LOS ANGELES - The production of Charlie Sheen's hit TV show is on hold because of his return to rehab, which came after a caller to the fire department emergency dispatcher said the actor was intoxicated and in pain.
One of Sheen's neighbours told an emergency operator Thursday that the actor was "intoxicated" and complaining of abdominal and chest pains, according to a person familiar with the call. The person was not authorized to publicly discuss details and spoke Friday on condition of anonymity.
Copies of the call probably won't be ready for release by the Los Angeles Fire Department until Monday, a department spokesman said.
Sheen, 45, was taken to a Los Angeles area hospital and was there until around midnight Thursday, said his publicist, Stan Rosenfield, who cited the actor's history of hernia problems.
Rosenfield said Friday that Sheen was in rehab, but he did not say why.
"Charlie Sheen has voluntarily entered an undisclosed rehabilitation centre today," the spokesman said. "He is most grateful to all who have expressed their concern."
The terse statement noted that no additional information will be provided and asked that Sheen's privacy be respected.
CBS, production company Warner Bros. Television and executive producer Chuck Lorre said in a joint statement that Sheen's rehab has prompted a halt on production of his hit comedy series "Two and a Half Men."
"We are profoundly concerned for his health and well-being, and support his decision," the companies and Lorre said.
Sixteen of the show's 24-episode order have been taped, with 14 aired so far.
The latest fallout from Sheen's chaotic life came two weeks after CBS' top entertainment executive said the actor's off-camera actions haven't affected his work as the star of TV's most popular comedy, the centerpiece of CBS' Monday comedy lineup.
Sheen's program has increased its audience by 2 per cent over last season, the Nielsen Co. said. He signed a new two-year contract at the end of last season that makes him one of the highest-paid actors on prime-time television.
Sheen's headline-making behaviour has included a wild night that left a New York hotel room in shambles and sent him to a hospital, and a guilty plea last summer to assaulting his wife in Aspen, Colorado. Sheen filled gossip pages again this month by spending a weekend partying in Las Vegas.
His latest hospitalization was his third in as many months. It came after an emergency call made on Sheen's behalf by neighbour Dr. Paul Nassif. The plastic and reconstructive surgeon, along with his wife, Adrienne Maloof-Nassif, are in the reality TV show "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills."
"We are so glad that Charlie made the decision to seek the assistance of a rehabilitation centre today," Nassif and his wife said in a statement. "This is something that his friends and family have pushed for, and we wish him all the love and support he will need in the coming days."
Last February, Sheen entered rehab for an unspecified problem, forcing his sitcom to temporarily suspend production.
Earlier this month, CBS Entertainment President Nina Tassler was asked about Sheen at a news conference with TV reporters.
"We have a high level of concern. How can we not?" she said, adding the situation can't be viewed simplistically. The actor does his job on "Two and a Half Men" reliably well, she said.
