Helping others made Hopkins overcome alcohol addiction

Anthony Hopkins overcame his alcohol addiction by learning to help others, says Clancy Imislund, who gave the piece of advice to the Oscar-winning actor.
Imislund, a former alcoholic who helps the homeless battle their addictions in Los Angeles, has spoken of how he came to Hopkins' aid when he was still coming to terms with life without alcohol after quitting the bottle in the mid-Seventies, reported Daily Express.
"I knew he was an actor but he wasn't as big then as he is now. I'd just been straight a lot longer than him and decided I'd teach him the little technical things to help you get through the problems of everyday life without wanting to take a swig of the strong stuff," said Imislund, 83.

The 'Silence of the Lambs' star went on to join Alcoholics Anonymous and it was there that he met Imislund, who offered him a piece of advice that ensured he would not fall off the wagon.
"The thing with alcoholism is that it makes you very self-obsessed, it's all 'me, me, me'. Put 10 guys in a room and, by next week, maybe six will be gone. But I could tell Tony really wanted to stick with it. So I told him if he really wanted to help himself, the only way to do it was to help others," said Imislund.

Hopkins, now 72, went on to become a volunteer at the Midnight Mission. Each Christmas he hands out presents to the homeless and has even taken time out to teach free acting classes.