Heath Ledger is Dead
Posted Jan 22nd 2008 4:40PM by TMZ Staff
TMZ has learned that 2006 Academy Award nominee Heath Ledger has died in NY.
He was found dead in his bed in one of his residences in Soho by his housekeeper at 3:35 PM ET today. Law enforcement sources tell TMZ they believe it was not a crime.
The 28-year-old actor has a two year old daughter with former fiancee Michelle Williams -- they separated in September, 2007. He plays the Joker in the upcoming Batman film, "The Dark Knight."
The NY Times is reporting a masseuse arrived at his apartment and was let in the door 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 found pills near body.
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SavannahStarPosted:
Tue Jan 22, 2008 5:37 pm
Who is he anyway? What movies has he been in? I don't keep up with that shit much. I WAS taken aback though to see this online today, as just a day or so ago Pat or Gwen had posted his pic in here. What a coinkidink.
Well RIP, Heath Ledger.
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Myra ManesPosted:
Tue Jan 22, 2008 5:40 pm
SavannahStar wrote:
Who is he anyway? What movies has he been in? I don't keep up with that shit much. I WAS taken aback though to see this online today, as just a day or so ago Pat or Gwen had posted his pic in here. What a coinkidink.
Well RIP, Heath Ledger.
He's in the new Batman movie. Has a 2 yr old daughter.
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chancePosted:
Tue Jan 22, 2008 5:44 pm
He was in a Knights Tale and Brokeback Mountain.
RIP Heath. This is so sad. He had his whole life ahead of him.
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chancePosted:
Tue Jan 22, 2008 5:50 pm
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SavannahStarPosted:
Tue Jan 22, 2008 5:55 pm
chance wrote:
He was in a Knights Tale and Brokeback Mountain.
RIP Heath. This is so sad. He had his whole life ahead of him.
What part did he have in Brokeback Mtn? That's the only movie I've seen of those mentioned.
Yes, very sad.
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chancePosted:
Tue Jan 22, 2008 6:32 pm
SS he was one of the two main actors in that movie. I think he was the one married in the movie.
Last edited by chance on Tue Jan 22, 2008 7:08 pm; edited 1 time in total
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AlexandriaPosted:
Tue Jan 22, 2008 6:58 pm
Yes, Heath Ledger was the quiet married cowboy in Brokeback.
He was one of my top 5 favorite actors.
A Knights Tale is one of my favorite "feel-good" films.
How sad for his 2 year old daughter.
RIP Heath Ledger.
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justamomPosted:
Tue Jan 22, 2008 8:21 pm
He was also in The Patriot and 10 things I hate about you.
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SavannahStarPosted:
Tue Jan 22, 2008 8:55 pm
chance wrote:
SS he was one of the two main actors in that movie. I think he was the one married in the movie.
TY, yeh I looked the movie up and my son reminded me.
He did a wonderful job in that movie. (that's the only one I saw with him).
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CherokeeKidPosted:
Wed Jan 23, 2008 12:28 am
How sad that Heath Ledger has died.
He was a brilliant actor. And a kind-hearted human being. I remember him well from the movie "The Patriot".
Rest in Peace, Heath!
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CherokeeKidPosted:
Wed Jan 23, 2008 12:39 am
Heath Ledger's death not suicide, says family
January 23, 2008 - 1:40PM
Page 1 of 3 | Single page
Tap refresh for latest
· Body found by masseuse and housekeeper
· Police initially rule out foul play
· 'Sleeping' pills found by bed
· Industry tributes flood in
· Websites crash on news
Academy Award nominee Heath Ledger, 28, has died of a possible drug overdose involving sleeping pills in New York, police have confirmed.
The actor was sick with pneumonia when he died, the TMZ.com website reports, saying it had been contacted by representatives of Ledger's family, who said they'd been told by police that the actor's death was accidental.
The representatives said the family was particularly distraught over media speculation that he may have taken his own life.
New York police said they could not confirm Ledger was suffering from pneumonia.
"This is the first I'm hearing that,'' Lieutenant John Grimpal, from the New York Police Department, told Macquarie Radio.
"The medical examiner, once he or she conducts an autopsy, will determine exactly the cause of death.''
He said police were continuing to treat the New York apartment, where Ledger was found dead, as a crime scene, but had initially ruled out foul play.
