And Then You Go and Spoil It All Quiz

Answer: Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp (1963) was 23 when he bewitched viewers in the role of Officer Tom Hanson on the new American FOX network's "21 Jump Street". He stayed for four of five seasons (1987 to 1990), playing an undercover police officer investigating crime in teen arenas. Depp wanted to act with Frederic Forrest, Jr. (Captain Richard Jenko), but Forrest was replaced in season two. Finding his teen idol status "irritating", Depp wanted a serious film role, so he was released from his contract. Depp then starred in the movie "Edward Scissorhands" (1990) a breakthrough role and Golden Globe nomination which set the stage for a new status--one of the world's most famous and well-paid movie stars. "21 Jump Street"? It ran repeats.

Answer: Glee

Canadian actor Cory Allan Michael Monteith (1982-2013) played high school quarterback Finn Hudson on the FOX hit show "Glee" until early in season five (2009 to July 2013). He won four awards and garnered six nominations in his brief career, including People's Choice Award, Favorite TV Comedy Actor.

His sweet and naive character sang, danced and wooed two girls, but on July 13, 2013 at age 31, Monteith died of a heroin and alcohol overdose. Shortly after, creator Ryan Murphy announced that "Glee" would end in March 2015. Twenty-six million viewers tuned in for a single 2011 show, eight million saw season four in 2012, but for season five, in which Monteith died, there were only 4.5 million viewers.

The show won 32 Emmy's, nine Golden Globes and many other awards.

Answer: Joffrey Baratheon

King Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson) met a horrible and frothy end when he drank poisoned wine at his own wedding. Though a "vicious idiot" his demise at age 19 put the futures of his sister and uncle, and the rest of the Baratheons, into dangerous chaos. Irishman Gleeson (born 1992) starred in four seasons of "Game of Thrones" (2011-2014), and was nominated for Best TV Villain and We Love to Hate You awards.

When he retired he told "Entertainment Weekly" he'd been acting since he was a kid and it was fun recreation for him.

He wasn't interested in acting as a profession. One hopes it wasn't the gruesome beheading of upstanding foes that spoiled his enthusiasm. Gleeson planned to finish his last year at college.

Answer: John Ritter

It was a tremendous shock and sadness when gifted comedian John Ritter (1948-2003) died at age 54 of a tear in his aorta. He'd completed three episodes of season two for "8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter", a popular ABC sitcom (2002-2005). Ritter played a father (Paul Hennessy) with, yes, eight strict rules for dating daughter Bridget (Kaley Cuoco). Creator Tracy Gamble tried to incorporate Ritter's death into the show, but the Nielsen ratings slipped from 42nd to 94th, and the show died. Ritter was the son of country singer Tex Ritter, and had two actor sons, Tyler and Jason, as well as two daughters.

He debuted at age 23 (1971) and appeared in almost 50 films and nearly 100 TV shows before, you'll forgive me for saying, his goose was cooked.

Answer: George Clooney

George Timothy Clooney (born 1961 in Kentucky) played Dr. Doug Ross on NBC's "ER" (1994-2009) until season five, when Ross was let go for assisting a death. Ross had rocky relationships, but he was heroic and smart. He dated nurse Carol Hathaway (Julianna Margulies) who quit after season six. Ross and Hathaway were on the "TV Guide" Best TV Couples of All Time list. Both actors did cameos on "ER" in its next nine seasons. Ross was listed in Bravo's 100 Greatest TV Characters, as well as Best Doctor and Hottest Doctor on multiple lists. Clooney left "ER" for a career in film. By 2012 Clooney and Walt Disney were the only people ever nominated in six different Academy Award categories.

In Clooney's case the "spoils" are abundant, and abundantly shared.

Answer: Mandy Patinkin

American actor Mandy Patinkin (born 1952) made Inigo Montoya famous in the movie "The Princess Bride". His role as surgeon Jeffrey Geiger on TV's "Chicago Hope" won him awards, but he was "spoiled" and badly behaved on set, he said later. He left in 2000 after just two seasons.

He then starred in "Criminal Minds" as FBI profiler Jason Gideon (2005-2007), but left without notice again, saying the brutal violence was "destructive" to his well being. He feared he was banned from TV, but in 2011 he landed a starring role as Saul Berenson, the CIA's division chief for the hit show "Homeland", where colleagues said they loved working with him. Patinkin attended the Juilliard School of arts and music, and was seasoned as a theater actor, comedian, singer and musician.

Answer: Rob Lowe

One-time bad boy Rob Lowe left "The West Wing" (1999-2006) in 2003 during season four because he didn't get a raise, and he felt "marginalized" when the focus shifted to Martin Sheen (President Josiah Bartlett). Creator Aaron Sorkin left the NBC political drama soon after Lowe. "The West Wing" suffered another blow when the deeply admired John Spencer (playing Leo McGarry) died December 2005, essentially ending the award-winning show.

Other actors who left their shows in a huff include Zach Braff of "Scrubs", David Duchovny from "The X-Files" and David Caruso of "NYPD Blue". Caruso left after just four episodes, upset about salary like Lowe, but when his plans to become a movie star failed, Caruso returned to TV in the very successful "CSI: Miami".

Answer: Charlie Sheen

Actor Charlie Sheen (born Carlos Estevez) was killed off as the hedonistic Charlie Harper on the CBS TV show "Two and One Half Men", following Sheen's very public meltdown due to severe addictions and a suggested bipolar disorder. He was fired in 2011 after he decried producer Chuck Lorre and called co-actor Jon Cryer names.

Sheen went into rehabilitation, while Ashton Kutcher (from "That 70s Show") replaced him as the highest paid actor on TV. The show earned both higher viewership and more awards with Kutcher on board.

In 2012 Angus T. Jones (who played Cryer's son Jake) converted to Christianity, called the show "filth" and wanted out. In 2014 Sheen proposed to former adult film star Brett Rose, and starred in "Anger Management", which lasted two seasons.

Answer: Steve Carell

American comedian Steve Carell (born 1962) played the endearing and inept manager Michael Scott at NBC's mockumentary "The Office" from 2005 until mid-season seven, 2011. The first season rated poorly but after Carell's hit movie "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" (2005) ratings soared. Carell never received an Emmy for "The Office" though the show won 42 of them (2005-2013).

He did win a "Favorite Comedy Actor" and a Golden Globe. "'The Office' kinda sucked after Steve Carell left", said Rainn Wilson (Dwight Schrute), one of the abandoned cast members who went to the producers to ask they end the show. Carell went on to become a director, producer, writer and voice artist.

Answer: Dan Stevens

Audiences were heartbroken when Englishman Dan Stevens (Matthew Crawley) decided he was done with his role as the love of Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery) on the highest rated drama in PBS history, "Downton Abbey". Accordingly, in the 2012 season three Christmas special Crawley met his demise as he was racing home to announce the birth of his first child. Perhaps surprising everyone, the season four "Downton Abbey" premiere broke viewership records for both the UK and US, though it seems that viewers never forgave Dan Stevens. Stevens told the "Today" show in 2014 he had to apologize to upset people on the street, "Almost every day". Stevens spent 2014 with a second baby, narrated books and shows, and appeared on Broadway as a gold digging con wooing an heiress for her money.