James Corden, the new host of CBS's The Late, Late Show has seen success before, and it almost killed him. If not for the prayers of his Salvation Army parents, he might have drowned in an abyss of drunkenness, carnality and spiritual oblivion.
From the UK across the pond to America, James Corden has become quite the success. He is the English actor, producer, comedian, singer, writer, and television host. He has won both a Tony Award and a British Comedy Award.
Before he settled down, married Julia Carey, and started a family, James went through a year of drunken binges and one-night stands.
He could barely recognize himself.
"I'm sure if I'd surrounded myself with the people who cared about me I might have behaved differently." he said in an interview with Digital Spy.
"My dreams had come true," he said in an interview recalling his 2008 destruction, "I'd scored that goal but when I ventured beyond the posts to retrieve the ball, not only could I not find it, it was foggy and I lost my way."
"I didn't understand that with such success under my belt, the expectation would be so much greater," Corden said.
In an interview with The Sun he recalled his time of deep depression when his parents came to visit him "out of the blue."
"They sat on the tiny two-seater sofa and I sat on the floor. We didn't have any milk," he said, "I had like half a bottle of vitamin water in the fridge and half a little chocolate bunny."
"I was just talking to the floor really."
"I felt embarrassment that they were seeing me like this, so embarrassed about so many things — about the way I'd behaved or acted at points over that seven or eight-month period."
That's when his Salvation Army father walked to were he was, put his arms around him and said, "You've just got to get through this, son."
"I started to cry. Just as you do when your dad hugs you and you are 30," he said.
His dad said, "I'm going to say a prayer for you."
"Every tear that left my eyes made me feel a little lighter... I have no idea how long we stayed there, but it felt like a lifetime," Corben remembered.
"When they left, Dad said, 'You've so much to be thankful for James. I know it's been a tricky year, but you can't carry on like this'."
And he didn't.
Today, he is a household name in America and the UK known for his humor and wit. He is most famously known for "Carpool Karaoke" when he takes celebrities for a car ride, signing their hearts out. He's had many guests on his show including One Direction, Chewbacca Mom, Gordon Ramsay, and Adele to name a few.
You can read more about James Corden in his autobiography, May I Have Your Attention Please?
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