Heath Ledger found Dead --UPDATED 2/6/08

QUOTE(twinreverb @ Jan 23 2008, 12:52 AM) [snapback]585207[/snapback]
he was in a movie about heroin addiction called "candy". He was not a Heroin addict.

Actually I've read several reports now that said he had been in rehab earlier for herion addiction. Not sure if it's true or not but there were no illegal drugs found in the room with him that I've read. He had had pneumonia and was taking several prescription drugs for anxiety and to help him sleep. So who knows? Maybe some weird reaction?

 

This is the first I've heard of the heroin addiction. According to TMZ they can confirm he had a substance abuse problem, but his close friends and family say he has been clean for the last year. TMZ can not confirm what kind of substance abuse problem he had or if he was in rehab for it. The autopsy ruled out natural causes and they are now waiting on the toxicology report. The police are testing a $20 bill they found rolled up with a white powder substance on it. TMZ is also reporting they found sleeping pills, anxiety pills, and anti-depressants in containers through out the apt.

This whole thing is soooo sad. My heart goes out to his family, Michelle Williams, and especially to his daughter. :cray:

 

QUOTE(Trish_e @ Jan 23 2008, 01:21 PM) [snapback]585906[/snapback]
This is the first I've heard of the heroin addiction. According to TMZ they can confirm he had a substance abuse problem, but his close friends and family say he has been clean for the last year. TMZ can not confirm what kind of substance abuse problem he had or if he was in rehab for it. The autopsy ruled out natural causes and they are now waiting on the toxicology report. The police are testing a $20 bill they found rolled up with a white powder substance on it. TMZ is also reporting they found sleeping pills, anxiety pills, and anti-depressants in containers through out the apt.

This whole thing is soooo sad. My heart goes out to his family, Michelle Williams, and especially to his daughter. :cray:

I read this in several news reports, all worded the same way, which makes me somewhat question the validity since it may just be hearsay they are picking up from a 'source:'
Ledger, 28, reportedly spent several days at a drug rehabilitation clinic, battling an addiction to heroin, after his split from fiancee Michelle Williams in September. But whatever the case, it doesn't make his death any less sad or surprising.

 

QUOTE(MamaKim @ Jan 23 2008, 01:40 PM) [snapback]585941[/snapback]
I read this in several news reports, all worded the same way, which makes me somewhat question the validity since it may just be hearsay they are picking up from a 'source:'
Ledger, 28, reportedly spent several days at a drug rehabilitation clinic, battling an addiction to heroin, after his split from fiancee Michelle Williams in September. But whatever the case, it doesn't make his death any less sad or surprising.

Hmmmmm. It does sound more like hearsay to me and I would definitely question the validity of that statement. I would think if he had a heroin problem it would be hard to keep it under wraps. I guess only time will tell. Either way it is sad and unexpected.

I just want to know what is going on right now in Hollywood, it seems like there's a lot of drug and alcohol problems. It's such a shame! What great role models we have now a day.

 

Sad news. Ought to be interesting when Batman is released this summer. He is playing the joker I think.

 

QUOTE
Ledger, 28, reportedly spent several days at a drug rehabilitation clinic, battling an addiction to heroin, after his split from fiancee Michelle Williams in September. But whatever the case, it doesn't make his death any less sad or surprising.



QUOTE
The police are testing a $20 bill they found rolled up with a white powder substance on it.


These two do go hand in hand though, right?

 

QUOTE(seamusnicholas @ Jan 23 2008, 02:14 PM) [snapback]586013[/snapback]
These two do go hand in hand though, right?

A white powder substance can be anything. Who knows, maybe he crushed his sleeping pills and snorted them to feel the effects quicker. I just think it's premature to jump to heroin. Any of the news links I've been watching hasn't confirmed a stay at rehab or even a heroin problem.

One thing I heard and thought was interesting is the house keeper reportedly heard him snoring 3 hrs before she found him dead. A medical examiner then stated that when a persons starts falling into a deep coma they will start to snore. He also stated that all the pills they found in his apt had a sleep agent in it and could of easily add up to 20+ sleeping pills needed to kill someone.

 

To answer one of the questions - yes, he was playing the Joker in the upcoming Batman movie. I have to find it, but he was quoted as saying the character was very dark and void of empathy and spirit or something, and it was impacting his life playing that dark of a character. Paraphrasing there, but you get the general idea.

