Drink played part in actor’s death

Heart disease killed Kristoff St. John

LOS ANGELES — The Young and the Restless actor Kristoff St. John died of heart disease, with excessive drinking at the time of his death a contributing factor, according to a coroner’s report released this week.

Investigators listed “hypertrophic heart disease” as the cause of 52-year-old St. John’s death at his home in Los Angeles on Feb. 4. “Hypertrophic” means the heart muscle has become abnormally thick, making blood-pumping difficult.

Heavy alcohol use along with a congenital artery problem contributed to St. John’s death, the report said.

Three days earlier, St. John had been released from a mentalhealth hospital, where he had been admitted for alcohol abuse and threatening self-harm, according to the report. It also listed a history of mental-health and alcohol problems.

St. John last spoke to someone about 24 hours before paramedics declared him dead in his apartment on a Sunday morning, the report said.

For 27 years, St. John played struggling alcoholic and ladies’ man Neil Winters on the CBS soap opera. He was nominated for 11 daytime Emmys, winning twice, for outstanding younger actor in a drama series in 1992 and supporting actor in 2008.

He died four years after the death of his 24-year-old son.

St. John had written on social media about his struggles with grief. Last September, he got engaged to Kseniya Mikhaleva, a model.

St. John’s last episode of The Young and the Restless aired in the week following his death. A storyline that pays tribute to both Kristoff and his character is due to start in late April.