Pacino began smoking and drinking at age nine, and used marijuana casually at age 13, but he abstained from hard drugs. His two closest friends died from drug abuse at the ages of 19 and 30. Growing up in the Bronx, Pacino got into occasional fights and was considered somewhat of a troublemaker at school. He acted in basement plays in New York's theatrical underground but was rejected as a teenager by the Actors Studio. Pacino joined the HB Studio, where he met acting teacher Charlie Laughton, who became his mentor and best friend. In this period, he was often unemployed and homeless, and sometimes slept on the street, in theaters, or at friends' houses.