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Wednesday, March 10, 2010

RIP Corey Haim


LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Actor Corey Haim has died, Access Hollywood has confirmed.

The Los Angeles County Coroner's office confirmed the actor died at 2:15 AM on Wednesday at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Burbank, Calif.

The Los Angeles Police Department said they received a call from the hospital before 4 AM confirming the actor's death.

He was transported from the home he shared with his mother, Judy, in Toluca Hills, Calif. to the hospital.

Ed Winter, LA County Coroner's Office Assistant Chief, told reporters that Haim's mother had called paramedics when her son collapsed in the early morning hours.

"This morning at about 1:30...Corey Haim's mom found him. He got up out of bed and had been feeling ill for the last couple of days. As he got out of bed, he felt a little weak and went down to the floor on his knees. He's had flu-like symptoms. She called paramedics. They responded and transported him to the hospital where he was pronounced [dead] at 2:15 this morning," Winter said.

Authorities found four prescription drug bottles inside the apartment he shared with his mother, but no illegal drugs, according to Winter.

The Canadian-born actor first rose to fame in 1984's "Firstborn," where he starred with Teri Garr, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Robert Downey Jr.

In 1987, the actor the reached the peak of his career in the Joel Schumacher's "Lost Boys," where he hunted vampires with his friend and frequent co-star Corey Feldman. Some of his other box office hits included "Lucas," "License to Drive" and "Dream a Little Dream."

Following his rise to fame, the actor battled drug and alcohol addiction, a dramatic weight gain, a slew of medical issues and was in and out of rehab numerous times.

In a 2004 interview with Britain's The Sun, the actor spoke candidly about the history of his drug use.

"I was working on 'Lost Boy's when I smoked my first joint," he told the British tabloid in 2004. "I did cocaine for about a year and a half, then it led to crack."

A stint in rehab led to an addiction of prescription meds, including stimulants and sedatives such as Valium, the actor claimed.

"I started on the downers which were a hell of a lot better than the uppers because I was a nervous wreck," he told the newspaper. "But one led to two, two led to four, four led to eight, until at the end it was about 85 a day."

In 1997, the actor filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with medical bill debt totalling more than $200,000.

He appeared again with Feldman in 2007 in the A&E reality show, "The Two Coreys," which was cancelled after two seasons. The same year he told Larry King in an interview on "Larry King Live" that he would be a "chronic relapser for the rest of my life."

The actor was poised for a comeback in 2008 when he took out a full-page ad in Variety, saying, "This is not a stunt, I'm back. I'm ready to work. I'm ready to make amends."

In 2009, he appeared with Jason Statham in "Crank: High Voltage."

Haim was 38.

I'm usually pretty snarky about celebrity deaths but for the first time since Michael Jackson I was taken aback a little bit by the death of a star. This time the deceased is former child star Corey Haim. You may remember him as the good looking one from the Corey and Corey 80's sensation. Although we've seen him transition from child star to drug addict to douchebag I prefer to remember him from his better days so here are trailers from my two favorite Corey Haim movies, 'Lucas,' and 'License to Drive.'



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