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Denzel Washington (left) with De'Angelo Wilson on the set of 'Antwone Fisher.' Wilson, a Dayton native, hanged himself in the back room of a Los Angeles business on Nov. 26. Contributed photoClick to enlarge

When Los Angeles police found De'Angelo Wilson's body in the back room of a Wilshire Boulevard business, he was classified a transient, "but was well known to the people in the area," said L.A. County coroner's spokesman Craig Harvey.

Authorities were able to contact Gina White, a producer who had worked with Wilson on the 2002 film "Antwone Fisher," and who had become close to him — "I kind of adopted him, almost like a son," she said. "He didn't talk much about where he came from, or his childhood. When I found out what happened, I made a lot of phone calls — he had a lot of friends. We were desperate to find his family — his friends in California were ready and more than willing to take responsibility, to have a memorial service. But I couldn't stand the thought of somebody out there not knowing what had happened to their loved one.

"I remember him talking about doing something with the mayor of Dayton," White recalled, so she searched the Internet for clues.

Wilson's hometown mayor had, in fact, honored Wilson in September 2002 with a day in his honor and a key to the city, holding him up as an example of a young person "who did not give up on his dream and who worked hard to achieve great things," said Mayor Rhine McLin at the time.

With that information guiding her searches, White eventually stumbled on a DaytonDailyNews.com story about Wilson's suicide, published Friday, Dec. 5, the day after his mother had been contacted by authorities.

"I'd prayed the night before over this, and my prayers were answered," White said. "His family doesn't have to worry about getting him home — we'll take care of it."

The friends include Antwone Fisher, whose own story of overcoming a nightmarish childhood became a movie, directed by Denzel Washington.

"He was such a fun and funny guy," said Fisher. "I'd have backyard parties and De'Angelo would always come an hour early to help me set up. He'd tell great jokes ... It's just real hard to think of a guy that happy and fun getting down so low."

"He got depressed," said Wilson's mother, Debra. "His career kind of failed, and I think he was beating himself up. Things were real down and he just didn't know how to pick himself up." His most recent roles were in 2005's "The Salon" and "Mercy Street" in 2006.

Wilson attended Dunbar High School, dropped out, earned a GED, and was taking acting classes at Kent State University when he was cast in "8 Mile." He was on a roll, it seemed, until the bottom dropped out and the acting parts were few and far between.

"I talked to him about a month and a half ago," said his mother. "He wasn't good ... I was real worried about him."

The young man, who was called a "born performer" by his Montgomery County Children Services case worker, made an impression on those who knew him — a good impression, leaving them wondering what exactly went wrong.

"It's tough out here," said Fisher. "Everybody's an entrepreneur. Every day you have to sell yourself, and just because you did something great one day doesn't mean stuff will keep going your way."