'Hollywood's most successful dealer in history' reveals star-studded career
What's the story
Leonard Lee Buschel, who has been dubbed "one of Hollywood's most successful dealers in history," recently opened up about his life and career selling drugs to the biggest stars.
Speaking to DailyMail, he revealed that he had been hooked on marijuana since his teenage years.
"Suddenly my life went from black and white to color," he said about his first experience with the drug.
Star connections
Buschel's drug-dealing business brought him in contact with stars
Buschel's drug-dealing business brought him in contact with some of the biggest stars and cultural icons of the 1970s and 1980s. His clients included John Belushi and Richard Pryor.
He sold drugs to dealers who then sold them to these iconic figures.
"I knew that I had found a friend for life, a tool for living, the key to the magic kingdom," he said about his first experience with marijuana.
Family ties
Buschel was also friends with Robert Downey Sr.
Buschel was also a close friend of Robert Downey Sr. until the latter's death in 2021.
It is rumored that Downey Sr., who battled his own addictions, introduced his son, Robert Downey Jr., to marijuana at a young age.
"Robert Jr got his first joint at age six from his father," DailyMail reported.
However, he eventually got sober in 2003 after serving time for drug possession and other charges.
Pursuit of pleasure
'I only made like $1,00,000 a year...'
Buschel admitted that his life became a constant quest for "love, sex, or the Benjamins."
He claimed to be the most successful dealer because he never got caught.
"I only made like $1,00,000 a year [the equivalent of closer to $3,00,000 today], but at that time, that was enough to live on and raise a child and send them to a good school," he said.
Health struggles
Now sober for 30yrs, he advises others to grow up
Buschel also shared his harrowing experiences with drugs, including a catastrophic asthma attack and a blood vessel rupture from sneezing.
Despite these close calls, he didn't get clean until four days after being released from the hospital.
After 26 years of daily marijuana use and 13 years of cocaine use, he finally sought rehab.
Now sober for 30 years, he advises others still smoking marijuana to "grow up."