Heath Ledger found dead?

[Redtail]

Did I just hear this on the news? Sad if true.

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Did I just hear this on the news? Sad if true.

I don't know. Did you?

[PrincessIneffabelle]

It's true.

:(

[Redtail]

I don't know. Did you?

Yep. lead story on Fox now.

[WildCat]

It's true... (http://edition.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/Movies/01/22/heath.ledger.dead/index.html)

[mr rosewater]

So young, drugs?

[Redtail]

Man, his career seemed like it was really going well too. Growing as an actor. Some really good roles. :(

[Redtail]

So young, drugs?

Seems so. They found prescription drugs around the body.

[The Central Scrutinizer]

I'm wondering if this is god's punishment for him portraying a homosexual in a positive light?

[KingMerv00]

Wow. Not to sound callous but did he finish his filming on the Batman sequal?

I mostly ask because his performance in the previews I have seen got me looking forward to it. I'd hate to see it go to waste.

[sthomson]

Wow. Not to sound callous but did he finish his filming on the Batman sequal?

Sadly, I had exactly the same thought...

It looks like The Dark Knight is in post-production, and they're already showing sneak previews of the unfinished movie, so hopefully Ledger's death won't affect the release all that much.

Ledger was one of the first actors I ever had a super mega-duty crush on, right after he released A Knight's Tale. Such a waste.

[Redtail]

Wow. Not to sound callous but did he finish his filming on the Batman sequal?

I mostly ask because his performance in the previews I have seen got me looking forward to it. I'd hate to see it go to waste.

Yeah he did. They're in the polishing stages now. Also I was in Chicago when they wrapped there.

[ravdin]

Surprising, and sad. I'm sure the celebrity gossip rags will have a field day kicking him around for a while.

[dudalb]

Wow. Not to sound callous but did he finish his filming on the Batman sequal?

I mostly ask because his performance in the previews I have seen got me looking forward to it. I'd hate to see it go to waste.


Yes,..principal photography is done...but they will have to find somebody who can do a perfect imitation of his voice for post production. I do not envy Christopher Nolan over the next few weeks.
Yeah,this sucks bigtime. He was one of the most promising actors around,and "Dark Knight" was one of the films I was really,really,looking forward to. I will still see it,but it won't be the same.

[KingMerv00]

Yeah he did. They're in the polishing stages now. Also I was in Chicago when they wrapped there.

Well I suppose I would call that good. Silver lining at all that.

[ravdin]

On another note- why does it seem to be the good ones who die way too young? It wouldn't sadden me at all if Paris Hilton wrapped her car around a tree, or if Mel Gibson accidentally impaled himself on a giant crucifix, or if Tom Cruise was picked up by L. Ron Hubbard's mothership and disappeared from the planet for good.

It's almost enough to make me believe in woo.

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

How sad. What a sad waste.

This is really awful but it occurred to me that with the Oscars coming up, he and Brad Renfro couldn't have had "better" timing for the "dead people reel". :( I can just imagine someone reading about it today and memo-ing whoever does these things to add it to his list.

[four elevener]

I'm wondering if this is god's punishment for him portraying a homosexual in a positive light?


If so, can we expect Phelps and his posse at the funeral?

[petra10]

On the news they are saying sleeping tablets were found.Surely this isn't a suicide.It maybe even accidental.

How can people like Amy Winehouse and Pete Docherty take alsorts of drugs and still be alive. On The Sun newspaper's website they have a video of Amy taking drugs.Its at 5 o'clock in the morning in her own house and she is smoking crack.

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

On the news they are saying sleeping tablets were found.Surely this isn't a suicide.It maybe even accidental.

How can people like Amy Winehouse and Pete Docherty take alsorts of drugs and still be alive. On The Sun newspaper's website they have a video of Amy taking drugs.Its at 5 o'clock in the morning in her own house and she is smoking crack.

As an obituary writer for a major American paper put it, "Who in 60s could have guessed that John Denver would be dead today and Keith Richards would still be alive?!"

[shalomsteph]

He missed the 27 club (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/27_Club) by a year. The sad thing is he had a 2 year old daughter, Matilda.

