Famous Roomies

Al Gore and Tommy Lee Jones

Actor Tommy Lee Jones and Former Vice President Al Gore (and eventually John Lithgow) shared a room at Harvard and, like plenty of college roomies, chased skirts together, even joining a country music band to get girls. The unlikely duo also served as the inspiration for the character of Oliver in Love Story, written by fellow Harvard alum Erich Segal.

Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson

Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson have had great success collaborating on films from Rushmore to The Royal Tenebaums. And it all started when they were roommates at University of Texas, where they co-wrote Anderson’s directoral debut Bottle Rocket. That’s not the only writing Anderson did with Wilson, though; he wrote a paper about Edgar Allen Poe for him in order to score the better bedroom in their apartment.

Joe Montana and Charlie Weis

Charlie Weis may run a pretty no-nonsense football program at Notre Dame, but back when he was a student there, he was fond of playing pranks on roommate (and quarterback) Joe Montana.

Ving Rhames and Stanley Tucci

Actor Ving Rhames probably wouldn’t have carved out his successful career if it weren’t for roommate Stanley Tucci. While at SUNY Purchase, Tucci convinced Rhames to shorten his name from Irving. And let’s face it, that was probably a good career move; Marsellus Wallace just wouldn’t be the same played by someone named Irving.

Bill Clinton and Strobe Talbot

When you’ve got two Rhodes scholars rooming together at Oxford, you know there’s bound to be some brainpower. But the pairing of future president Bill Clinton and Time editor/U.S. diplomat Strobe Talbot just seems excessive.

Hillary Clinton and Janet Hill

Bill Clinton may have had a high-powered roommate, but his wife’s roomie was no slouch either. At Wellesley, Hillary Clinton roomed with Janet Hill, a future attorney. But you may know Hill more for her son, NBA star Grant Hill. The ties between the families continued past college; Grant has been a public supporter of the Democratic Party and on the night he was drafted, he got a congratulatory call from then-president Bill.

Christopher Reeve and Robin Williams

At Julliard, roomies Robin Williams and Christopher Reeve vowed to always be friends and help each other throughout life. Both held true to the promise, as they remained close. Williams even covered some of Reeve’s medical expenses after he was paralyzed. Of course, being Robin Williams, he couldn’t stop there; after Reeve found out he couldn’t walk again, Williams visited him dressed as a doctor and pretending to be his proctologist, reportedly causing Reeve to smile for the first time since the accident.