Where did Artie Lange go when he disappeared amid battle for sobriety?

Two years have passed since comedian Artie Lange released from prison after the violation control for possession of cocaine and heroin.

For more than a year, Howard Stern’s former aide remained mostly off the grid, which made many fans fear the worst and wonder: Where did he go?

The Post can now reveal that Lange, 53, is doing well as he continues to participate in the intensive drug court program in New Jersey – and he hasn’t forgotten about his loyal supporters.

His attorney, Michael Robbins of West Orange, New Jersey, told The Post that Lange has been sober for the past two and a half years and continues to live at his home in Hoboken.

“He’s been working on completing his drug court program and furthering his career,” Robbins said. “Artie is grateful for the continued support of his friends and of course his fans.”

Having served as an aide to the self-proclaimed King of Media for nearly a decade, Lange is now focusing on her sobriety and now lives with her mother, Judy Lange, in a two-bedroom, two-bathroom condo River that he bought back in 2001 for $615,000, a separate source revealed.

“His mother had severe cataracts. She’s legally blind, so she had to move in with Artie,” the source told The Post.

“Also, she can cook for him and make sure he’s eating right. [You know], Italian Mothers,” the insider quipped.

Fans have been wondering where the former “Crashing” star has gone after a social media hiatus since mid-November 2020, following a nearly eight-month hiatus previously.

But the insider explained that keep awake for Lange was once a full-time job.

“People have to understand… He’s been buying $1,800 worth of cocaine and heroin a day for several years – it has to do something to you mentally when you stop doing it,” the source told The Post.

Cases for individuals in the New Jersey drug court program span more than three years, from the time they join until they complete the program. At any point in time, an individual violates probation or program rules, including testing positive for drugs, which can result in jail time and outright expulsion. drug court.

In March 2020, more than a year after being released from prison, Lange assured fans that he is determined to stay on track for the time being, despite year after year. Struggling with addiction.

“I am not sick and [I’m] do not use (if so I will go to jail). Only frenzied anxiety and [I’m] Fight it hard. In the past, I would just take drugs and go to work (or cancel at the last minute) but I won’t do that now. Instead, I cleared my schedule. I will be back soon. Peace,” he wrote in a March 13, 2020, tweet.

Lange almost two months in prison began in May 2019 before joining a seven-month drug court program in Hudson County, which he admits was what saved his life.

“This time, they kept me away from me longer than ever,” Lange disclosure in a November 2019 interview with Joe Rogan. “I did, like, a two-week bidding. A week of pay in prison,” Lange said. “This time I went to jail for two months, then hit rocks, then went to long-term rehab. And I was locked out of it. ”

Lange credits his mother for keeping him sober.

“I started thinking more clearly and thinking about the consequences, and thinking about my mother,” Lange admitted. “The fact is that my mother is this wonderful Italian woman, who, you know, I think just needs money from me… My old man on the hospital bed said, ‘Take care of your mother.’ As an Italian guy from New Jersey, you think that means money, it means nothing else. So I kept giving her money, not knowing she was worried about me dying over and over again. So I thought about her pain and I said, ‘I can’t do this anymore.’ ”

His legal woes stem from an initial 2017 arrest for possession of cocaine and heroin, though he has struggled with drug for several years.

In May 2019, Stern gave a rare interview with The New York Times Magazine in which he admitted that he love his once best friend but it was time to let him go.

“What is happening to Artie makes me very sad. We lost touch and that was my business,” Stern said. “I passed my fingers to the guy. And it was not a clean stay.

“For years I wished Artie could get some help. I know that a lot of fans want me to talk about Artie and feel I shouldn’t. I will take. I don’t want to do anything that might shake his boat,” Stern continued. “I am very sad to talk about Artie. He is a great contributor. But we had to move on.”

In Lange’s most recent interview with podcast and radio host Nick Di Paolo in November 2020, Lange reveal some things he was trying to stay sober.

“I took it down a few notches,” Lange said. “I went back and kept myself clean and sane, it was like a full-time job. I go to a meeting on Zoom. In the summer they have a number of outdoor AA meetings that I have attended. Gotta worked on the program.

“I just thought I had to step back a bit from what I was doing to make that happen,” Lange continued. “And stay away from prison. Stay away from rehab. But now I’ve been clean for almost two years. It’s another life. “