ADDISON, Texas – Politics and sports seem to make up most of talk radio these days. But Michael Molthan, a former alcoholic and drug addict, is also attracting an audience there, as well.
For one hour, five nights a week, Molthan scoots up to the microphone at 1190AM to discuss topics most people avoid. “We talk about drug addiction. We talk about alcoholism. We talk about hurts, habits and hang-ups,” he explained.
Molthan grew up in Plano but made a name for himself in Dallas as a luxury home builder. “I didn’t want to build houses anymore. I didn’t want to do real estate anymore,” he said.
Instead, he drank and did drugs and served time. Over the last five years, Molthan got 27 mugshots. “27 mugshots. I’m that guy. I’m that guy I thought I would never be,” he continued.
Between 1190AM and Facebook Live, Molthan hopes his struggle connects with another addict.
“We had a person in Ohio – a mom reached out and she said a mom just watched your show and she handed me a bag of heroin and four needles,” he said.
Dallas attorney Terry Bentley Hill has been a guest on Molthan’s show several times.
“This is the catch. This is the hook. He talks about how his life has changed, how when he found sobriety, when he found the solution, his life has changed,” she explained.
Hill doesn’t discuss the law but rather her own story with his listeners; how addiction exacerbates depression.
Her late husband Danny Hill, who was at the time the District Attorney in Amarillo, committed suicide in front of her. Tragically, nine years later, her youngest daughter Hallie took her own life, as well.
“After Danny and Hallie died, it became my mission to do something with the incredible pain and suffering that I was feeling,” she said.
It’s conversation that makes many uncomfortable but one both Hill and Molthan say needs to be had in hopes of reaching an addict before it’s too late.