 

QUOTE(EmilyM @ Jan 23 2008, 04:28 PM) [snapback]586266[/snapback]
To answer one of the questions - yes, he was playing the Joker in the upcoming Batman movie. I have to find it, but he was quoted as saying the character was very dark and void of empathy and spirit or something, and it was impacting his life playing that dark of a character. Paraphrasing there, but you get the general idea.

Yes, I heard that on GMA this morning. He was reportedly having trouble sleeping and the character was messing with his psyche. He was quoted as saying the Joker was a "psychopathic, mass-murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy" and that he was sleeping only like two hours a night during filming. But I seriously doubt this was what caused his death in any way.

As far as the rolled up $20 and the connection to heroin, I have read enough rock star autobiographies now to know often heroin addicts will use cocaine as a "filler" to get them by when they are trying to kick the heroin. Not saying that's what he did but there can be a definite correlation. It would not be surprising.

 

QUOTE(Ella @ Jan 23 2008, 12:01 AM) [snapback]585186[/snapback]
This happened near my apartment. It's so crazy, I've heard a ton of different stories. It's pretty well known he had a bad drug problem, heroin I think, he was in rehab last year. From what i heard though people are saying he overdosed on Ambien CR.

Wow, I have never heard that!



QUOTE(EmilyM @ Jan 23 2008, 04:28 PM) [snapback]586266[/snapback]
To answer one of the questions - yes, he was playing the Joker in the upcoming Batman movie. I have to find it, but he was quoted as saying the character was very dark and void of empathy and spirit or something, and it was impacting his life playing that dark of a character. Paraphrasing there, but you get the general idea.

I heard it in an interview that they were showing last night. So so sad. I saw his father on TV this morning and they were heartbroken. :cray:

 

My husband worked with him, and when he told me of his passing yesterday… without knowing anything but of his passing we both said OD… but like an earlier post stated… it doesn’t make any less tragic… or less hard for his family and loved one to handle… my thoughts are with them…

 

Personally, I feel if it was an OD, that is an extremely sad situation for such a young, talented, and good looking young man. It's sad what drugs can do to a person. But no matter what the reason for his unexpected death, I am heartbroken. I enjoy so many of his movies and was really looking forward to his growth as an actor. It is devastating that this has happened. My heart goes out to his sweet little girl. I hope that she will have some kind of good memories of her with her dad.

 

Tammy, I agree completely. On The Insider tonight, they showed pictures of him and his little Matilda and he appeared to adore her and she him. I also saw Michelle Williams' mom who looked devastated as well. Reportedly (as per the show), he had been partying a bit too much since his breakup with Michelle and using drugs. That's just what they said on the program.

 

What is a bunch of BS is that Phelps crazy ultra religious group is going to picket his funeral because he played a gay cowboy in Brokeback MOuntain. One of my favorite movies of all time!!!


I read that it is really hard to OD on sleeping pills because if you take too many it makes you anxious instead of sleepy. Too much is being thrown around right now. I am just so bummed right now

Kim I loved Lords of Dogtown too.

 

Have you seen the photo of him in his Joker costume?

SCARY!!!!!

I caught the end of a story about him tonight. In one interview after the birth of his daughter he said (can't remember his exact words) something like "I don't mind dying now because I'll live on in Matilda." :cray:

 

The $20 came back free of Narcotics. I hope that he did not die of an overdose so that at least his family and daughter will not have to live with that hanging over their heads forever.

 

I think it was just a tragic accident to tell you the truth. My boss is actually good friends with Heath's parents, and she was telling how sad it must of been for them to find out about their son's death on the radio. That was the first thing they heard when they woke up

I think they are going to New York soon, and are going to bring his body back here!

 

QUOTE(Socceroos @ Jan 24 2008, 05:19 AM) [snapback]587003[/snapback]
I think it was just a tragic accident to tell you the truth. My boss is actually good friends with Heath's parents, and she was telling how sad it must of been for them to find out about their son's death on the radio. That was the first thing they heard when they woke up

I think they are going to New York soon, and are going to bring his body back here!



What kind of city is Perth? I always pictured it as a large city, like Sydney, I guess. But you mentioned earlier that it's in the middle of nowhere. Is it smaller than we might think?