"Anytime someone dies, especially when they're so young, the detectives from the precinct conduct a thorough investigation just to rule out that criminality is not involved,'' Grimpal said. "Early on in the investigation it appears criminality is not involved.''
Found by housekeeper
Ledger was found naked and unconscious in his bed at his $US23,000 a month apartment on Broome Street, SoHo, in Manhattan, by his housekeeper and a masseuse about 3.35pm local time, when they knocked on his bedroom door and got no reply.
He had an appointment for a massage, said New York Police spokesman Paul Browne.
Ledger's body was removed and wheeled into the back of a medical examiner's van in front of a huge crowd, including media.
He was pronounced dead at 3.45pm (7.45am AEDT) by a medical examiner who went to the apartment.
New York police officer Martin Brown said investigators would most likely not know the cause of death until an autopsy was held on the body.
Asked if foul play had been ruled out, Officer Brown said it had not.
"That's what needs to be investigated," Brown said. "It takes a while. The medical examiner will do an autopsy and they will determine the cause of death."
Prescription pills in Ledger's name were "found around the body'' , said Lieutenant John Grimpel, of the New York Police Department. He said he believed they were sleeping pills.
Ledger's former partner Michelle Williams, who he met on the set of Brokeback Mountain and who he had daughter Matilda with, is reportedly on her way to New York after hearing of the death.
Problems sleeping
Ledger was taking sleeping pills after completing I'm Not There, in which he played one of the many incarnations of singer Bob Dylan.
He told The New York Times in a November interview that he "stressed out a little too much'' during the Dylan film, and had trouble sleeping while portraying the Joker, whom he called a "psychopathic, mass-murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy".
"Last week I probably slept an average of two hours a night," Ledger told the Times.
"I couldn't stop thinking. My body was exhausted, and my mind was still going."
He said he took two Ambien pills, which only worked for an hour, the paper said.
Ledger's publicist Mara Buxbaum appealed for the media to not speculate on how Ledger died.
"We are all deeply saddened and shocked by this accident,'' Ledger's publicist, Mara Buxbaum, said in a statement tonight.
"This is an extremely difficult time for his loved ones and we are asking the media to please respect the family's privacy and avoid speculation until the facts are known.''
It's tragic, says PM
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the actor's death was a tragedy.
"It is tragic that we have lost one of our nation's finest actors in the prime of his life,'' Mr Rudd said in a statement.
Mel Gibson and Nicole Kidman also spoke of their sadness and shock at the news.
The director of Ledger's last Australian movie, Candy, Neil Armfield, told ABC Radio he was "incredibly saddened" to hear of the 28-year-old's death.
"He was a young boy in many ways, still a boy when he left Perth and got into this whirlwind of his career," Armfield said.
"He handled his career incredibly well - he made a decision about four years ago to stop being led by producers and managers and to forge his own way. He started working with the most interesting directors. He was so successful at breaking out of the teen idol image.
"We saw with his relationship with the paparazzi that he was vulnerable and felt intensely invaded and got so unbelievably distressed. The photographers would try to push him into a reaction and he was a young man so he would react."
Stepmother in tears
Ledger's stepmother, Emma Brown, was in tears this morning.
Ms Brown, who married Kim Ledger last year, said the family was not ready to talk about her stepson's death.
"I'm sorry, we're not ready to talk," Ms Brown said, while crying.
The president of Warner Brothers said the film studio was devastated.
"The studio is stunned and devastated by this tragic news," Alan Horn said in a statement carried on the tmz.com website.
The studio is producing The Dark Knight.
"The entertainment community has lost an enormous talent.
"Heath was a brilliant actor and an exceptional person. Our hearts go out to his family and friends."
Websites crash
Less than an hour after news of Ledger's death broke, fan sites including heathledger.net, heathbaby.com and heathledgercentral.com and heathledger.com had melted down and were inaccessible.
Messages of sorrow from fans are flooding unofficial Heath Ledger pages and fan groups on MySpace and Facebook. Already, at least two "R.I.P Heath Ledger'' Facebook groups have been created as memorials.
Ledger was born in Perth, Western Australia.
He had a two-year-old daughter, Matilda, with former fiancee and Brokeback Mountain co-star Michelle Williams.
