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'Grease' actor Jeff Conaway has died
Actor Jeff Conaway, who was in the TV series "Taxi" and the movie "Grease," died Friday morning from pneumonia, his manager said.
Conaway, 60, suffered from pneumonia and sepsis in recent weeks and had been in a medically-induced coma in an Encino, California, hospital for two weeks, manager Phil Brock said.
His family surrounded Conaway in his hospital room Thursday afternoon when he was taken off life support, Brock said.
"He was the consummate performer and entertainer," Brock said. "We're thankful his struggles are over, but we know he will be missed by legions of fans worldwide."
Conaway's struggle with alcohol and drug addiction was chronicled in 2008 on the TV reality show "Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew."
Dr. Drew Pinsky, who treated Conaway for substance abuse, posted a Twitter message Friday after learning of Conaway's death.
"I'm saddened to report he has succumbed to his addiction, thus far we have no evidence of an intentional overdose, rather this is the natural history of prescription drug addiction, pneumonia, septic shock, etc," he tweeted.
Initial reports that Conaway suffered a drug overdose were inaccurate, a source with knowledge of his medical condition said last week. However, his use of drugs caused him not to realize how ill he was, keeping him from getting treatment for pneumonia until it was too late, the source said.
Source: CNN