I guess Britney or Jeff Conaway (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Conaway) will go next, to round out the "three." Britney has to wait a little while to be in the 27 club, though.

[The Fool]

So sad.

He most definitely had the power to suspend disbelief. Great actors can do that....When you can be watching a move and be drawn into it, suspending the part of your brain that reminds you its just a movie...


actually, thats enough of the soppy stuff. I liked his movies, even the one with the hot monkey lovin in the tent...

[Cain]

Ledger was one of the first actors I ever had a super mega-duty crush on, right after he released A Knight's Tale. Such a waste.

Are you talking about A Knight's Tale or Heath Ledger? I thought someone on the A Knight's Tale IMDb board got it right when he said, "Somebody needed to die for making this movie."

EeneyMinnieMoe:
As an obituary writer for a major American paper put it, "Who in 60s could have guessed that John Denver would be dead today and Keith Richards would still be alive?!"

And that writer is ripping off an old Bill Hicks joke.

[Complexity]

I'm wondering if this is god's punishment for him portraying a homosexual in a positive light?


I know that some burros with beanies are thinking this, but I'm disappointed.

I liked the guy. I'm sorry he died so young.

Enough said.

[Rolfe]

they will have to find somebody who can do a perfect imitation of his voice for post production.


Keep this up and you're going to get this thread moved to CT.. "The airphone calls were faked using voice-morphing technology, which is so perfect it can fool even close relatives...."

By the way, what does Jeff Conaway have to do with the price of fish? He's even older than I am!

Rolfe.

[RenaissanceBiker]

The Westboro Baptist Church responds in typical fashion.
http://i29.tinypic.com/o93lgl.jpg

[The Central Scrutinizer]

The Westboro Baptist Church responds in typical fashion.
http://i29.tinypic.com/o93lgl.jpg

I was mourning his loss. But that is before I realized he was a fag-enabler.

[bjb]

Not having seen any of these movies, I don't know anything about this guy, but I read the story and this caught my attention:

He said 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 New York 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 description of being physically exhausted while his mind was still going is a symptom of manic-depression. At the beginning of the manic phase, your mind 'races' with uncontrollable thoughts. The fact that he was Ambien-proof is another sign that something was going on with his brain. I think it is possible that he was bipolar but undiagnosed.

In any case, his comments explain why he had the sleeping pills and why he might have taken too many by accident. His doctor should have been concerned that Ambien wasn't working and should have tried to figure out what was really going on with him.

[Moon-Spinner]

bjb - When I read this same news quote, my thoughts were tending toward the same thing you just said. My thoughts are also that this was an accidental death, and that he was trying to hard to relieve the "Pain"

Other than that, all I can think of is "CRAP!"



Crap Crap Crap.......

[sthomson]

Are you talking about A Knight's Tale or Heath Ledger? I thought someone on the A Knight's Tale IMDb board got it right when he said, "Somebody needed to die for making this movie."

Well, it was perfect for its audience. Note: cynical 15-25 year old boys who hang out on IMDB were not the audience for that film.

[dudalb]

Well, it was perfect for its audience. Note: cynical 15-25 year old boys who hang out on IMDB were not the audience for that film.

Bingo.
I thought the film was good for a few laughs, (as did most people in the Society for Creative Anachronism province I belong to) but it certainly hit it's target audience.
And Cain's Oh So Hip Cyncism and forced Edginess is really,really,tired.

[dudalb]

Not having seen any of these movies, I don't know anything about this guy, but I read the story and this caught my attention:

He said 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 New York 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 description of being physically exhausted while his mind was still going is a symptom of manic-depression. At the beginning of the manic phase, your mind 'races' with uncontrollable thoughts. The fact that he was Ambien-proof is another sign that something was going on with his brain. I think it is possible that he was bipolar but undiagnosed.

In any case, his comments explain why he had the sleeping pills and why he might have taken too many by accident. His doctor should have been concerned that Ambien wasn't working and should have tried to figure out what was really going on with him.


And you got your doctorate in Psychology from.....

