“Sanford & Son” Actor Turned Reverend Reveals Truth About His Secret Dark Past
Demond Wilson, best known for his role as “Lamont” on Sanford and Son, once revealed some very detailed information about what he was secretly doing after the cameras stopped rolling back in the day.
At first glance, Demond Wilson, or shall we say, Reverend Wilson, probably isn’t one that you would expect to have had an illegal past. But just like the Old School saying goes: “You should never judge a book by it’s cover.” And just like we always say here at ILOSM: “Great success cannot come without great failures.” So for that reason, we are proud of Demond for being able to openly and honestly disclose his failures and truths with the public. See what Demond revealed below…
In a prior interview with Jet Magazine, Demond Wilson talked that real talk about his addiction to heroin and his disdain for the show. Here are excerpts from that interview.
Wilson exposes his past heroin addiction and how that affected his role as a father and husband:
Demond Wilson- “I had had it after the third year of Sanford and Son. Nothing was real. When you first come into the newness of things, your first luxury car, your first Rolls Royce, your first Mercedes, your first house. All of those things seem exciting and thrilling.
But after they wear off, you’re faced with reality, and the reality is that your life is empty. I had worked all of those years, gearing myself for stardom but the thing that I failed to do was to have a life. I barely knew my wife and children. I had gotten to a point in my life where I was spiritually low and I’d tried just about everything else…I had fallen away from the Lord.
Before I came to California, I was on heroin. When I came from Vietnam I was on heroin. I did a film in Canada for Warner Brothers called ‘The Dealing’ and I was on it then.”
How he kicked his drug addiction:
“And then I went to California and I did that film with Sidney Portier, ‘The Organization,’ and I think I kicked it right after that. I wasn’t shooting or anything, I was just snorting it,” Demond explains how he transitioned from a drug life to a life of Christianity.
“God spoke to my heart and said ‘What will you do for me?’ and I said ‘Lord, what would you have me do?’ I wanted the covenant, this contract and I signed it with my spirit and my heart.”
He confesses why he was never happy about his work on “Sanford and Son”:
“You can’t say that ‘Sanford and Son’ was dramatic, was serious. It was foolishness. I didn’t watch it then, and I don’t watch it now.”
What is important to Wilson today is of course, his ministry and his family – his wife Cicely and children – Nicole, Melissa, Christopher and Demond Jr.
He said this about his home life:
“It’s the country, the normal lifestyle for children. They are not in that plastic atmosphere of Hollywood.”
Hollywood clearly left a bad taste in Demond Wilson’s mouth. From the outside looking in though, it is hard NOT to notice the fact that had it not been for Sanford and Son, we wouldn’t know ‘Reverend’ Wilson today. In all honesty, it sounds like Hollywood was a much needed gift and curse for Demond Wilson’s career and personal growth. It’s just the game of life – We all have to sacrifice something to gain something, because greatness never comes without a price.
