Switch4Good: 267 - Actor Ed Begley Jr. Overcomes Addiction, Survives Charles Manson, and Kicks Parkinson’s Ass

267 - Actor Ed Begley Jr. Overcomes Addiction, Survives Charles Manson, and Kicks Parkinson’s Ass

Jan 31, 2024

Today’s exciting guest is a pioneer whose name is synonymous with environmental advocacy – he’s truly the godfather of celebrity environmental activists. In fact, he’s been fighting for the planet for 53 years, and he really practices what he preaches.

Ed Begley Jr. came to prominence as Dr. Victor Ehrlich in the groundbreaking hit series St. Elsewhere, which earned him six consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations and a Golden Globe nomination. He has appeared in high-profile films like Goin’ South, Best in Show, Pineapple Express, and hit television shows like Curb Your Enthusiasm, Arrested Development, Better Call Saul, and as college professor Dr. Grant Linklater in Young Sheldon.

Today, this acting icon with a passion for protecting our ecosystem has joined us to discuss his revealing and humorous memoir To the Temple of Tranquility… And Step On It, his on-the-set adventures, his struggles with addiction, his health journey, and his extraordinary commitment to our planet.

“People at that point, after I’d been stabbed and found a body in the trash, all this other stuff that happened, people were starting to say what I really wanted them to say when I thought about it later. ‘Poor Ed. All this stuff that’s happened to him. You know what? I don’t blame him for drinking. I don’t blame him. What he’s been through with his mother, finding it out that way, and all this stuff. Let him drink. Let him drink as much as he wants, for God’s sake.’ That was heaven to me that I now had a free pass in my mind to drink more. And, of course, it didn’t work out that way. There’s a price to be paid for that kind of addiction. And I paid for it. For as long as I could tolerate it. One day I couldn’t.” - Ed Begley Jr.

What we discuss in this episode:

- His childhood growing up in Hollywood.

- What inspired Ed to become an actor?

- What was behind Ed’s addictions, and how his addictions affected his life and career?

- How his gambling addiction put his life in peril.

- What he went through while trying to get sober.

- What inspired Ed to become vegan, and his tips for aspiring vegans?

- Treatments he’s undergoing for Parkinson’s.

- What inspired him to commit to being an environmentalist, and what measures he’s taken to make the environment better?

Resources:

- Begley Living: https://begleyliving.com/

- His book: To the Temple of Tranquility...And Step On It!: A Memoir - https://www.amazon.com/Temple-Tranquility-Step-Memoir/dp/0306832100/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2IX4WD45EUXR4&keywords=to+the+temple+of+tranquility&qid=1706485157&s=books&sprefix=to+the+temple+of+tranquility%2Cstripbooks%2C141&sr=1-1