LOS ANGELES (AP) — An Arizona man was sentenced to prison for extorting money from "Family Feud" host Louie Anderson by threatening to tell tabloids that the comic asked him for sex.

Richard J. Gordon, 31, of Mesa, Ariz., who pleaded guilty to a federal blackmail charge, was sentenced Monday to 21 months in prison. He will be on probation for three years after his release and must pay $4,000 in restitution to Anderson, Assistant U.S. Attorney David Wright said.

According to court papers, Gordon wrote a 1997 letter to Anderson alleging the comedian approached him four years earlier at a gaming establishment near Los Angeles International Airport.

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