This is all we need.Antoher Dr. Phil wannabe.

[Darth Rotor]

Are you talking about A Knight's Tale or Heath Ledger? I thought someone on the A Knight's Tale IMDb board got it right when he said, "Somebody needed to die for making this movie."
I agree.
And that writer is ripping off an old Bill Hicks joke.
Yeah.

Where were you the day Heath Ledger died? (http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=104303)

DR

[Alt+F4]

On another note- why does it seem to be the good ones who die way too young?

Same reason why George Bush won't be assassinated. Ever notice that most 20th century political assassinations occured when the victim was doing a good job (or was at least perceived to be)?

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

Same reason why George Bush won't be assassinated. Ever notice that most 20th century political assassinations occured when the victim was doing a good job (or was at least perceived to be)?

You mean like Che Guevara, the Russian Tzar, Panco Villa, Trotsky, African dictators, Middle Eastern tyrants, Latin American military and Communist dictators and revolutionaries, George Lincoln Rockwell, Indira Gandhi, both the founder and the co-founder of Hamas, Communists, fascists, terrorists, authoritarians, fundamentalists, theocrats, military dictators and autocrats?

I don't think it's the perceived Jesus figures who usually get assassinated for being too good- I think it's lousy excuses for human beings by other lousy excuses for human beings.

Being bad is the biggest reason to get assassinated.

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

Here's a bizzare detail of his death:

http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080124/D8UBTDDG0.html


At 2:45 p.m., the massage therapist showed up for Ledger's appointment, knocked on his door and got no answer. She later noticed Ledger was unconscious and called Mary Kate Olsen, whose number was programmed into Ledger's cell phone, to seek advice.
Olsen said she would send over her private security. In the ensuing moments, the massage therapist realized that Ledger might be dead, and called 911. Paramedics - and Olsen's security people - arrived minutes later.


Say what?! :confused: Yeah, that's the first thing to do when you find a dead body- call one of the Olsen twins.

[Darth Rotor]

At 2:45 p.m., the massage therapist showed up for Ledger's appointment, knocked on his door and got no answer. She later noticed Ledger was unconscious and called Mary Kate Olsen, whose number was programmed into Ledger's cell phone, to seek advice.
Olsen said she would send over her private security. In the ensuing moments, the massage therapist realized that Ledger might be dead, and called 911. Paramedics - and Olsen's security people - arrived minutes later.

Say what?! :confused: Yeah, that's the first thing to do when you find a dead body- call one of the Olsen twins.
Pure comedy gold. Belushi would be proud of this numb nuts.

DR

[The Fool]

*****!! Maybe the pair of them fly around in tights and capes....with Big O's on them.

[sthomson]

I assuming the masseuse wanted to give Ms. Olsen a chance to clean up any drug paraphernalia before they called for an ambulance. Sad, but a definite possibility.

[Complexity]

I was mourning his loss. But that is before I realized he was a fag-enabler.


Thanks for clarifying what kind of man you are.

You are so not worth knowing.

Ignored.

[TragicMonkey]

I was mourning his loss. But that is before I realized he was a fag-enabler.

Damn it, that's what's been wrong with my web browser. I forgot to click the box "enable fag"! I wondered why I couldn't get to any naughty sites that interested me.

eta: Damnation! Once again, I spill to the top of page 2 with an off-color remark. I hate that, it gives everyone the impression I'm some sort of freak. Well, maybe I am, but I don't need people to realize it.

[bjb]

Thanks for clarifying what kind of man you are.

You are so not worth knowing.

Ignored.

I'm pretty sure that was a joke because it was made in response to the comment from Fred Phelps.

By the way, I read that the family is keeping funeral arrangements secret, so the Phelps' won't be able to picket.

[shalomsteph]

I'm pretty sure that was a joke because it was made in response to the comment from Fred Phelps.

By the way, I read that the family is keeping funeral arrangements secret, so the Phelps' won't be able to picket.


I hope it is top secret. He has a toddler, for *****'s sake. I don't know how aware she would be of people screaming bad things about her daddy, but still...I am fairly sure someone will be taping it for her to see when she is older. It is bad enough that she will always have this emptiness where her daddy should be.She doesn't need a video with her dad's coffin being put in the ground with "Fag enabler! Heath in hell!" in the background.

