What is wrong with this guy?

Mel Gibson grew jittery and weird during an interview with the Los Angeles Times and, 19 minutes into it, ...

Aw, let's let Geoff Boucher tell it:

Mel Gibson took a deep breath, shook his head and stared down at his palms. "I just can't do this. You've got me at a disadvantage." The movie star, his voice a croak, was a mere 19 minutes into an interview, but it was clear there was no way he was going to make it to 20.

"I'm coming rapidly to the conclusion that right now, today, my brain cannot function. Honestly? I'm six days off the cigarette. You're looking at someone who's having a pretty bad withdrawal from a 45-year habit."

The question that sent the jittery Gibson on his way out of the room was about the cultural riptides that await anyone who brings religion into the modern public life of Hollywood. "I'm not running away from it. I want to give you a fair trot. I like where you're coming from with these questions. I just feel ill-equipped to answer."

These are difficult days to be Mel Gibson, with or without nicotine.

You may recall that I posted a clip the other day that showed how Gibson reacted when a reporter, who happened to be Jewish, broached the subject of Gibson's return to acting for the first time since he got arrested in 2006 for drunk driving and then flew into an anti-Semitic tirade. Gibson grew testy, leaned forward and asked: "Do you have a dog in this hunt?"

That sounded to some like Gibson was asking: "Are you a Jew?"

Surely these types of questions don't come as a surprise to him?

What? Did the guy think he could do round after round of media interviews without anyone asking questions?

By the way, the movie Gibson is promoting is titled Edge of Darkness.

Given the scary side he can't keep hidden, the title sounds appropriate. But Edge of Sanity might be better.