Liberace's Ex Sentenced To Prison

Scott Thorson, who was played by Matt Damon in HBO's Liberace biopic  Behind The Candelabra, has been sentenced to 8-20 years in prison for failing drug tests while on probation for identity theft.

Washoe District Judge Patrick Flanagan sentenced Scott Thorson on Wednesday after a string of bad drug tests capped by his failure to show up at a court-ordered treatment facility. Flanagan originally suspended the prison sentence in July and gave Thorson a second chance in September after testing positive for methamphetamine, but he failed tests twice in October and again on Nov. 1. He was arrested Nov. 19 after violating an order to enter an inpatient treatment facility in Reno two weeks earlier, court records show. Thorson, 54, whose real name is Jess Marlow, had admitted he was an addict but insisted he was determined to get sober when he tearfully appealed to the judge in September to spare him from prison. "I’m just asking for another chance,” Thorson said, explaining he was dealing with his newfound celebrity stature.” “I can’t help who I am,” he told the judge at the time. “I’m in show business. I attract these cameras.” Flanagan said it would be his “last chance.”

HBO's movie was based on Thorson's 1997 book of the same name, which recounted his five years as Liberace's boyfriend. Last week the film won the Golden Globe award for Best Television Movie.