Please do not attempt to circumvent the autocensor.

[Darth Rotor]

Thanks for clarifying what kind of man you are.

You are so not worth knowing.

Ignored.
Complexity, if you know Scrut, you know that his post was dripping with irony and sarcasm. That he didn't use smilies does not mean that his post was other than Colbert like in its intent.

Methinks you leapt too soon.

DR

[Complexity]

Complexity, if you know Scrut, you know that his post was dripping with irony and sarcasm. That he didn't use smilies does not mean that his post was other than Colbert like in its intent.

Methinks you leapt too soon.

DR


We'll see. If that's the case, he's got two dry-as-dust-'funny' posts in this thread that are indistinguishable from hatred.

I'm waiting for a reply to a pm...

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

We'll see. If that's the case, he's got two dry-as-dust-'funny' posts in this thread that are indistinguishable from hatred.


That's what parody and satire and all irony is- saying the same thing but meaning a completely different thing by it.

I don't know why lately I'm the only person able to spot parody; I suppose it's because sarcasm is harder to detect in written form.

[Complexity]

The problem is that several members of this forum could and have said those things and meant them.

I don't know The Central Scrutinizer. I've read many of his posts, but he doesn't seem to have made much of an impression, as I can't remember what I've thought of them or of him.

I still don't know how he intended his posts in this thread to be taken.

Enough.

[four elevener]

I like SC's dry (and sometimes grotesque) humor, so I took his post as a joke. And if he wasn't joking, then God be with him!

[Darth Rotor]

I like SC's dry (and sometimes grotesque) humor, so I took his post as a joke. And if he wasn't joking, then God be with him!
Is that the loving God of the NT, or the jealous and hard line God of the OT?

DR

[four elevener]

Is that the loving God of the NT, or the jealous and hard line God of the OT?

DR


God of the OT, of course. What good is punishment by a supreme being if it's not violent, brutal and sadistic?

[luchog]

We'll see. If that's the case, he's got two dry-as-dust-'funny' posts in this thread that are indistinguishable from hatred.

Some of us are capable of understanding and appreciating dry humour.

[Complexity]

I'm not convinced it was intended as humor.

I'm tired of people.

[TragicMonkey]

I'm tired of people.

Tired of people? Get away from your troubles with a nice vacation to Planet of the Apes! Planet of the Apes offers fine dining, horseback riding, monument restoration, nude beaches, and gun ownership! Enjoy all of these activities while staying at one of our luxury two-star hotels! And best of all, no people to wear you out with their humanity! Why wait? Get your damned dirty paws onto a telephone and call 1-888-APE-VISIT today! Forget your problems with a vacation to remember on Planet of the Apes!

[Darth Rotor]

I'm not convinced it was intended as humor.

I'm tired of people.
Then you may be in Hell already.

According to Ambrose Bierce (or was it Oscar Wilde?)

"Hell is other people."

Hmmm, maybe you are tired of Hell.

*scratches head*

This may take a few more Guinness to puzzle out.

DR

[lionking]

Just getting back to the OP for a moment, I have just watched "The Patriot" and IMHO his best movie ""Two Hands". I will miss him.

[Complexity]

Then you may be in Hell already.

According to Ambrose Bierce (or was it Oscar Wilde?)

"Hell is other people."

Hmmm, maybe you are tired of Hell.

*scratches head*

This may take a few more Guinness to puzzle out.

DR


I just posted in the 'living in heaven forever' thread. I'm agin it.

Ten more years, much of it unburdened with the presence of people, should be more than enough.

A few friends - wonderful, at least in small doses. The rest - their parents shouldn't have.

Think I'll crawl back in bed and catch another hour of sleep. The cats are waiting.

[ponderingturtle]

The problem is that several members of this forum could and have said those things and meant them.


I don't think so. The specific term "fag enabler" seems to be pretty specific to Phelps, and finding someone who agrees with him on anything is pretty hard to do, in part because he classes everyone who is not in his church as that.

