Corey Haim is not the first—or the last—former child star who became a drug addict. Some make a full recovery. Many, sadly, do not.

We were so preoccupied looking for Charles Nelson Reilly in the In Memoriam segment (who never materialized, by the by), that we completely missed the fact that Brad Renfro was absent from the montage. Usmagazine.com asked the Academy what happened, and a rep offered, "It was really an editing decision because we can't fit everyone in. There was no specific reason." Ignoring for a moment the fact that they really blew it on this one, this statement suddenly had us wondering what the whole whittling process entails. Is it just a morbid casting session, where they get a stack of headshots and go through them by committee? ("Sure, Roscoe Lee Browne has the look, but his last project bombed! OK, fine, we'll put him in the Maybe pile.") [Usmagazine.com]

Sad news to pass along. The LA County Coroner finally got around to announcing the official cause of death in the case of Brad Renfro's untimely passing. Unsurprisingly, an accidental overdose of heroin was to blame. Here's hoping that E! has hired some fact-checking interns in the last few weeks; we all remember the embarrassing gaffe from when the news of Renfro's death first broke. [Usmagazine.com]

Trendwatch: The AP's decision to draw up an advance obituary for 26 year old Britney Spears is being replicated for many other young, at-risk stars. The AP got caught without pre-written death stories for Anna Nicole Smith and the recently deceased Brad Renfro, but now the wire service is preparing canned obits for a bunch of 20-somethings. But why bother? After the jump, New York Sun obit guru Stephen Miller says that the AP should just calm down:

E! News watchers over the weekend were likely stunned and saddened to learn of Brad Redfro's untimely death: While host Giuliana Rancic deserves credit for giving the tragedy the solemnity it deserved, we can't help but feel their moving tribute to the talented young actor might have been slightly compromised by their inability to get his fucking name right.

Brad Renfro, a child and then young-adult actor with a deceptively huge talent, died yesterday from as-yet-undetermined causes. Renfro's last big public splash came under perhaps the worst circumstances imaginable: Two days before Christmas 2005, the LAT ran a full-color photo of the unrecognizable former heartthrob in handcuffs, balding, chubby, and clearly in distress after being picked up downtown in an undercover drug sting meanspiritedly dubbed "Cancel Christmas." Renfro's drug use and run-ins with the law were no secret until that point—he was famously charged with Grand Theft 45-Foot Yacht in 2000—but the Skid Row arrest was definitely a turning point, the heartbreaking image inextricably linked with the actor from there on. Determined to turn himself around, he entered a live-in rehab facility in April of 2006, saying at the time that he was "tired of paying the consequences," and that he felt "blessed that I'm going through this now, rather than later. I'm still a kid. I'm 23."

On the extreme side of celebrity meltdowns, celebrated young actor Brad Renfro was found dead in his Los Angeles home today. He was 25. Renfro, star of The Client and Bully, had run into several legal problems in the past, most stemming from drug use. No coroner's report has come in yet and cause of death is still undetermined. Much as troubled, drug-using stars like Britney Spears and Natasha Lyonne are mocked for their troubles, they haven't (yet) gotten to this sad place. Here's hoping Lyonne's recovery is genuine and that Spears will find her own soon. [Hollywood Reporter]

Sad news to pass along. TMZ is reporting that Brad Renfro, star of Apt Pupil and The Client, passed away earlier today at his Los Angeles home at the age of 25. The cause of death is still unknown. More info to follow as it happens.

Your Uncle Grambo spent a few days out on the Best Coast last week, trying to get a sense of what life is like on the ground out there these days (in a word, scary). I holed myself up at The Standard because, well, I've seen Ocean's 12 and I wanted to be as close to a potential Topher Grace meltdown as possible. But instead of staying out on The Strip, I thought it might be more adventurous to stay at The Standard's downtown LA location (notorious for its proximity to Skid Row, a choice place to score smack for Angelenos of all income levels). And after encountering two titans of the reality-television addiction format, Leif Garrett and Tom Sizemore, killing time there in just a four-day span, turns out I made the right choice.

We encourage you to avoid making any loud noises, sudden movements, and saying things like "Man, this heroin feels so great" around recovering addict Brad Renfro. The down-and-out actor has just gone through what had to be one of the tougher chapters of his 23-year-old existence: He's submitted himself to nine days of court-ordered detox after his drug arrest and ten days in the big house for a separate DUI charge. And despite lawyer Richard Kaplan's constant intonations of Renfro wanting to "get back to work," the actor appears to be doing the right thing by putting his career aside and taking up immediate residence in a live-in rehab facility. CourtTV.com spoke with the actor about his recent struggles:

Brad Renfro has finally fessed up to the drug charges that landed him bound and distressed on the front page of the LAT just days before Christmas: