prize winner, who is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest scientists of all-time, chose the right career path, otherwise we might not have the theory of relativity, among many other things.
If you’re having a problem with your drains and sewers and are in need of a video sewer inspection, water jet drain cleaning or grease trap maintenance, trust the experts at Zoom Drain! For more information, give us a call or schedule an appointment online at your nearest location.
