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five vocations that you used to be able to pay your rent with, but can't any more

I'm an animator, just started, but have made stuff that have been played on tv.
....guess who still lives at home cause prices for a 1 bedroom apartment are insane. 
Technically almost affordable, but would end up broke or in debt within a few months, also on a single income. Choices are either live at home, or get multiple roommates.
Looking back at my parents generation who could get an entire apartment in the city for $400 a month.
Think the difference is how much effort your hobby is to turn it into a profitable business. 
My art is never going to be profitable as it takes me hours but I doubt anyone would pay more than $25 for it. 
But if you have prestige or enough talent to where it maybe takes 20 min you could sell it for $100 and boom. 
This is definitely true with writing as well. It can take you hundreds of hours only for your books to not sell at all. >

I know a lady who does abstract paintings. Spends 20 mins painting in canvas. Waits just long enough for it to dry and brings it to this place and sells it for thousands. It’s like wtf. >

Gotta know your market!  And also know how to network and market your wares.
I tend to like paintings like that and could pay good money if it "speaks" to me. >

This has been true for as long as work has existed as a concept. >

I think it was less true in the past when income inequality wasn't such a problem. I read a great comment here once about how simply learning the arts used to be incentivized because you could earn a solid living or make decent side cash with those skills without having to stress. Nowadays, even artists and creators in professional positions are marginalized and getting paid peanuts, and it's about to get even worse with AI entering the marketplace.
We are hard on the track of completely destroying anyone's reason for living beyond making money just to stay off the streets, if we haven't essentially already. >

yeah in another life i could have been a successful photographer. or science fiction writer. or musician. hell i'd be happy just being a bartender. or work at a radio station. but i just listed five vocations that you used to be able to pay your rent with, but can't any more.