Douglas: Career came before older son

WASHINGTON, Jan. 22 (UPI) -- Hollywood movie star Michael Douglas admits he put his career before his marriage and fatherhood when he was a younger man.

Douglas, 65, married his first wife Diandra in 1977. They had one son together and divorced in 2000. The "Wall Street" actor married Catherine Zeta-Jones later that year and they have a 6-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son together.

"My career was the most important thing in my life, followed by marriage and children. And it's completely reversed now. I never anticipated starting a family and the joy of raising kids at my age," Douglas told the March/April issue of AARP The Magazine. "I wince when I think I'll be close to 75 when my daughter is 16. I'm not going to be able to physically chase the boys away. ... I think it's easier for me to be a good father. I'm not so concerned about my career ... . I see the confidence my kids have got versus the struggle for confidence that I had or that Cameron might have dealt with."

Asked about his relationship with his 31-year-old son, who is in prison for drug offenses, Douglas admitted: "I'll assume whatever responsibilities I have to. Would it have been better to have been around more? Absolutely. There were absences, and I was no angel. Cameron has a lot of life ahead. He now recognizes his own demons and struggles. He's a tough kid. … Still, he's in a federal prison, and you've got some big, bad boys down there."