Pastime | Episode
Pastime

Michael Douglas

Fresh Air | Oct 05 2026 | 00:44:59

Michael Douglas is one of the most recognizable actors of our time, but in 1987, many still knew him as Kirk Douglas's son. That year, he starred in Fatal Attraction and Wall Street, and his role as Gordon Gekko won him the Oscar for Best Actor. "When I went up and received my Oscar for Wall Street, I thanked my father because I finally felt I was out of his shadow. And those two pictures in that year was when I finally felt I was my own man,” he tells Tonya Mosley. Behind the accolades, Douglas was struggling –- drinking heavily and using cocaine. In his new memoir, One Helluva Ride, Douglas looks back at what his success cost him, and what it finally took to change.

Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new Netflix adaptation of East of Eden. 


The audio version of this story incorrectly states that the 1981 East of Eden miniseries featured Sam Bottoms as Cal. In fact, the actor playing Cal was Timothy Bottoms.


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