LOS ANGELES—KTLA-5 entertainment reporter Sam Rubin died of a heart attack caused by coronary artery disease, the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner confirmed July 9.
In its report, the medical examiner’s office said Mr. Rubin suffered from “ischemic heart disease due to atherosclerotic coronary artery disease.” The manner of death was listed as “natural.”
Ischemic heart disease is a leading cause of death worldwide and affects around 126 million people, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Mr. Rubin died May 10 at age 64. He was last on the air on May 9 and showed no outward signs of illness, according to his co-workers.
He called in sick the following day and went to a hospital with stomach pain after calling 911, according to KTLA. He was pronounced dead in the emergency room a short time later.
Mr. Rubin joined KTLA in 1991 and brought a fun-loving, breezy sensibility to the newsroom, coupled with an encyclopedic knowledge of film and television. He earned a reputation as a viewer and industry favorite who put celebrities at ease at red-carpet affairs and in face-to-face interviews.
Mr. Rubin was a founding member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association, the largest organization of film and television critics in the United States, with more than 200 members. Additionally, he owned SRE Inc., a television production company that produced more than 200 hours of broadcast and cable programming, including several “Live From” red-carpet shows and 120 episodes of the talk show “Hollywood Uncensored.”
Throughout his career, Mr. Rubin was honored with numerous Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards, received a Golden Mike Award from the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California, and was named Best Entertainment Reporter by the Los Angeles Press Club. In 2013, he was honored by the National Hispanic Media Coalition with its Impact Award for Outstanding Integrity in Broadcast Journalism.
Last month, the Television Academy announced that Mr. Rubin was named the posthumous recipient of the 76th Los Angeles Area Emmy Governors Award. It will be presented during the Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards on July 27 at the Four Seasons Beverly Wilshire.
