Always be with people who support you and who surround you with positive attitudes, that's really the most important thing.
And for nine months of my life, and only nine months of my life, I experimented with coke.
And in a time when people were not sophisticated about drug use.
And of course, you know, if you look at Richard Pryor, he certainly ended up in a situation where he put himself on fire.
And the thing is, your movie, your last film, and the films that you have made have been films that in incorporated the secular audiences as well as the Christian audiences.
And there is no way that I would have looked at a 43 year - this has been a 43 year career for me.
And you and I in Las Vegas started in '63 and '64, American acts were not getting any air play. And so, I had to find a way to make a living.
Are they going to be there? Is anybody coming?' And then they're turning away people because it's sold out.
As I say in the book I am Halfway to Paradise.
Because you realize that all of the success, all of what is bestowed on you through this thing, the media, hit records is really a small sweat bead on your back compared what you can do for people if you bring the message of the Lord.
Branson remains my home, but I no longer have a theater there, I'm on the road about 250 day out of the year.
But a friend who doesn't put any pressure on you and doesn't have any expectations on you other than earning each others' trust and working toward earning that trust is really the most important, I think, element in any relationship.
But when you talk about the 16-18- hour days and the record producer wants you here; the television producer wants you there; the guy who's doing the PR wants you here, and your wife wants you home.
By the time I was, you know, in my 20s, I had a find a job when a mutual friend of ours, when Paul McCartney, we saw him together.
Everybody has that new time in their life when they are the new act and hot.
Freddie was one of those brilliant, brilliant, brilliant comedians.
I am 58 years old and this book is about all 58 years of my life.
I come out of the '70s. That was a rugged decade because I think people forget that there was no real understanding of drug use.
I figured it was a one hit wonder situation. And I wasn't about to jeopardize my future in an executive capacity, you know.
I had a braking system, which was my family and my upbringing. I knew from them and when things were bad, I'd think of them, that's when I'd put the brakes on.
I hate reading stories where people put the blame on everyone but themselves.
I have a pretty good memory bank.
I only used cocaine for nine months of my life.
I thank God for the good blessings he's given me, but the fact of the matter is that I've had my choices.
I wanted people reading the book who were in a similar situation to know that there is always a way out. It's not hopeless.
In the book, I talk about BOB HOPE because he had a prophetic sense about this song.
It was a drug period. Here I am, to this day I've never - I don't drink, never have, never smoked grass, but there I was doing cocaine.
Low and behold, not only was it a hit, it changed my life and became the signature theme song for me.
Most people have a forget factor of about two hours, and I'm still hanging in there - still doing it.
No one realizes how much emotional drain this business is.
Not working in Branson has allowed me to do things like the movie with Billy Bob Thorton and to write the book and to go into the studio again and record some of the material I've been writing.
Originally, which is interesting Carman, is the guys in Atlantic City in one of the casinos came down and saw the show in Branson, and in Branson, it was a very successful show but it really fit the area and there was never a question about it.
Progressive rock was happening.
So right now when I do a show I know what I am doing, and I have the same enjoyment now as I did when I had the dream.
That moment in your career only comes once and you're probably not as good in your craft until you get to the point in your career where you say this is my 43rd year.
The Barnum song I haven't done in quite a while.
The moment you get into a circle of people who look to bring you down and they enter into your circle with a whole lot of negatives, whatever it is, even if they start throwing their own negatives at you, it's time to walk on.
The only reason I look forward to going out back stage after that show is not only to meet everybody, but I know that I'm guaranteed some Oreo cookies.
The significance of Branson in my life is that I began my theater in Branson in 1993 and it remains my home base.
We didn't have the knowledge of drugs as we do today.
Well, you know, you don't - many times in this business, you walk into success.
Well, you know, you're doing 16 hour days on those variety shows. 16 hours a day, every day. I was involved in much too much.
What nine months of using the stuff can do is ruin my career, ruined my decision making, ruined my marriage, ruined my self respect, ruined my relationship with my audience, and I lost my television show.
When I was working for CBS, I was working for Clive Davis in 1966.
You can like somebody, you could even love somebody, but you have to work at trusting somebody and you've got to earn that trust.
You don't write a book to show off.
You know, half empty, half full, life is just - is always offering that to you.
You know, I thought I was probably the youngest oldie but goodie that ever lived.
Your upbringing all plays a part in recovery.
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