Actor and comedian Douglas had a history of drink and drug problems

His body was discovered on Tuesday after a police car was flagged down. An autopsy is planned planned but police said there were no signs of foul play.

The Douglas family was "very shocked and saddened" at the 46-year-old's death, said spokesman Allen Burry.

Eric Douglas had a short-lived acting career in the 80s and early 90s but had a history of drug and drink problems.

Arrested

The half-brother of actor Michael Douglas, Eric appeared in television shows and movies such as Delta Force 3, also working as a stand-up comedian.

He was once arrested on a flight to Newark, New Jersey, from Los Angeles, when he let his dog out of its carrier and threw blankets at flight attendants.

Douglas later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanour drug charge after being arrested signing for a package of crack cocaine and anti-depressants from an undercover police officer dressed as a delivery man.

The pressures of being the youngest son in a famous family sometimes got to me Eric Douglas

He also disclosed that his speech and gait had been affected by a eight-day accidental drug-related coma in 1999.

Douglas told New York's Daily News that he found it difficult being part of such a well-known family.

"The pressures of being the youngest son in a famous family sometimes got to me," he said. "I used to feel I had to compare myself to them."