psychiatrist, Dr. William Leader, claiming that Leader prescribed him a combination of prescription drugs that are lethal when combined with alcohol. Douglas asserted that Leader, who had been treating Douglas for his drug addictions for ten years, failed to consider his alcohol problem when he prescribed Vicodin, Klonopin, and Xanax. Douglas claimed the drugs caused him to feel suicidal and also caused an episode of cardiac arrest which led him to require constant care and hospitalization. Douglas sought $50,000 in damages from Leader. Weeks before his death, Douglas was back in a rehab center in upstate New York. His parents reportedly visited him and gave him a tough love ultimatum regarding his drug use. During an appearance on The Early Show in 2009, Kirk Douglas told interviewer Julie Chen that he and his wife had taken Eric to "20 rehab centers" over the years and that "nothing helped". Death On July 6, 2004, a maid found Douglas's body in his Manhattan apartment. An autopsy and toxicology report later determined that his death was caused by "acute intoxication" from the combined effects of alcohol, tranquilizers, and painkillers. Douglas's death was ruled accidental. He is interred in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery, Westwood, Los Angeles, California. His father was later interred with him in 2020 and his mother was interred with them in 2021. Filmography References External links 1958 births 2004 deaths 20th-century American male actors Accidental deaths in New York (state) Alcohol-related deaths in New York City Bryna Productions people Male actors from California American people of Belarusian-Jewish descent American people of German descent American male film actors American male stage actors American stand-up comedians American male television actors Burials at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery Douglas family American Ashkenazi Jews Drug-related deaths in New York City Pitzer College alumni Jewish American male actors Comedians from California 20th-century American comedians 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews