The Broke and the Beautiful: Nostalgia Edition

This week on The Broke and the beautiful, a couple of celebrity bankruptcy cases are coming to light. Sitcom star Drake Bell has been in bankruptcy since last May, and former “Baywatch” star Donna D’Errico took her own turn in Chapter 7. Also, Betsey Johnson puts her own spin on New York Fashion Week.

Lessons learned on “Drake & Josh” didn’t really include bankruptcy, but one of stars of the Nickelodeon sitcom might have been able to benefit from such an episode. Documents filed in Los Angeles bankruptcy court (h/t TMZ) indicate that actor Drake Bell entered Chapter 7 last May with $2.4 million in debt, most of which came from a mortgage loan. He also owed money to the Internal Revenue Service and the Franchise Tax Board in California for taxes from 2008, 2011 and 2012.

The $1.6 million in assets that Mr. Bell reported in the filing included his house in Los Angeles. At the time of the filing, his nearly $19,000 in monthly expenses ($8,408 of which was marked for mortgage payments) far exceeded his $2,820 average monthly income.

Former “Baywatch” star Donna D’Errico may have needed a lifeguard of her own in 2013. The actress, who was also a Playboy Playmate of the Month in 1995, took a turn in bankruptcy (h/t RadarOnline). Court documents from February 2013 show Ms. D’Errico had nearly $1 million in debt—much of which came from credit-card bills and medical bills—when she filed for Chapter 7 liquidation. Ms. D’Errico’s $431,000 in assets included child-support payments from ex-husband Nikki Sixx. At the time of her bankruptcy, she reported a monthly income of about $7,800 but monthly spending of nearly $11,000. The Chapter 7 case was discharged last July.

Betsey Johnson cartwheeled into reality TV last year following her namesake company’s stint in bankruptcy, and she recently rocked the runway at New York Fashion Week. According to Speakeasy, the designer’s latest fashion show was broadcast on 11 giant screens in Times Square. For her fall collection, Ms. Johnson looked to musicians like Madonna, Pink and Nicki Minaj for inspiration. But that’s not all—she was inspired enough by Pharrell to put a lifesize cardboard cutout of the musician (including his buzzed-about hat) backstage.

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