Before settling down with Williams, Ledger had relationships with actresses Heather Graham and Naomi Watts.
He was the son of Sally Ledger Bell, a French teacher, and Kim Ledger, a racing car driver and mining engineer.
Hollywood star
Ledger was an Oscar nominee for his role in Brokeback Mountain and had numerous other screen credits.
His breakthrough role was the Australian movie Two Hands, directed by Gregor Jordan and in another movie from the same year, 10 Things I Hate about You, he established himself as an up-and-coming star.
Ledger's other film credits included A Knight's Tale, The Patriot and Monster's Ball.
He starred in I'm Not There, one of several actors playing a role representing Bob Dylan, and was due to appear as the Joker in the upcoming Batman film The Dark Knight.
Ledger's death comes during the making of his latest movie The Imaginarium Of Doctor Parnassus, directed by Terry Gilliam and in which he was to star alongside Christopher Plummer and Tom Waits.
Ledger had a difficult relationship with some sections of the media.
In 2004 he allegedly spat at and assaulted a photographer in Sydney. The retaliation was during the premier to Brokeback Mountain when photographers squirted him with water on the red carpet.
Australian actor Heath Ledger has been found dead aged 28. He was engaged to actress Michelle Williams, with whom he had a daughter, but they were reported to have split.
Ledger (right) received acclaim for his role opposite Jake Gyllenhaal in cowboy romance Brokeback Mountain in 2005, which earned him an Oscar nomination for best actor.
He has recently been seen in I'm Not There, in which he played one aspect of the life of Bob Dylan. The film also featured actors including Cate Blanchett and Richard Gere.
Ledger grew up in Perth, Australia, and appeared in TV soap opera Home and Away. He made his name in films including 10 Things I Hate About You and Two Hands in the late 1990s.
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CherokeeKidPosted:
Wed Jan 23, 2008 1:20 am
Ledger was in the middle of filming a new Terry Gilliam movie, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, when his dead body was discovered in a New York flat.
Ledger's performances in such titles as Monster's Ball and Brokeback Mountain won him industry awards as well as the respect of his peers.
Accolades for his performance in Brokeback Mountain had won Ledger blockbuster parts. He had just finished playing The Joker in the new Batman film The Dark Knight.
Earlier roles included parts in Mel Gibson's The Patriot in 2000. Ledger played one of The Brothers Grimm (above) alongside Matt Damon in 2005.
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CherokeeKidPosted:
Wed Jan 23, 2008 3:03 am
Heath's Dad -- "Heath Touched So Many People"
Posted Jan 22nd 2008 9:32PM by TMZ Staff
Heath Ledger's father, Kim Ledger, flanked by his family, released a statement on Australian television
We, Heath's family, confirm, the very tragic, untimely and accidental passing of our dearly loved son, brother and doting father of Matilda. He was found peacefully asleep in his New York apartment by his housekeeper at 3:30 p.m. U.S. time.
We would like to thank our friends and everyone around the world for their well wishes and kind thoughts at this time. Heath has touched so many people on so many different levels during his short life but few had the pleasure of truly knowing him.
He was a down to earth, generous, kind-hearted, life-loving and selfless individual who was extremely inspirational to many. Please now respect our families need to grieve and come to terms with our loss privately.
What part did he have in Brokeback Mtn? That's the only movie I've seen of those mentioned.
Yes, very sad.
He was also, as a little boy, in the movie "the client".
Indeed it's very sad to hear this.
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AlexandriaPosted:
Thu Jan 24, 2008 3:24 pm
marco wrote:
He was also, as a little boy, in the movie "the client".
Indeed it's very sad to hear this.
I think it was Brad Renfro (the other young actor found dead last week)
who was in "The Client".
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CherokeeKidPosted:
Fri Jan 25, 2008 12:02 am
R.I.P Heath Ledger
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CherokeeKidPosted:
Fri Jan 25, 2008 12:18 am
Heath Ledger Tribute
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resignedPosted:
Fri Jan 25, 2008 4:38 am
Police: Heath Ledger's masseuse made 4 calls to Olsen twin
By TOM HAYS | Associated Press Writer
3:18 AM EST, January 25, 2008
NEW YORK - The massage therapist's first call on finding a lifeless Heath Ledger wasn't to 911. Nor was her second. Nor her third, police said.
