Heath Ledger Found Dead in NYC Apartment

does anyone know his address?!?!

The Ultimate Warrior says fug you.

HEATH ALERT

He counted on Ambien

And with it he dozed

But he counted too many

Now the Ledger is closed.

Lots of people die, it's life. Yes it is unfortunate and sad, but isn't it even more sad when the media freaks out and digs into this person's life and family's business?

#80 just do what everyone else does, ignore babyhitler. That commenter's opinions consistently read like an exceptionally immature pre-teen.

#80 just do what everyone else does, ignore babyhitler. That commenter's opinions consistently read like an exceptionally immature pre-teen.

Yes Aristocrat I am great to work for. I pay my employees well, full health benefits, year end performance bonuses, company party for my employees and their families, contribute to local charities. My employees work hard because I treat them like family. What do you do besides speculate? I do more for people than an actor.

You must be a real pleasure for whom to work. And you're using the word "induce" incorrectly.

This is a very sad loss considering he was someone with talent who had a brilliant career ahead of him. RIP Heath. At least we still have Britney.

If he was shooting heroin, would you all have the same reaction? Doubtful.

Politburo:

I agree. It is weak words and phrases like "passed" and "no longer with us" that diminish what death is. The End! The photo is terrifying, stark and brutally honest. And the world needs more honesty, even if it leaves us feeling sick.

Aristocrat, wrong. I own my own business, that was always my career goal. What a stupid assumption. And you shouldn't use quotes around a non quote. I simply choose not to live my life being interested in so called celebrities like many who are obsessed with them. If this guy was inducing pills into his body without knowing the consequences of them (especially adverse reactions to mixing prescribed meds), that's his responsibility.

Has our society has become so detached from death that even a picture of a body bag is now offensive?

75 - babyhitler's username is anti-semitic? REALLY? thanks for pointing that out.

I think Michelle and Heath still loved each other very much. I only take that from the dignity and privacy they handled their breakup and how they focused on making sure Matilda was the focus of their lives. I think they each did all they could together but if Heath had the addictions he supposedly had, that's no place for a baby and it only drags the whole family down. Matilda got the best times her father had to offer and she was spared the ugly effects of living with an addict. Unfortunately she's now also denied her father. Michelle and Matilda Williams had the longest flight of their lives last night. I hope they can be given some peace and solitude before the shutter bulbs start flashing in her face.

People who say "There are plenty of people who are more deserving of attention than actors and musicians" typically wanted to be one themselves, and need to settle it in their own jealous mind somehow. I bet bornbrednewyorker is one of them.

Good morning. So, I see that he is still dead. Any new story? None that I see.

God. How sad. No one should end up being wheeled away in a body bag at 28. His poor family. This is just so sad.

"babyhitler" is pathetic and the username is anti-semetic.

Excellent actor. I, for one, will miss the possibilities of future roles. RIP, Heath Ledger, and thanks for the celluloid.

Buspar is now an anti-anxiety drug...

Back when I had a case of samples it was for back pain...

Read the details and get informed so you can quit pulling stuff from your ass-umptions. His death has not been ruled a suicide, so enough snarking already. It might be an accident. If he was on an antibiotic like Linezolid for the pneumonia (which would be weird, but who knows), it could have acted as an MAOI and adversely interacted with his anti-anxiety meds (e.g., lorazepam or buspar) and caused hypertension and tachycardia, which may have led to the cardiac arrest that killed him. And why are you #66 now starting a dogpile on his ex-girlfriend too? Can we all please reserve judgment until the facts come out? Or better yet, how about 'til never?

Read the details and get informed so you can quit pulling stuff from your ass-umptions. His death has not been ruled a suicide, so enough snarking already. It might be an accident. If he was on an antibiotic like Linezolid for the pneumonia (which would be weird, but who knows), it could have acted as an MAOI and adversely interacted with his anti-anxiety meds (e.g., lorazepam or buspar) and caused hypertension and tachycardia, which may have led to the cardiac arrest that killed him. And why are you #66 now starting a dogpile on his ex-girlfriend too? Can we all please reserve judgment until the facts come out? Or better yet, how about 'til never?

I guess not everything is evaluated by money.

If Sergey Brin and Larry Page died before they founded Google, it will be probably another two kids did the same stuff around the same time and an alternative Google still comes up, because the timing, environment and demand were there.

But I think for artists, their own persona are harder to be replaced. Just like coolmidwestguy has his idiosyncratic sarcasm. If coolmidwestguy passed away, we will lose a unique source of sarcasm in this world. Of course we will wonder who will miss him.

