Hollywood Henderson Celebrates 40 Years of Sobriety

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THE BIG DOG
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This is a great article on Thomas Henderson. I highly encourage everyone to read the entire piece. He talks about many things including Richard Pryor, befriending notorious Charles Manson “family” member Charles “Tex” Watson in prison and dating Anita Pointer of the Pointer Sisters!

Hollywood Henderson Celebrates 40 Years of Sobriety With Harrowing Tales, and Some Funny Ones With Richard Pryor, Too​

Thomas 'Hollywood' Henderson's cocaine- and alcohol-fueled binges cost him his NFL career, and he didn't expect to live to 40; instead he literally won the lottery

Published 11/16/23
Christian Red

The answer to the question is delivered in the third person.

“Thomas Henderson is doing fine,” the former Dallas Cowboys linebacker nicknamed “Hollywood” told The Messenger in a recent phone interview from his Florida home, which coincided with his 40th anniversary of sobriety.

Henderson, 70 now, says he is 30 years older than the age he thought he would reach before death.

“I am positive I wouldn’t have made 40-years-old at the rate of my addiction,” said Henderson. “Whenever I reach an anniversary, I really count the days after that, because I have to be reminded that recovery from drug abuse, from alcohol abuse, is a one-day-at-a-time …”

He pauses, and doesn’t provide an end to the sentence. Those references to substance abuse hark back to the Hollywood Henderson era of hard living, a stretch that includes his professional football playing days as a member of “America’s Team,” the Dallas Cowboys.

Read here: https://themessenger.com/sports/hol...ryor?utm_source=onsite&utm_medium=latest_news

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Hollywood Henderson was fired by the Dallas Cowboys and
spent 28 months in prison before he got sober. He still is.
 

Flamma

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I'm really happy for the dude. My father couldn't overcome it, he died at 53. But he helped me. He's the reason I stayed away from drugs. Having to watch that train wreck.

I loved Henderson. He always cracked me up. From the time he was smiling, waving we're number 1 while we're getting our butts kicked, to the time he answered why he was wearing sunglasses inside. He always cracked me up. To this day I sometimes wear my sunglasses inside hoping someone asks me why I'm doing it. Just so that I can give that classic answer.
 

RS12

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If you are on FB he is a good follow. Posts frequently and interesting photos.
 

Plankton

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His two books, Out Of Control and In Control, are great reads. Henderson was really in the pits of addiction, and the likelihood of emerging from a hole that deep is not high. It took a lot of strength and commitment to be able to enter recovery and remain there. The jail stint really helped straighten him out. Good on him.
 

mrmojo

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My favorite player back in the day, Out of Control is great read. Addiction is Bi***, from the absolute bottom to where he is now is an amazing story. A generational talent and a cautionary tale of how it can be all taken away by making wrong choices. Glad he overcame and continues to help others.
 

Cowboy_svt

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glad for him, watched a doc on the doomsday defense and the interviews with him really showed how much he regretted how much that affected him when he played. Happy hes still keeping it up.
 

Pass2Run

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My favorite player back in the day, Out of Control is great read. Addiction is Bi***, from the absolute bottom to where he is now is an amazing story. A generational talent and a cautionary tale of how it can be all taken away by making wrong choices. Glad he overcame and continues to help others.
Yeah, having struggled with it myself in my youth, watched at least one of his videos in court-mandated treatment. Coming up on 20 years for me, thank goodness.
 
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