Matthew Perry has revealed that he regularly went to open houses to steal prescription drugs at the height of his drug addiction.
The 53-year-old actor told ABC News anchor Diane Sawyer that he did all kinds of things to feed his 55-pill-a-day habit of Vicodin and avoid withdrawal.
“I had to wake up and realize I had to get 55 of them or I was going to get really sick,” he said during the “Matthew Perry- The Diane Sawyer Interview” television special.
Matthew Perry has revealed that he regularly went to open houses to steal prescription drugs at the height of his drug addiction.
(Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
He continued, “So, I did all kinds of things, a bunch of doctors, fake migraines and everything.”
Matthew Perry reveals ‘dark side’ of addiction journey in new memoir, opens up about near-death experience
“The weirdest thing I’ve ever done is I’ll go to open houses on Sundays and go to the bathroom … at the open house they’ll see what pills are there and steal them,” Perry admitted.
Perry explained that none of the homeowners would suspect the actor of burglary because of his association with Chandler Biggs, his favorite character on the hit show “Friends.”
“Well, there’s no way Chandler’s coming in and stealing from us,” I think they thought, he told Sawyer, 76.
Perry’s sit-down with Sawyer, which aired Friday, comes ahead of the release of his memoir, “Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir.” The book, which chronicles Perry’s struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, will be released on November 1.
Perry told ABC News anchor Diane Sawyer that she “did all sorts of things” to feed her 55-pill-a-day habit.
(David M. Bennett)
Perry “estimated to have detoxed 65 times,” Sawyer said separately, attending 6,000 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and going to rehab 15 times.
Additionally, the “Fools Rush In” star survived 14 surgeries after losing her life three years ago when her colon burst.
A near-fatal medical emergency left Perry in a coma for 14 days, and he spent five months in the hospital recovering.
Perry’s drug addiction began in 1997 when he was prescribed Vicodin after being injured in a jet ski accident. He described taking the pill for the first time, saying it was like honey entering his veins.
However, his drinking problem started much earlier. Perry told Sawyer that he first tasted alcohol when he was 14 years old as a ritual with some of his Canadian friends. After drinking an entire bottle of wine, he said, he was “in heaven”.
“I thought this must be the way normal people feel all the time,” he shared.
By age 18, Perry said, he was drinking every day. After landing the role of Chandler at age 24, Perry said she tried to hide her addiction from the cast and crew.
The actor also revealed that he asked his “Friends” co-star Jennifer Aniston out on a date years ago, but she turned him down.
(Getty Images)
The actor revealed that he met Jennifer Aniston years before they starred in the movie “Friends.” He asks Aniston out on a date, but she declines, saying they should be friends. However, he admitted that he carried a torch for her even when they were working together.
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“Well, how can you not like Jenny? And Courtney [Cox]? And Lisa [Kudrow]?” Perry said. “It made going to work kind of difficult because I had to pretend I didn’t.”
Sawyer noted that she had a hard time keeping Aniston away while they were filming “The Odd Couple.”
“I was like, ‘Three seconds too long? How long…?'” Perry said. “Then I write in the grateful part [of the book] About her letting me do it.”
Sawyer asked about a time when Aniston confronted Perry about his drinking problem, and said the cast knew he was drinking.
“Yes, imagine how terrifying that moment was,” he said. “She’s the one who has reached the most, and I’m grateful to her for that.”
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