 

QUOTE(Trish_e @ Jan 23 2008, 12:21 PM) [snapback]585906[/snapback]
This is the first I've heard of the heroin addiction. According to TMZ they can confirm he had a substance abuse problem, but his close friends and family say he has been clean for the last year. TMZ can not confirm what kind of substance abuse problem he had or if he was in rehab for it. The autopsy ruled out natural causes and they are now waiting on the toxicology report. The police are testing a $20 bill they found rolled up with a white powder substance on it. TMZ is also reporting they found sleeping pills, anxiety pills, and anti-depressants in containers through out the apt.

This whole thing is soooo sad. My heart goes out to his family, Michelle Williams, and especially to his daughter. :cray:


A rolled-up $20 bill was found on the floor near the bed, but New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne said lab tests found nothing to indicate the bill had been used to snort drugs. Police also said no illegal drugs were found in the apartment.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080124/ap_en_mo/heath_ledger_42

 

QUOTE(twinstuff @ Jan 24 2008, 06:10 AM) [snapback]587010[/snapback]
What kind of city is Perth? I always pictured it as a large city, like Sydney, I guess. But you mentioned earlier that it's in the middle of nowhere. Is it smaller than we might think?

Here is a website of the City of Perth (the capital of western Australia), 1.5 million people are reported to be living there. From what I remember majority of the people live in and around Perth. The western side of Australia is mostly desert, it's where you'd find the authentic outback we all think of today. I also believe (but could be wrong) that the Aboriginal people can be found living in the outback.

 

QUOTE
originally posted by Chrissy Nelson: What is a bunch of BS is that Phelps crazy ultra religious group is going to picket his funeral because he played a gay cowboy in Brokeback MOuntain.

That is really disgusting, but not at all surprising given the things they have done in the past.

I thought Health Ledger was a super talented actor and very handsome as well, so sad that he is no longer with us. I am heartbroken for his family, Michelle and his little girl. I really think the media shouldn't have said anything about a suspected drug OD until they knew for sure out of respect for his family. I think it was some kind of reaction to the ambien because I was given that when I was in the hospital waiting to have my girls and every night I took it I had trouble breathing and had to have the oxygen mask put on me. That didn't happen on the nights I didn't take it. Very tragic no matter how it happened. My thoughts and prayers are with his family.

 

This is such a sad story. I live just outside of NYC and it is on all the local news programs and every cover of the newspapers.

 

I have to say I admire Michelle Williams right now for making sure she keeps little Matilda out of the spotlight and shielded from those letches trying to get a picture of that poor little girl grieving.

I cannot believe that they are trying to get a pic of her right now. Pathetic!!!!!!

They were following his ex Naomi Watts while she grocery shopped.

 

This is really sad. I was soooooooooooo shocked!
I pretty much loved all his movies. Especially because he was Aussie and we are/were all so proud of him.
I cannot believe that the media will take pictures of them wheeling his body out on a stretcher. OMG!!!! The man will not be left alone - even in death. His PARENTS and FAMILY have a TV!!!
It's just horrible. He had problems with the media, I remember seeing a few things....

FYI. Perth is a smaller city on the western coast of Australia. It is roughly 2500 - 3000kms away from Sydney (on the east coast) It is no-where near as big as Sydney or melbourne. It's known for being beautiful and it has great beaches!!!

And as for those people preaching about him glorifying homosexuality..... Get a life.

 

How heartbreaking is Michelle WIlliams statement releaed today

"Please respect our need to grieve privately. My heart is broken. I am the mother of the most tender-hearted, high-spirited, beautiful little girl who is the spitting image of her father. All that I can cling to is his presence inside her that reveals itself every day. His family and I watch Matilda as she whispers to trees, hugs animals, and takes steps two at a time and we know that he is with us still. She will be brought up with the best memories of him."

 

NYC Medical Examiner rules Ledger's death a prescription drug overdose: Ledger died of prescription overdose

 

That was my hunch...

What a shame that it was so preventable.

 

So sad. I am happy for his families sake that it wasn't illegal drugs like the media was trying to say. I think it was very bad of the media to put that tape of him out there for the world to see while his family/friends are grieving, they sicken me.

 

This still makes me so sad. THanks for the update. I'm glad it wasn't illegal drugs as well.