Sorry, but I reserve my sympathies for those in this world who were never afforded the same opportunities as this guy but still manage to muster up their strength during life's ordeals

Well goody goody for you. And I bet one of "those in this world" is you.

What makes it sad for me is that he was too young to go, he had talent, he left a huge impression on me in Brokeback Mountain, his "friends" saw this coming and didn't do squat, and his wife probably divorced him for alcohol abuse in the first place (she didn't even have the strength to maintain 2 years of marriage! How unsupportive and weak).

Sorry, but I reserve my sympathies for those in this world who were never afforded the same opportunities as this guy but still manage to muster up their strength during life's ordeals

Well goody goody for you. And I bet one of "those in this world" is you.

What makes it sad for me is that he was too young to go, he had talent, he left a huge impression with me in Brokeback Mountain, his "friends" saw this coming and didn't do squat, and his wife probably divorced him for alcohol abuse in the first place (she didn't even have the strength to maintain 2 years of marriage! How unsupportive and weak).

Well, this certainly puts a cap on one of the busier newsdays in memory...Wall Street craziness, Oscars announced, Fred Thompson resigns, Jose Padilla gets sentenced, and now this. RIP Mr. Ledger.

It's a real shame. To think that for his next movie he could have made twice that he made in Brokeback. Such a "loss of possibilities" in this young life cut short.

Very sad, he will be missed. You all notice how the "flaming" posts try to be funny but are just retarded? Yeah I noticed too.

Non-celebrities' lives and deaths affect the people who know them personally. Celebrities' lives and deaths affect large numbers of people; talking about it in a public forum makes people feel connected. It's not that strange.

I agree with the folks who think the body bag photo is disrespectful.

Jonas Salk was a great scientist and helped billions of human beings not suffering from Polio. But for anyone who is capable of living through 80, I will not expect more from his/her life. Almost all their achievement are done deals.

But for any person who dies at 28 and has been doing pretty well in what he/she committed himself/herself to, it is a little bit sad because I will be always wondering the alternative world when he or she is still alive. It is more poetic to mourn for losses of possibilities.

His parents learned of his death from the media?! That is disgusting - what the hell is wrong with the NYPD?

freddyhere, exactly.

and yeah i feel sorry for his kid and loved ones. IF this was a suicide i don't feel sorry for him. I do feel sorry for kids dying of starvation, i do feel sorry for people being blown up in wars. i give homeless people money on the streets. I am not so silly that i'm moved by movies more than REAL LIFE like so many people who cry at movies but bottle their emotions in REAL LIFE. I don't live my life vocariously through movies, tv or actors. I felt bad when Jonas Salk died...

omg so sad :'(

Sorry, but I reserve my sympathies for those in this world who were never afforded the same opportunities as this guy but still manage to muster up their strength during life's ordeals...

Ugh.. look at those fucking vultures waiting to take pictures of the bodybag... disgusting.

The wires have nothing to do with taste, it's all about money.

Why is it that photo tasteless? It's an AP photo, so it's obviously tasteful enough to be put on the wires...what a bunch of nancy boys you all are...

some of you people have serious issues if you can't even respect the death of another human being. not letting it shake your world is one thing, but saying it's unimportant is horrible. i don't see you crying over dead babies in third world countries. i'm sure you are the same type of people who wouldn't bat an eye at a homeless person dead on the street because they "didn't do anything of value in the world" or some shit like that. also, just because heath ledger was succesful financially and in his career doesn't necessarily mean that he didn't have struggles in his life. there are tons of problems other than money.

Is a picture of the dude in a body bag really fucking necessary? It doesn't matter who it is, that's just fucking disrespectful.

On that note, people stop fucking caring so much about pop culture, get the fuck on with your lives.

I work around the corner... what a circus outside the building. Jeez...

A reporter even did her shopping at the store next door... well, I guess... she had a shopping bag next to her while she was talking...

C'mon - the picture is a new low for you guys.

I'm telling you, If he wore a pink tutu and black leather pants he would have won the best actor for brokeback mountain for sure. I don't care about unfamous people who die! I only care about celebrities who do.

I really couldn't care less. Does that make me a bad person?

Sorry, but the photo of the body bag on the gurney is truly tasteless.

