In this turbulent economy, even the rich and famous are not immune to the same struggles people face every day in San Diego and across the country. Many of us did not see the economic downturn coming. We experienced falling housing values, depleted retirement accounts and unforeseen drops in income. Many people who started business ventures were simply victims of bad timing.

"We spent too much, too fast." That is how former William Moses described the business venture that led to him and his wife, Patricia Kluge, to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection.

Their bankruptcy petition lists between $1 million and $10 million in assets. But, the petition also indicates that the couple owes creditors as much as $50 million. Kluge and Moses invested heavily in a 776-acre vineyard. They had dreams of making a world-class wine in the U.S. However, those dreams came at the cost of investing at least $44 million into the business.

In order to make up for a shortfall in their finances, Moses and Kluge have made many recent trips to the auction block to sell heirlooms and antiques. Many of the items can be traced back to Kluge's late ex-husband, billionaire John Kluge. They sold diamonds, statues, paintings and ancient Chinese artifacts. They even tried to sell their mansion for $100 million before slashing the price to $50 million. Eventually, Bank of America foreclosed on the property for $15 million.

Just as their winery was beginning to gain prominence, the recession struck. Sales plummeted, they began to miss payments, and they eventually defaulted on their loans. The vineyard and winery were purchased at a foreclosure sale in April for $6.2 million by none other than Donald Trump.

Even with all the sales of their assets, their debts now vastly exceed their assets. In the bankruptcy process, most of their remaining assets will be sold off to pay their creditors in exchange for a discharge of their debts.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, "Socialite and Wine Maven Files for Bankruptcy," Jacqueline Palank, 6/21/2011