Instead, the masseuse spent nine minutes repeatedly ringing "Full House" actress Mary-Kate Olsen before calling authorities for help, police said Thursday. The masseuse called Olsen a fourth time after paramedics arrived _ at the same time as Olsen's security guards.
The details emerged as Ledger's family made plans to bury the 28-year-old "Brokeback Mountain" actor. A private viewing was scheduled for Friday at the Frank E. Campbell funeral home in Manhattan, and Ledger's family was flying to the U.S. from his native Australia.
Ledger's publicist, Mara Buxbaum, said no details about the actor's funeral would be shared with the press.
Ledger's family apparently placed a death notice that appeared Friday in The West Australian, a newspaper based in his hometown of Perth, remembering him as "the most amazing 'old soul' in a young man's body."
"As a close knit and very private family we have observed you so determined yet quietly traveling in your self-styled path in life, nothing would get in your way ... no mountain too tall, no river too wide," said the notice, which the newspaper said had been submitted by Ledger's relatives. ".... Our hearts are broken."
Authorities believe Ledger was already dead while his masseuse was dialing Olsen, with the first three calls ranging from 21 seconds to more than a minute and a half. The details about the calls do not have any significant bearing on an investigation that has ruled out foul play, but they paint a more precise picture of the bizarre series of events surrounding Ledger's death.
Its cause will not be answered for at least a week, after medical examiners complete toxicology tests. Authorities suspect a possible overdose, but nothing conclusive has been determined. Several prescription drugs were found in the Manhattan apartment where Ledger's body was found.
Police originally said the masseuse made two calls seeking Olsen's advice about what to do, but they revised it to four after taking a closer look at Ledger's phone records. The masseuse, Diana Wolozin, apparently knew both Ledger and Olsen and knew they were friends; all the calls were made from Ledger's cell phone, police said.
At 1 p.m. Tuesday, Ledger's housekeeper went into his bedroom to change a light bulb, saw him sleeping and heard what she thought was snoring. The masseuse showed up for Ledger's massage appointment at about 2:45 p.m., knocked on his door and called his cell phone at 3 p.m. to wake him up., police said.
After setting up her massage table, she tried to wake Ledger and realized something was wrong.
That was when events took a strange turn.
At 3:17 p.m., she made a call to the Olsen twin that lasted 49 seconds. At 3:20 p.m., she made another call, lasting 1 minute and 39 seconds. At 3:24 p.m., another call to Olsen. That one lasted 21 seconds.
Then, at 3:26 p.m., Wolozin called 911.
At some point during the frenzy, Olsen, who was in California, summoned her personal security guards to the apartment to help with the situation, the New York Police Department said.
Paramedics arrived at 3:33 p.m. and actually went up in the elevator to the apartment with Olsen's security guards. Paramedics did not allow the security guards into the bedroom where Ledger died, and they declared him dead at 3:36 p.m. _ 19 minutes after the first call to Olsen.
The masseuse called Olsen a final time at 3:34 p.m. The duration of that call was unknown.
The death prompted rumors that Ledger may have been depressed and taking too many pills. Haydn and Mike Ledger, two of the actor's uncles, deflected a question from a CBS "Early Show" interviewer Thursday about whether their nephew had been depressed, saying that should be left to his parents to address.
Ledger told The New York Times in November that his recent work on the films "The Dark Knight" and "I'm Not There" had been stressful, and that he was struggling with sleeplessness and had taken the sleeping pill Ambien.
Ledger received an Oscar nomination for his role as a gay cowboy in 2005's "Brokeback Mountain," one of several acclaimed for the actor in recent years. He plays the Joker in the Batman flick "The Dark Knight," set to come out later this year.
Before moving to Manhattan, Ledger lived with then-girlfriend Michelle Williams in a Brooklyn brownstone with a black wrought-iron fence. Ledger split last year with Williams, who played his wife in "Brokeback." The two had a daughter, 2-year-old Matilda.
Williams and Matilda returned to their Brooklyn home Wednesday evening from Sweden. The 27-year-old actress had been there shooting scenes for the upcoming film "Mammoth," said Martin Stromberg, a spokesman for film production company Memfis Film.