I was truly struck back and shocked at this news today and I wasn't even a huge fan of his, I had no opinion of him whatsoever. He seemed like an excited and loving father and tried being a good husband. What is most shocking about his death is that his troubles were not public, he wasn't on anyone's radar as troubled. Neither was Brad Renfro's except that he had a history of problems. They both died with no one paying attention to their daily antics, they weren't seeking tabloid attention. Guess what? Britney will be fine! She's monitored by one form of life or another at all times and her every movement documented, yet we're all waiting for her to die. Someone will get her to the hospital before her heart stops. But these guys? If Heath and Renfro turn out to be suicides/overdoses as it appears, their despair and troubles were quite real and profound. They did not do this in front of cameras or drawn out in the papers, they were at home, secluded and truly hitting rock bottom. It's the ones we're not watching who may be in the most trouble...

"The saddest thing in life is wasted talent." - A Bronx Tale

I think that's why people feel outsized sadness when something like this happens. It's not that they were robbed of something particularly close or precious, but of something that was potentially larger than life and memorable. I never met Cary Grant or Marlon Brando, but the things they accomplished make me a little sad about the things that James Dean never did. It's a selfish grief, but pretty understandable if you ask me.

Sad new. He's the same age as me and he was fucking Mary Kate Olsen damn..

Classy photo gothamist!

I won't speak ill of the dead but I will speak ill of the living.

reading the comments from both sides has me wishing the end of the World can't come soon enough.

Please GWB do it, you know you want to. (or any of the other crazy countries)

bornbrednewyorker: I know of several people who found Heath Ledger's acting inspiring, many of them aspiring actors themselves. I know other people who were simply moved by his performances. Of course they're upset over his death. But should they not feel that sense of loss, just because he's not homeless or one paycheck away from homelessness? No one should ever get into games of "my misery/tragedy/situation is worse than yours, therefore my death is sadder." I'm sorry that people who are more well-known have more people to mourn for them, but that's reality. Do I feel pain when I see a homeless person suffering? Or a cancer patient dying? Of course. But I'm not going to file Heath Ledger's death away under "unimportant" just because he didn't meet any of those criteria. Even though it wasn't a major role that he played in the personal lives of my friends, he still had some impact on them nonetheless. Maybe our priorities as a society are screwed up, but when it comes to someone dying before his time and leaving behind a young child and legions of fans, you can't really prioritize your emotions. They don't work like that.

Bah Gawd Almighty, HHH has qualified for the Royal Rumble this sunday.

If you can't feel sorry for him feel sorry for the two-year old who hasn't done anything wrong and will now grow up without a father.

Yes, there is tragedy all over this city and especially this planet every day, but trying to establish some sort of hierarchy is pointless. It's a personal thing and the people closest to Heath Ledger probably feel as if their world has ended today. They deserve our sympathy just like anyone else who loses a loved one does.

i cant believe this shit news deserves an hourly update.

Sad?

sad are the rest of the deaths and they dont get 40 comments in 2 hours..

Sad is others who has to work hard to survive and not those who pay a $23K a month.

Every death is sad, but others are more than this.

Oh, the humanity! Wait. Who is he? And why is he famous?

Well, just look at it this way. They can start showing a Heath Ledger movie marathon and it won't take up a whole day.

mihow humanity was at its best and worst when people grieved over the victims of 9/11. THAT was tragic. What's tragic is that we're a society of people obsessed with millionaire actors and athletes. We know the name of Heath Ledger but not the names of doctors and scientists. Let Heath Ledger walk in the shoes of someone who is a paycheck away from homelessness or worst homeless or someone dying from an illnessand then he would have had reason to be depressed or in pain. Priorities are what's fucked up not some 28 year old that may have selfishly taken his life. If you can't understand that...

For the love of crap, stop with the high and mighty bullshit. If people feel a sense of loss, let them! Compassion is hardly something to become cynical over. A little girl won't know her father. That sucks. A guy is dead before his time. That sucks. We won't get to see countless movies that he would have been in. That sucks.

Let it go. Let the cynical bullshit go. If people want to care about the death of someone they don't know - famous or not - let them do so. I fail to see how this is a bad thing. No one is saying they don't care about the guy down the street.

Cynicism makes me sad. Not caring for a stranger.

According to Us magazine:

News of Heath Ledger's death has shaken friends of the actor. "This is terrible and I'm in shock," a close friend of Ledger's tells Usmagazine.com. "But to tell you the truth... we saw it coming."

"Heath has gone though a rough road of trying to get sober," the source tells Us. "Things were very dark," the source says. "His one joy was Matilda." Matilda is his 2-year-old daughter with ex-wife Michelle Williams. They split in September. "Everything else was misery for him," adds the source. "Unfortunately he was too late in getting help."