So something with similar venom might well be posted but not the same thing.

[Complexity]

I won't read anything by Phelps.

Counting on anyone recognizing Phelps-favored terms is foolish.

This also doesn't account for his first post in this thread.

It doesn't matter. If it was intended to be funny, it wasn't, at least not to me. I'm sick of this crap. I'm better off without it in any form.

[sthomson]

It seems to me, Complexity, that you've stated your point clearly and explicitly. I doubt that The Central Scrutinizer is going to apologize, or s/he would have done so by now. And I don't believe any of his/her supporters are going to see his/her comment as anything but very dry wit. I don't see the purpose of continuing to argue your point (although I'm sure there are many people who are glad that you made it).

[slingblade]

He still died. It's still sad. Just that. I'd like to think that any death merits at least a passing nod from us and maybe a second's murmur of "that's a shame," or "oh, poor guy."

I'd imagine everyone has at least one person, just one, whom they know only through fame, and whose death would make them stop for at least a second and feel the loss.

And I liked Knight's Tale. The music makes me happy.



Anyway....poor guy. That's a real shame.

[ponderingturtle]

I won't read anything by Phelps.

Counting on anyone recognizing Phelps-favored terms is foolish.


Then you are clearly stateing that you will not understand the context of the joke.

[Complexity]

Then you are clearly stateing that you will not understand the context of the joke.


There is not a context in which I'll regard it as a joke.

The Central Scrutinizer no longer exists in the forum that I participate in.

Drop it, turtle.

[The Central Scrutinizer]

There is not a context in which I'll regard it as a joke.

The Central Scrutinizer no longer exists in the forum that I participate in.

Drop it, turtle.

Yes I do!

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Accidental OD: http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/Movies/02/06/heath.ledger/index.html

[dudalb]

Shades of Elvis.

[BPSCG]

Shades of Elvis.
"Mr. Heath Ledger died as the result of acute intoxication by the combined effects of oxycodone, hydrocodone, diazepam, temazepam, alprazolam, and doxylamine," the office said in a short statement.
Is there such a thing as a diagnosis of "death by Hollywood doctor"? My mother doesn't take that many meds and she's 80 years old.

I can't imagine how many prescription drugs Britney Spears must be on.

Almost unrelated thought: When a celebrity endorses a political candidate, should we demand to know what prescription drugs he's taking, if any?

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Is there such a thing as a diagnosis of "death by Hollywood doctor"?

I'm wondering if it was doctor(s)? He traveled the world, and I believe some of his prescriptions were from Europe. So if multiple doctors don't know what other doctors have prescribed, and if the patient hides that information, either by error or design, these things can happen.

[WildCat]

I'm wondering if it was doctor(s)? He traveled the world, and I believe some of his prescriptions were from Europe. So if multiple doctors don't know what other doctors have prescribed, and if the patient hides that information, either by error or design, these things can happen.
Those are some hard-core pain killers. Unless he had some form of excruciatingly painful cancer, or bones sticking out of his flesh, or some other equally painful condition I see no reason why those doctors shouldn't be prosecuted for manslaughter or at least lose their medical licenses forever.

[BPSCG]

This should surprise no one (http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/news/bal-to.hs.prescription07feb07,0,5243276.story):

"It's a growing problem," said Steve Robertson, special agent for special affairs with the Drug Enforcement Administration.

"People seem to think that because prescription drugs are made in a lab, that they can't hurt you. Misuse of pharmaceuticals can be just as dangerous as so-called harder drugs. This case [Ledger's] is an example. ... It can cost you your life."

The DEA has joined the New York Police Department in investigating Ledger's death, to see if there was an illegal diversion of prescription drugs, Robertson said.

Ledger's death at age 28 has been deemed accidental by the medical examiner. But the combination of drugs he ingested evidently went far beyond any medical direction he might have received.

"A person would never be prescribed all these drugs at the same time. An opioid [painkiller] and benzodiazepine could have medical use, but never this number," said Dr. Andrew Coop, chairman of the Department of Pharmacy Sciences at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy.