Playwright/ actor Sam Shepard‘s need for speed – and booze!
The Right Stuff star and Pulitizer Prize winner was pulled over by Normal, Illinois cops early Saturday morning exceeding the speed limit – which for Normal was a 30 MPH zone.
Police says the gangly thesp, 65, was going a record setting 46 miles per hour – a far cry from breaking the sound barrier.
Shepard’s blood alcohol level was almost double the legal limit a breath test allegedly revealed.
Cops say the Obie Award winning playwright of True West had been drinking at a local bar before being pulled over.
After posting $300 bail, Shepard who was Oscar nominated for playing Right Stuff speed demon Chuck Yeager, was released from McLean County Jail.
He’s due to return at a later date.