Hollywood legend Jack Nicholson has broken his long silence on marijuana. In an interview with the the Daily Mail, the 73-year-old Nicholson says he still smokes pot:
"I don’t tend to say this publicly, but we can see it’s a curative thing. The narcotics industry is also enormous. It funds terrorism and – this is a huge problem in America - fuels the foreign gangs. More than 85% of men incarcerated in America are on drug-related offenses. It costs $40,000 a year for every prisoner.
"If they were really serious about the economy there would be a sensible discussion about legalization."
The three-time Oscar winner who originally became famous for his roles in Easy Rider (see Nicholson holding a joint in the photo above and smoking one in the clip below) and Five Easy Pieces says he doesn't party like he used to. "Contrary to opinion, however sated I got, I always looked after myself," Nicholson explains. "I’ve woken up in trees, I’ve woken up almost hanging off cliffs, but I’ve always known how to sort myself out. I stayed up late, but I slept in late, too. I always believed in taking care of myself. There was always a discipline within my partying structure. I’ve never kept a camera waiting.
"My life has changed," he goes on. "I don’t enjoy the things I used to so much. I don’t go out to nightclubs, I don’t like clubs any more. I don’t go out raging, looking out for women; now it’s just a game that isn’t worth the candle. The last three times I’ve been in New York filming, I didn’t leave my hotel room for one single night. People won’t believe that, but it’s true. But you adjust your life to your circumstances, and I can spend a lot of time on my own. I think of myself as social, but my friends are always telling me, 'Jack, you need to get out more.'"
Nicholson is currently co-starring in How Do You Know with Owen Wilson, Reese Witherspoon and Paul Rudd.
