Liberace's ex-lover Scott Thorson is spared jail time after testing positive for meth Scott Thorson, 54, former lover of Liberace, plagued by drug addiction Thorson pleaded guilty to burglary and identify theft charges in July Star quality: Scott Thorson, the one-time boyfriend of musical legend Liberace was spared jail time after testing positive for meth An ex-lover of Liberace who was the subject of an HBO film on the life of the pianist got a lecture on Wednesday from a judge who said he was not impressed with his 'so-called celebrity status' but again agreed to spare him from prison time after testing positive for methamphetamine in violation of his probation. Scott Thorson, 54, acknowledged in Washoe District Court that he's a drug addict and insisted he's determined to get sober and avoid serving up to 20 years in prison for burglary and ID theft convictions. He said his goal is to write another book on the heels of his 'Behind the Candelabra,' which was used as the basis for the HBO film of the same name that's nominated for 15 Emmy Awards. 'I'm just asking for another chance,' a tearful Thorson told the judge. Getting sober is the most important thing to me. I'm up for 15 Emmys and that is important too. I'm becoming productive and feel good about myself.' 'I can't help who I am. I'm in show business. I attract these cameras,' he said in reference to TV coverage in the courtroom. I want to be sober. In July, Judge Patrick Flanagan sentenced Thorson to eight to 20 years and suspended the sentence on the condition he complete a drug court program. Thorson was in compliance with the program for a month, passing all drug tests while staying with a support group in housing provided at a legal brothel in a neighboring county, his lawyer David Houston said. But as a result of a determination by probation officials that he must reside within Washoe County, Houston said Thorson was forced to move into a cheap downtown hotel in Reno where he relapsed. 'He was living in what I would refer to as a drug-infested area,' Houston said. If you put enough stress on an individual and make things seem helpless you do get a certain result - in this case a relapse. Thorson, who is currently in remission for anal cancer and had to have nasal surgery recently, asked not to be tested so he could take needed medication. Thorson - who now goes by the alias Jess Marlow - has consistently battled drug addiction, but it wasn't until a book he wrote about his life with Liberace was turned into a movie that he received much attention. Behind the Candelabra: Thorson's memoir of his life with Liberace was recently turned into a movie on HBO starring Matt Damon as Thorson to Michael Douglas ' Liberace Thorson was played by Matt Damon opposite Michael Douglas' Liberace in the HBO film 'Behind the Candelabra' The two were together for five years, starting in 1976 when Thorson was just 16 years old. But their relationship ended in a messy break-up. In 1982, Liberace kicked the job-less Thorson, whose drug habits started getting worse, out of his house. Eventually Thorson sued Liberace for $113million, and the pianist settled out of court for $75,000, giving up three cars and two pet dogs as well. Liberace died in 1987 after succumbing to an AIDS-related illness. Deputy District Attorney John Helzer said Thorson, has been trying to capitalize on his fame since he told arresting officers he couldn't afford the bad publicity of going to jail on charges of stealing a credit card from a motel next door to a Reno strip club last year. This past July, Thorson was sentenced to five years of probation after pleading guilty to burglary and identify theft charges. The end of the affair: Thorson dated Liberace for five years starting in 1976 when he was just 16 years old. The two eventually broke up when Thorson's drug habits started getting out of hand His perception of being a celebrity is his biggest wall. He's not a celebrity. He's a story. It's one of accusation and manipulation and failure,' Helzer said. He should go to prison. Flanagan rejected the prosecution's motion to revoke probation and order Thorson to jail but said it would be his last chance. 'I'm not impressed - I don't think anybody is - with this so-called celebrity status,' the judge said. 'You're just like any other addict who has committed a crime against a victim.'