Christopher Lloyd details addiction recovery in new memoir
Actor Christopher Lloyd, 88, recounts his decades-long struggle with cocaine, alcohol, and marijuana and his path to lasting sobriety in a new memoir, offering a personal perspective on long-term recovery.
Christopher Lloyd opened up about his struggles with addiction to cocaine, alcohol, and marijuana during the 1970s and 1980s. The 88-year-old actor's memoir, In My Own Time: A Memoir, published October 27th, details his path to recovery and reflects on his career.
Lloyd describes being hooked on cocaine almost immediately after first trying it. His first use occurred at the Los Angeles location of Joe Allen, where a woman approached him and asked if he wanted to try cocaine. Lloyd and the woman did a couple of lines together. Within a few years of his arrival in Los Angeles, substance use became a regular part of his life. He had initially resisted television work after more than a decade in New York theater but was later offered the role of Reverend Jim Ignatowski on the sitcom Taxi.
A wake-up call and the path to sobriety
A violent episode served as a turning point. After Taxi ended its run in 1983, Lloyd was intoxicated during an argument with his then-girlfriend. He spent the night at his nephew's home in Los Angeles. When he returned the following day, he discovered he had been locked out and began punching windows. Lloyd's next clear memory was of lying on his kitchen floor while paramedics attended to him. He lost enough blood to require plasma.
Lloyd subsequently underwent surgery and physical therapy to restore movement in his injured hand. He entered rehabilitation in 1993 and stayed for five weeks. Years passed before a psychologist helped Lloyd recognize the damage addiction was doing to his life. He writes that his lasting sobriety began on an April 1st some years later, after earlier attempts to stop had not held.
Recovery, reflection, and the memoir
Lloyd's wife, Lisa Loiacono, strongly encouraged him to write his memoir. Other chapters follow his early stage work and films including One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Addams Family, and the Back to the Future trilogy. He also recalled exploring the grounds of his family's Connecticut estate, Waveny, and spending much of his free time with Ricky, the family's German shepherd.
In a recent public appearance, Lloyd looked back on his Taxi audition and the cast's Friday-night parties on the studio lot. He recalled auditioning in the clothes that became part of Reverend Jim's wardrobe. Christopher Lloyd told Michael J. Fox that he and Fox are both in recovery. He said the Taxi cast gathers on Zoom monthly, with Marilu Henner organizing get-togethers that include Danny DeVito, Judd Hirsch, Tony Danza and Carol Kane.
