'I Looked Like an Asylum Inmate': Nick Nolte Sets Record Straight on Infamous Arrest
Actor and former model Nick Nolte is telling all in his new memoir, “Rebel.”
In the book, the 76-year-old entertainer details his rise and fall in Hollywood — going from being named People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” to a GHB addict with a crude mugshot plastered across media outlets in the U.S.
As reported by Fox News, Nolte was arrested on Sept. 11, 2002, after authorities believed the actor was driving under the influence of either alcohol or narcotics on Pacific Coast Highway.
“I was a mess and driving on the Pacific Coast Highway,” he explained in his memoir. “I’m told six drivers called 911 to report a big sedan weaving on the wrong side of the road.”
Nolte revealed in his book that he took GHB before “going to the gym for a long workout,” a ritual that he had been engaging in for over four years.
“A strong dose made me feel great, yet I knew I was repeating with GHB the addictive cycle I’d been in before,” he wrote.
According to People, Nolte then drove himself to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting near his home, but quickly left after the effects of the drug began kicking in. He then drove his Mercedes onto Pacific Coast Highway where he was pulled over for driving erratically.
Nolte, who was 61 years old at the time, was “drooling” and “completely out of it” after being pulled over by highway patrol, as reported by CBS News.
After Nolte was arrested, he was taken to a hospital to undergo blood tests. Once there, a local police officer reportedly asked the “Prince of Tides” actor if he could take a photo of him.
Nolte agreed to let the cop take the photo under the stipulation that he receive any potential profits from the image.
The photo was snapped and released to the public, creating a media firestorm about the downfall of the once-heralded Hollywood figure.
“It went viral — my hair wild, my expression unsettling, looking like an asylum inmate out for a lark,” he said. “In 1992, People magazine had named me the Sexiest Man Alive, and now, 10 years later, I looked to all the world like a madman.”
The three-time Oscar-nominated actor added that the embarrassing incident was a massive wake-up call for himself.
He was released on bail, and shortly after he entered into a rehab facility, according to People.
“It took thirty days to wean myself off GHB and then I flew home,” Nolte said. “I was a renewed and fortunate man.”
Nolte now lives a much calmer life, clean from drugs and alcohol and helping to raise his 10-year-old daughter Sophie.
“I was just worn out,” Nolte told People. “Just worn out.”
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