The NYT reports Heath Ledger was found dead this afternoon in an apartment building at 421 Broome Street in SoHo, according to the New York City police. Mr. Ledger was 28.
At 3:31 p.m., a masseuse arrived at Apartment 5A in the building for an appointment with Mr. Ledger, the police said. The masseuse was let in to the home by a housekeeper, who then knocked on the door of Mr. Ledger’s bedroom. When no one answered, the housekeeper and the masseuse opened the bedroom and found Mr. Ledger unconscious. They shook him, but he did not respond. They immediately called the authorities.
The police said they did not suspect foul play. Officials said pills were found near the body.
He will be seen this summer as The Joker in the new Batman sequel The Dark Knight.
Our prayers are with him, his daughter, and his family.
This is the week that the AP came under fire for having written an obit for Britney Spears. And also the week that two other young stars died from drug overdoeses: Brad Renfro, and now Heath. I think the AP is off the hook. How many young stars have to die before we realize that this is the truth about Hollywood?
And if you are going to live your life like there is no tomorrow, then you have ni right to complain if people write your obit. And please remember that the AP’s practice started before TV and internet made it possible to get someone’s bio at the click of a button. It stemms from when print media was the only way people got their news and a paper had to go to print say at 5pm, with an article about a political figure who died at 3pm. And the editor found it helpful to know that the obit would be two pages long, so the stories on page 1 and 2 were moved to page 4, the story on page 4 moved to page 13, and the story on 13 could wait until next week…for example.
As for Heath….RIP.
You know, I thought of that, too. I read the obit in the New York Times and thought, well, there you go. These things exist for a reason. Nobody was expecting or anticipating the death of Heath Ledger, for heaven’s sake.
But you don’t know how he died yet! I am annoyed that eveyone is saying drug overdose, but no one, not even the coroner knows yet. Why don’t we all wait until the results are out before making assumptions about a dead man.
Drug overdose is still overdose if it’s a prescription pill. It hasn’t been established but the earlier reports said that it looked to be that. But even if he did not die from an overdose, what I said about young Hollywood is still applicable.
isn’t a better pic of him more appropriate for this news? latest reports are it was an accidental death.
I thought the pic to be weird too…but I like it. Its significant to his last piece of work, which everyone is raving about his performance in. Him seeming to reach the top of his game….its an achievement, an icon. RIP Heath
Too sad. Dear God. Life is so short and is such a gift. This is just a waste.
Britney——pay attention. This didn’t have to happen and he surely did not want it. Value and honor your life. It is a gift from God. Plain and simple.
Sad that someone so talented with so much to offer to a shitty industry succumbed to it. Why is it that the truly talented and promising people that have brains in Hollywood are never able to handle it…..yet the daft and vapid are able to revel in it?
Daft and vapid??? I see what you are trying to say, something like “Only the good die young.” It may appear that way on the surface, but it’s not always true. Anna Nicole Smith was dumb and is dead, while Tom Hanks is smart and alive.
But Tom Hanks doesn’t revel in it….he has a brain and tries to live his life away from hollywood. I’m talking about those careless whores you see on these sites every day (yeah, her) that have no artistic contribution to the industry that LOVE the shit that goes along with hollywood. It appears to strike the more intelligent/artistically driven people in a worse way, maybe because they have a brain and this awareness of it all, while the morons gallop around and have ‘bad’ days, but still appear to love the glamor and insane attention, while the people with reason and intellect do not.
Oh, I see what you mean.
I agree with LG that a better pic would have been more appropriate.
I also agree with Kelly1 that it is the AP’s job to have an immediate obit that they can release after a celebrity’s death. Brad Renfro, Heath Ledger, who is next??? Britney Spears and Amy Winehouse need to look at these stars and tell themselves that they need to turn their life around if they don’t want to end up the next star who overdoses on drugs or alcohol or accidentally kills themself over something stupid to get attention (Britney cough, cough)
I also agree with Chickaboom that life is precious and none of us should take for granted how fortunate we are to have more than 99% of the people on this planet. These Hollywood stars take for granted the fame, fortune, and family that they have and throw it all away for drugs and alcohol???? Sad. It’s sadder for his two year old child who will never get to know him.
It’s sad and too bad when a young person dies.
Brad Renfro, now Heath Ledger. Who’s next? It’s said that bad things happen in three’s, and I have noticed that when one famous person dies, at least a couple more soon follow.
I also agree that the picture is inappopriate. Can’t you put something up that isn’t creepy–there’s lots of ones out there with him being cute with his daughter. He seems like he was a great dad, and that’s something to celebrate, even with this tragic loss.
Lainey ran a blind item on her blog months ago that the break-up was caused by Heath’s constant cheating, that he was a well-known hound-dawg around women, hell, he just hooked up with Lindsay-skank. yucko!
And this has WHAT to do with anything? You ought to be ashamed. An incredibly talented, well-loved young man is dead, and you feel the need to slander him and make that fact seem unimportant. Screw you.
And this has what bearing on his death? What’s that? None? Yeah, that’s what I thought.
This is so unbelievably sad and tragic. My heart goes out to his family. I am so depressed.
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i am so sad to hear his news……….
I was so shocked. This is terrible news….
It hasn’t been determined what caused his death. He apparently was battling pneumonia and in that weakened condition who knows what the sleeping pills could do. Doesn’t look like he was an addict, just had trouble sleeping lately.
How can you say it was a drug overdose when NO ONE KNOWS YET! Jesus, let the people do their job, then post why he died! Not before, when no one knows yet.
That is a very inappropriate picture…. a little more respect please
According to Star Magazine, Brad’s assistant Karen told the magazines that Brad was to audition and read the script for that movie, The Patriot, but didn’t complete it because he had drank too much the night before and passed out. Well, Brad didn’t get the part. Heath did. I just found it really weird and odd after I read that. Brad passed away a week before Heath did.