London, May 24 (IANS): Veteran Hollywood actor Al Pacino says he doesn't "remember much" of the 1970s.

The "Godfather" actor has opened up about struggling with the attention he received in the wake of the blockbuster's release in 1972.

"I was having difficulty with all the attention," he explained.

"I was a drinker, for sure, my career was exploding in the Seventies and, I’m sorry, but I don’t remember much of the Seventies,” mirror.co.uk quoted Pacino as saying.

"Now when I come to think about it, I don’t remember much of the Eighties either," he added.

The 75-year-old “Scent of a Woman” star says he hasn't had a drink in 30 years and credits his drama teacher Charlie Laughton -- who he calls "the most influential" person in his life -- for changing his ways.

"He was the one who said to me, ‘Al, I’m not asking you to stop or do anything, but to be aware that you are actually drinking and taking stuff’. That awareness started and a year or so later, I decided to give this stuff up. It saved my life,” he told The Sun.