13 Things You Never Would Have Guessed About Adam Sandler

Adam Sandler is one of the most recognizable faces in comedy. He has given us such epic slapstick comedies as Happy Gilmour, Billy Madison and The Waterboy. My personal favorite is Eight Crazy Nights, which I watch each Christmas season.

Outside of his regular appearances on the big screen, here are 13 things you likely had no idea about Adam Sandler.

1. Adam Sandler and Judd Apatow used to be roommates.

Sometimes you have make a penny stretch into a dollar, and that can mean living with roommates. When they were both trying to make a name for themselves in the entertainment world, Sandler and Apatow were roommates. Sandler slept on a mattress on the floor. Seems like the sacrifices paid off.

2. His first stand-up gig came when he was 17-years-old

Before he was even old enough to drink in the comedy clubs that he was performing in, Sandler took his first shot at comedy as a fresh faced 17-year-old.

3. Who needs to write jokes, he just improvs it on stage.

There is no concrete proof of this, but it has been a long-time rumor that Sandler gets up on stage without prepping any material. If it is true, it gives his performance a real free-flowing feel to it.

4. He actually graduated from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts

Many celebrities have the same story; move out to New York or Los Angeles and grind it out working part-time jobs while trying to realize their dreams. Sandler did this, but he also decided to get his education at the same time as he was working his way through New York's comedy club scene.

5. After graduating from NYU he appeared on MTV's first non-music original program.

The show was called Remote Control. It attempted to blend sketch comedy and trivia in order to bring in an audience. Sandler was best known for his character Stud Boy on the show.

6. Sandler and Alicia Silverstone used to be an item.

At the time that Sandler was filming his epic Happy Gilmour he was romantically linked to Alicia Silverstone, who was also starting to make a real name for herself in Hollywood.

7. Sandler films have made over $1 billion worldwide.

Money talks. You obviously know people who both love and hate Sandler and all of his movies. Regardless, when your movies make over $1 billion across the globe, you can critique the careers of others.

8. He has two English bulldogs.

His one dog Meatball made his film debut in Little Nicky. But Matzoball also got to have his day in the sun as he was a member of Sandler's wedding party. They say dogs are direct reflections of their owners, you decide.

9. Sandler is worth $300 million personally.

It might not seem like much compared to some of the Hollywood bigwigs, but really, think about everything you could do with $300 million. Despite his obscene wealth, Sandler is a down-to-earth guy who doesn't mind looking like it.

10. Sandler was almost cast as Willy Wonka in the Tim Burton re-adaptation of the film.

Sandler ended up going up against Johnny Depp in the final stages of casting auditions. But Burton ended up going with Depp whom he had worked with on numerous other occasions. What would Sandler have been like as the kooky king of candy?

11. There are Y and V trends to almost all his movies.

What do we mean by that? Well most of the characters he plays have names that end in the letter Y (with the exception of Longfellow Deeds) and pretty much all of his character love interests have names that start with the letter V.

12. His father is one of his biggest influences.

Though Sandler's father was not a "funny" man himself, Sandler says that his dad had an epic temper. In moments when his father was losing his cool, a young Adam would use humor to calm his old man down.  

13. And the final one, it's cliche, but, his college professors told him he wouldn't make it in the business.

Haters gonna hate. We have all been told at one time or another that we couldn't, wouldn't, shouldn't or wont, but we've proved them wrong from time to time. Gonna have to say that Sandler should send them holiday cards with pictures of him bathing in money on them.

Which aspect of this list surprised you the most? Let us know.