LOS ANGELES -- Oscar-winning actor William Holden was killed in a drunken fall at his beachfront apartment, in which he slipped on a throw rug and smashed his head on a bedside table, officials said Tuesday.
Coroner Thomas Noguchi said the autopsy and preliminary investigation into the circumstances surrounding the actor's death sometime last week indicated it was 'accidental.' He said there were no other injuries or indications of foul play at this time.
'The death was caused by an accidental fall involving tripping over or slipping on a throw rug, then falling into the sharp edge of a bedside table,' Noguichi said.
The coroner said there was a 'deep cut' on his forehead, which was followed by 'massive bleeding,' the actual cause of death.
Assistant Coroner Richard Wilson said Holden was 'very intoxicated' when he died, with a blood-alcohol reading of .22.
'That level means he was heavily intoxicated,' Wilson said. 'Even though the alcohol level rises when a body decomposes -- and this body was badly decomposed -- that level is far above the legal limit of .10.'
Noguchi said the investigation indicated that actor Glenn Ford was the last person to see Holden alive. He said Ford had not yet been interviewed by his office and he refused to reveal details of the two actors' final meeting.
'Yeah, I guess I was the last one to see Bill alive,' Ford told United Press International when informed of the coroner's statements.
'It was about two weeks ago when he came to the house for dinner. That night Cynthia (Ford's wife) took a portrait of Bill. It's probably the last picture taken of him.
'He was in good spirits andwe talked about a number of things, including a book I am writing. Bill was interested in writing a book of his own. Bill said, 'The one thing I want to do is write a book before I die.'
'We reminisced about the funny things, the good things and the sad things in our lives together.'
The coroner said the investigation indicated that Holden may have lived as long as 30 minutes after striking his head on the table, causing a 2 -inch gash above his right eye.
Noguchi said Holden tried to stop the bleeding with tissues before passing out and bleeding to death, and apparently never tried to telephone for help.
'It seemed that Mr. Holden was not aware of the severity of his injury,' the coroner said.
'Based on available information, we have determined he was a very private person who probably tried to help himself.'
Noguchi said the rug and the bed and several tissues found at the scene were all soaked with blood. When Holden struck the table, he added, he pushed it back so hard that it punched out a 2-inch hole in the wall.
Foul play was ruled out, the coroner said, because there was no evidence of a struggle, nothing had been taken from the premises and the rest of the apartment was 'meticulous.'
He said an empty quart bottle of vodka was found in the apartment, along with a nearly-full bottle in the kitchen.
Nogochi said further routine toxicological and other forensic laboratory tests will be performed.
The coroner, his chief pathologist and police detectives visited the Santa Monica, Calif., apartment earlier Tuesday to look for 'specific information' about the movie star's medical background.
'There were certain things that came out during the autopsy and the examination of the body and the boss just wanted to check them out himself,' Wilson said.
