Val Kilmer dropped out of the Hollywood spotlight, and here’s the real reason why

If there’s one thing we know for sure about the dazzling lights of Hollywood, it’s that they’re fickle, impartial, and oh so ruthless when it comes to building someone up just to drop them down.

I mean, how many ‘stars’ have we seen come and go? How many times have we watched someone groomed for the big time only for their name to drop out of all sight and memory after a couple of years?

That’s why, for me at least, when a person is able to leave their stamp over the course of several generations, it’s a truly impressive feat. Val Kilmer is one such star … bursting onto the scene after appearing in a series of blockbuster hits, and then doing enough to ensure he was ingrained in popular culture.

After all, his heyday might have been the ’80s and ’90s, but his legacy has secured his position as an all-time favorite.

Even so, there’s still a good deal about the now-62-year-old that you might not know. I mean, I consider myself something of a diehard fan, and there was a good deal I didn’t know about Val, including his turbulent love life and his somewhat dramatic physical transformation 

Val Edward Kilmer was born on December 31, 1959 in Los Angeles. Though it might be difficult to imagine him in any profession other than acting, it wasn’t as though his family had a history stepped in performance.

No, in fact his father, Eugene Kilmer, was an aerospace equipment distributor and real estate developer.

Which is why it might well have surprised his parents that Val was such a naturally talented showman. After attending Chatsworth High School (with Kevin Spacey and Mare Winningham), and the Hollywood Professional School (where the afternoons were kept free