I don't think it's because he's a celebrity that people care. I think it's the sudden event of death. He was only 28 and working on a couple of movies. Then all of a sudden he dies. It makes people think I guess.

this story bumped the stock market off the front burner.

I don't know much about mr. ledger and it sounds like he's a neighborly type of guy who didn't espouse that MTV cribs/punk'd/paris demeanor so I'll just say my thoughts are with his family and little girl.

These actors always seem to die from overdosing. Can't they get someone to help them take their illegal drugs? It kinda makes me mad this heath ledger guy is dead.. he had some promise, he was a decent actor. Why can't these actors stick to marijuana and alcohol like normal people. I mean just cuz u have the money for cocaine doesn't mean u have to buy it.

It is odd how so many people express such a personal sense of loss when a celebrity with the world at his feet dies. It's a shame, yes, but hardly a tragedy.

so this guy kills himself, which ensures that his daughter will never know her biological father, and we're supposed to feel sorry for him because he was good in Brokeback Mountain? please.

People die every day and people could care less. An actor dies and everyones all caring... We as a society have the dumbest priorities.

I didn't care for him in Brokeback Mountain-I hated that "I'm a rough n' tough cowboy" gruff voice. Sounded as if he was trying way too hard to make the character stick in our minds. Still, I liked him in other things.

If it was "recreational" drug use gone overboard, what a bloody stupid idiot, what a dumb way to waste your talent and life.

If it was qa suicide, what a shame he couldn't have gotten help and gotten a way to deal with whatever was getting him down.

If it was a physical health problem, again, too bad whatever it was wasn't diagnosed and treated.

What a shame, when a child looses a loved one too early. In a perfect world, we'd all be at in our 70's when our parents die.

What's with all the ghouls camping outside the apartment? Besides, the pictures aren't going to be worth much is 100 people take them.

I just went walking by there at around 1pm...

oh, well, at least he wasn't a jumper. He could have hit me...

RIP.

Wow sometimes the lack of sympathy on this site really amazes me. Ok yes I can take a joke, but come on- this guy leaves behind a 2 year old. It should be less about whether he was a good actor or not and more about the fact that another young life ended too early.

Just... Wow.

he was an awful actor. He didn't play gay that well in brokeback mountain. He needed to be more sassy and flamboyant and shake his hips and arch his back. He played a gay guy as a straight guy. Just Awful. He should have got a pink bandanna and wear jean shorts and then he would have won an oscar for sure.

The only thing worse that Heath being dead is the dumb multiple posters on this site.

What a dumbass. Sorry, he killed himself. There isn't such a thing as an "accidental overdose". When you play with drugs, shit happens. He was a good actor but obviously he had problems. He should have stuck with booze and weed.

It's Mary Kate Olsen's apt. they had allegedly been seeing each other. There have no reports that have definitively said that it was an overdose, Jen. There has just been mention of pills. Of course, this is e veryone's suspicion, but let's not jump the gun with speculation.

10 Things I Hate About Living

that sucks. he was a young great actor...

WTF! so young. the poor guy must not have been able to deal with losing his wife & family. so sad.

That's sad to hear, His career was taking off!

thats Mary-Kate's apartment (as in one of the twins).

He leaves behind a sweet apartment:

http://www.corcoran.com/property/listing.aspx?Region=NYC&listingid=1100251

I guess this post is more apropos for Curbed

And yes, he was a great actor and will be missed. The new Batman movie will be even more hyped.

So sad. Totally unexpected.

I am reminded of River Pheonix. He was taken way too soon as well.

This is horrible. I can't stop writing that.

This reminds me of the deaths of Curt Cobain and River Phoenix. Not making a commentary on their artistic talent or cultural relevance but merely in terms of someone dying far too young.

That is a goddamn shame.

Strong winds and calm seas to you, Mr. Ledger...

very sad. was looking forward to seeing him in Batman.

The split from Michelle Williams probably really took a toll on him.

Now his daughter is without a father.

RIP.

This is fucking horrible. Horrible. Horrible sad. Terrible. I am rarely affected by celebrity stuff like this but this is truly heartbreaking. I want to cry.

Holy shit.

This is just shocking, and very, very sad.

:(

The guy was a great actor and so young.

New Victorian? more like Dead Victorian. I was just at Broome Street earlier and wondering why the fuck there were so many police cars. It smelled like burnt plastic too.

that's really, really sad.