Former «Goodfella» Henry Hill says jail saved his life

Henry Hill, the former mobster immortalized in the movie "Goodfellas", says his current jail term saved his life. Hill, played by Ray Liotta in Martin Scorcese's gangland classic, is appearing in a new documentary, "Bullets Over Hollywood," airing Friday on the Encore cable TV network.

Narrated by Paul Sorvino, the film examines the appeal of gangster movies and real-life mobsters' curious relationships with the films.

Hill was living in Nebraska with his wife and working as a chef _ he recently began producing his own "Sunday Gravy" marinara sauce _ when police said glass tubes containing meth residue were found during a search of Hill's luggage at the North Platte Regional Airport.

He said alcohol was the root of his problems. Jail "actually saved my life because I was getting very sick," the 62-year-old said. "I was given a second chance." Hill sought refuge in the witness protection program after testifying against his former bosses in New York. But he was kicked out of the program for repeated trouble with the law, the AP reported.

He showed up for a pre-sentence meeting with a probation officer with a blood-alcohol level of 0.343 percent _ more than four times Nebraska's legal driving limit of 0.08 percent. A.M.