5 days Ago By TMZ Staff
Tim Matheson says he's lucky he never got too big into cocaine ...
saying he played hard -- but, he worried too much about how the white stuff would affect his work to get addicted. The star of "Animal House" spoke with Page Six about his new memoir, "Damn Glad to Meet You" -- a reference to a line his character says to prospective pledges in the iconic college fraternity film -- and, he explains that because he was a working actor, he was afraid of overindulging in coke. Basically, Matheson says he wasn't a star and lived paycheck to paycheck .
.. and, he was acutely aware he could lose his income unless he continued to perform well.
That said, Tim says he didn't completely shun the stuff ...
but, he didn't use it as much as some of his contemporaries who were further up the callsheet. One of those contemporaries ..
. John Belushi -- who died of an overdose of cocaine and heroin in 1982 at just 33 years old. Matheson says part of the problem is that everyone in his generation was saying cocaine wasn't all that bad for you .
.. obviously, not the case.
TM's gone on to have quite the career since "Animal House" ...
taking parts in "The West Wing," "Hart of Dixie," "Fletch," "Batman: The Animated Series," "Black Sheep," "Van Wilder," and "Virgin River." Drug addiction probably would've limited his career credits ..
. and, Matheson's thanking his lucky stars he never fell into it..
