Lost Boys' star Corey Haim dies at 38

Former 1980s teen movie actor and heartthrob Corey Haim died early Wednesday, authorities said.

Haim, 38, was taken to providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California, where he was pronounced dead at 2:15 a.m. pT (5:15 a.m. ET), Los Angeles County Deputy Coroner Ed Winter said. The hospital is a mile from Haim's apartment.

Corey Feldman, Haim's longtime friend and frequent co-star, said Haim was a wonderful, beautiful, tormented soul.

Haim was in the apartment he shared with his mother, Judy, early Wednesday when he became a little dizzy, he kind of went to his knees in the bedroom, Winter said. His mom assisted him in the bed. He became unresponsive.

His mother called paramedics to the apartment, which is between Hollywood Hills and Burbank, he said.

Video: Haim's last time on Larry King

Video: Haim, Feldman 'best friends'

Video: How did '80s teen heartthrob die?

Video: Haim, Feldman interviewed in 2007

RELATED TOpICS

Corey Haim

Celebrity News

Corey Feldman

Movies

A 911 call came in just before 1 a.m. pT (4 a.m. ET), said police Sgt. William Mann.

Los Angeles police Sgt. Frank Albarran said earlier that Haim's death appeared to be accidental and may have been due to an overdose.

But the cause of death at this time is unknown, Mann said later. He had flulike symptoms before the incident. His mother was giving him various over-the-counter medications.

The deputy coroner said Haim's flulike symptoms had been present for two days.

We found no illicit drugs; however, we did recover four of his prescription meds at the location, Winter said, adding he does not know what those drugs were.

Haim's agent, Mark Heaslip, also told CNN's sister network HLN, We do not think this is a drug overdose. Corey was actually going very clean in his life.

An autopsy, including toxicology tests, will be conducted Wednesday, Winter said. It is likely to be weeks before any conclusions are made public.

Haim had struggled with drug abuse in recent years, but Heaslip said he was attempting to make a comeback and had signed several contracts, including one for a reality show.

Haim was not feeling well Tuesday night and was running a low-grade fever, he said. The actor went into his mother's bedroom and asked her to lie down by him, Heaslip said. He told his mother he was having trouble breathing, and his mother told him to roll on his side, he said. He began to feel better, but at midnight he woke his mother by walking around the bedroom and then collapsed.

Asked if news of Haim's death comes as a surprise, Heaslip said, 100 percent. He said the death could have come as a reaction to medication Haim was taking as part of his sobriety program.

The actor was under the care of his doctor, who visited him Tuesday night, as well as an addictionologist, Heaslip said. An addictionologist is a doctor who specializes in treating addictions.

Haim's mother's condition was horrible, he told HLN. She's a wreck.

Haim's most famous role was in the 1987 movie The Lost Boys in which he appeared with Feldman. Haim played the role of a fresh-faced teenager whose brother becomes a vampire.

In later years, the two friends -- who appeared in eight movies together -- both struggled with drug abuse and went their separate ways. They reunited for a reality show, The Two Coreys, in 2007, but AE Network canceled the program after slightly more than a year.

In a statement issued through his publicist, Feldman described his sadness when he was awakened Wednesday morning with word of Haim's death:

My eyes weren't even open all the way when the tears started streaming down my face, Feldman said. I am so sorry for Corey, his mother, Judy, his family, my family, all of our fans, and of course my son, who I will have to find a way to explain this to when he gets home from school.

This is a tragic loss of a wonderful, beautiful, tormented soul, who will always be my brother, family, and best friend.

We must all take this as a lesson in how we treat the people we share this world with while they are still here to make a difference. please respect our families as we struggle and grieve through this difficult time. I hope the art Corey has left behind will be remembered as the passion of that for which he truly lived, Feldman's statement said.

Did you ever meet Corey Haim? Share your photos, story

In a 2007 interview on CNN's Larry King Live, Haim and Feldman both discussed their battle with drugs. Feldman told King that he had gotten clean, but it took Haim a while longer.

Haim called himself a chronic relapser for the rest of my life.

I think I have an addiction to pretty much everything, he said. I mean, I have to be very careful with myself as far as that goes, which is why I have a support group around me consistently.

He told King that he also had lost more than 150 pounds while getting sober.

I didn't like looking in the mirror anymore, Haim said. I couldn't do it ... See, I hit about, my peak, about 302 [pounds]. ... And now I'm back to 150.

In 2008, Feldman told people magazine that he would no longer speak to Haim until his former co-star got sober. In a clip from The Two Coreys, Feldman and his wife, along with two other former teen stars, called on Haim in an effort to get him to admit he needed help, the magazine said.

The meeting followed an incident in which Haim -- scheduled to film a cameo appearance in a direct-to-DVD sequel to The Lost Boys -- appeared on the set clearly under the influence, people reported.

I don't feel that he's a safe person to have around my wife and child at the moment, for a multitude of reasons, Feldman told people. Haim told the magazine in the August 2008 article that he was currently sober and said, I will always love Corey Feldman, but I lost 105 percent respect for him and his wife.

Christopher Ameruoso, a photographer who lives in the Oakwood Apartments complex, said Wednesday that Haim had been his neighbor for at least a year. He said he last saw Haim two days ago getting into a taxi.

He looked good, he said. He's putting on a lot of weight.

He said Haim sometimes could be seen wandering around the complex, looking for companionship, looking for friends.

Haim was born December 23, 1971, in Toronto, Ontario, according to a biography on his Web site. He made his first television appearance in 1982 on the Canadian series The Edison Twins. His first film role was in the 1984 American movie First Born.

Haim also won rave reviews for his title role in the 1986 film Lucas. Film critic Roger Ebert said of him at the time, If he continues to act this well, he will never become a half-forgotten child star, but will continue to grow into an important actor.

Following The Lost Boys, both Haim and Feldman appeared in License to Drive and Dream a Little Dream.