Makeshift tributes and memorials continued to pile up Thursday in front of Ledger's apartment building, including candles, handwritten notes and more than 100 bouquets.
___
Associated Press Writers Clare Trapasso and Verena Dobnik contributed to this report.
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resignedPosted:
Fri Jan 25, 2008 4:49 am
Sad unveiling ... his portrait of Ledger by Vincent Fantauzzo was to be entered for the Archibald Prize. Ledger sat for the artist in Perth only last month.
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resignedPosted:
Fri Jan 25, 2008 4:52 am
Anti-Gay Church to Protest Ledger Funeral Church Known for Protests of Soldiers' Funerals, to Picket Actor's Memorial
By RUSSELL GOLDMAN
Jan. 24, 2008—
A fundamentalist church whose members demonstrate at the funerals of soldiers killed in Iraq and believe God hates gays will protest the Academy Awards and the funeral of Heath Ledger, because the actor played a gay cowboy in the 2005 film "Brokeback Mountain."
Members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kan., are trying to find out where the 28-year-old actor's funeral will be held and have already made signs to hold outside the Oscars that read "God Hates Fags and Fag Enablers," "Heath in Hell" and "Mourn for Your Sins," Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of the church's controversial founder Pastor Fred Phelps, told ABCNEWS.com.
Though Ledger was not gay, the church believes he "misused the giant megaphone given to him by God Almighty to speak the truth about fags," Phelps-Roper said, and instead "used his position of prominence to say God is a liar and that homosexuality is not an abomination."
The time and location of the Ledger's funeral remain unknown, but it is widely believed it will take place in the actor's native Australia.
George Amado, the general manager of New York City's Frank E. Campbell funeral home, told The Associated Press that funeral arrangements for the actor are complete and his relatives are expected to arrive in New York City Friday.
He refused to elaborate further, saying, "The family doesn't want us to give out any information."
"They are going to try and hide the body like a bunch of ghouls so we can't protest. The only thing in this country people worship more than filthy sex acts is the dead," Phelps-Roper said.
She said members of the church had already purchased plane tickets to picket outside the Oscars, scheduled for Feb. 24 in Hollywood.
A press release posted to the church's Web site, godhatesfags.com, reads: "Heath Ledger is now in Hell, and has begun serving his eternal sentence there -- besides which, nothing else about Heath Ledger is relevant or consequential."
According to the Web site, the church, founded in 1955, has held more than 34,000 protests. But Phelps-Roper said there are currently only 50 members.
Hate Group, or Religious Freedom?
The Southern Poverty Law Center considers the church a hate group because of its "platform, writings and statements by its leader, which are egregiously anti-gay," said Mark Potok, director of the center's Intelligence Project.
"The group is made up of people who are almost literally out of their minds," Potok said. "In addition to regularly picketing the deaths of American soldiers killed in Iraq, they have picketed the funeral of little girls killed in a school bus crash because they wanted to link the death of children with 'America's sin.'"
Last year a Baltimore jury determined the Westboro Baptist Church was too vulgar and offensive to be covered by the First Amendment. The church was ordered to pay nearly $11 million to Albert Snyder, who brought a suit after the Phelps clan picketed the funeral of his 20-year-old son Matthew, who died while serving in Iraq.
The group routinely uses young children on its picket lines, sometimes giving them signs featuring explicit images to carry.
According to Potok, the only members of the church are Fred Phelps' family members.
"I doubt there is anyone in America who thinks more about gay sex than Fred Phelps," Potok said.
Ledger, 28, was found dead at the foot of his bed in his rented Soho loft Tuesday with several bottles of prescription drugs nearby. A preliminary autopsy completed Wednesday was unable to determine what killed the actor.
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resignedPosted:
Fri Jan 25, 2008 4:57 am
Heath Ledger on Ellen -2006
Tribute to"The Dark Knight" Joker Heath Ledger R.I.P.
Click your heels together...
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ArubaloverPosted:
Fri Jan 25, 2008 1:39 pm
How much of an idiot do you have to be not to know to call 911 first? That masseuse has to be in the top 10 catagory of idiots. I know it was too late, but to make that many phone calls and say that she wasn't sure what to do is just stupid.
Oh, and that anti-gay group needs to get a life and leave Heath's loved ones alone.
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