Steve Harvey is the living proof that no matter how tough life is, there is always a way back. The now-legendary Family Feud host once wanted to be a comedian but was forced to sleep in his car to survive. He had to steal to make ends meet – and at one point it looked like it was game over for him.

Fortunately, Steve Harvey never gave up, and today, he is living his best life. After two divorces he married the love of his life, Marjorie, in 2007 and today, they are still happily married. 

Despite some rough times – when Marjorie was accused of sabotaging Steve’s second marriage – the couple are stronger than ever. And weeks ago, Steve Harvey shared beautiful words about her that made fans tear up. 

Born on January 17, 1957, in Welch, West Virginia, Steve Harvey was the youngest of five children to parents Eloise and Jesse Harvey.

Growing up, he had a stutter, which made him very uncomfortable around people. But as we know today, this would change.

Steve Harvey –early life

In 6th grade, Harvey and his classmates were supposed to pen down their dream job. He wrote that he wanted to become an entertainer, only for the teacher who gave the assignment to ridicule him in front of the whole class.

The teacher thought he could never become an entertainer with his stutter and even went as far as to call Harvey’s mother to tell her that her son had to dream about something else.

But young Steve had a dream that he would pursue no matter what other people thought. Instead of lying down and accepting that it was impossible, he sought the support he needed.

It was his speech impediment that gave Harvey low self-esteem. However, his family backed his dream to the moon and back and always encouraged him to strive for greatness.

As a child, he loved making people laugh. Regarding his stutter, a local deli man helped him slow down his speech and calm down while he was talking. In the end, he outgrew his stutter – and was able to exact the sweetest revenge on his teacher.

Speaking with Oprah, Harvey revealed that he would never forget the day his teacher mocked him for stating that his dream was to become an entertainer.

Instead of getting petty, Harvey decided to “kill with kindness.”

“Every year when the teacher was living, I used to send her a TV for Christmas ’cause I wanted her to see me,” he explained.

Harvey and his family moved to Cleveland when he was young. In 1974, he graduated from Glenville High School.

Steve Harvey was homeless and forced to live in his car

After graduating from high school, Steve studied at West Virginia University. After that, he worked several jobs, including as an insurance salesman and postman – but didn’t find his true calling.

A few years later, Harvey finally stumbled upon his real passion. In 1985, he started performing as a stand-up comedian for the first time and spent years perfecting his routine and steadily becoming a well-known actor.

He eventually landed his first headline gig at Bruce Ayer’s Comedy Club in Birmingham, Alabama.

In the beginning, things hardly went the way Harvey expected them to. Speaking to People, he explained that he had been homeless for three years. He even had to steal things to make ends meet.

Harvey lived out of his car, using a small cooler as a refrigerator and showering in different rest-stop bathrooms. He mainly survived on sandwiches. He was forced to steal fuel from gas stations to get to comedy gigs.

As reported by People, Steve Harvey made approximately $3,000 in his first year as a comedian. He and his wife Marcia had separated – their divorce finalized in 1994 – and Harvey’s relationship with his daughter had fallen apart.

“I’m married, I have twins. I’m supposed to provide for them, but I had to take this chance,” he recalled thinking.

Around 75% of his paycheck went straight to Marcia and twins Brandi and Karli. As a result, Steve had pretty much no money left for himself.

‘If you keep going, I’m going to take you places you’ve never been”

He explains it was an “ugly” period of his life, and once, while trying to wash up in the sink of a hotel restroom, he was forced to hide from guests for hours until they had left.

“I sat down and started crying, but a voice said, ‘If you keep going, I’m going to take you places you’ve never been,’” Steve Harvey told People.

“It was like God said, ‘Don’t quit, you’re almost there. Not long after, he finally got his big break in the form of a televised gig at the Apollo.”

The Apollo changed Steve’s life and career. In 1993, he became the host of the program Showtime at the Apollo, which he stayed on until 2000. At that point, he also landed his sitcom, The Steve Harvey Show, which became his next career springboard.

Working with Cedric, the Entertainer – who starred as Harvey’s best friend on the show – Steve appeared in the now-classic The Original Kings of Comedy alongside Bernie Mac. The comedy film became a huge success, with Harvey becoming a celebrated comedian all over the US.

After the success of The Original Kings of Comedy, Harvey also got his radio show, The Steve Harvey Morning Show. However, he still wanted to pursue a career in television and comedy and hosted a short-lived reality television show in the mid-2000s. He even tried his hand at acting.