Popular TV journalist and author Sam Rubin made what would be his final appearance on television on May 9. Of course, he didn’t know it was his last appearance. The next morning, he had a severe bout of stomach pain, bad enough that he was rushed to the hospital. He unfortunately died in the emergency room around 11am. He was just 64 years old. So what was his specific cause of death?
Rubin had a more than three-decade career in entertainment. His career started in the ’80s as an entertainment reporter, and by 1988 he had his own segments on the Movietime cable channel, which changed its name to the E! channel in 1990.
The following year he joined KTLA in Los Angeles as a host on the KTLA Morning News. He would stay at the network for the duration of his career. He was known for his zany antics, like when he climbed into bed with Roseanne Barr and Tom Arnold during a 1992 interview.
News of his death spread quickly and he was showered with tributes. Actor Henry Winkler called into KTLA and said that Rubin had a way of making him “feel special every single time” and that he was not “the only person who felt that warmth every time they sat down at your desk.”
On July 9, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner revealed that Rubin suffered a heart attack due to coronary artery disease. He’s survived by his second wife Leslie Gale Shuman, whom he married in 2007, and his four children: Perry, Rory, Darcy, and Colby.