In 1992, a 20-year-old Shaquille O'Neal signed his first professional contract, officially becoming a millionaire. But within an hour, the budding basketball star had already gone on an expensive shopping spree and was down over $1 million.
O'Neal's first purchase: a $150,000 Mercedes Benz for himself. He immediately followed that up with a matching one for his father and a smaller $100,000 one for his mother. O'Neal also paid off his mother's house and began doing "what all the homeboys do — gotta buy rings and diamonds and earrings and this and that," he told Business Insider.
A few days later, O'Neal's bank manager explained that he was already $60,000 underwater. That served as the wake-up call O'Neal needed to become more careful and get his spending on track.
However, he doesn't regret helping out his parents.
"I [spent] a million dollars in about 45 minutes," he told CNN. At least in part, though, "it was well worth it."