Heath Ledger 1979 - 2008
January 23rd 2008 06:17
This may not be filmfestival related, but I am shocked and saddened by the sudden death of Australian born Actor Heath Ledger. Acclaimed for his role as a gay cowboy in the film "Brokeback Mountain," Heath was found dead in his Manhattan apartment on Tuesday, possibly of a drug overdose, police said.
He was pronounced dead at the scene but no cause had been determined.
"We are investigating the possibility of an overdose. ... There were pills within the vicinity of the bed," police spokesman Paul Browne said, adding that the prescription medicine included sleeping pills.
The housekeeper found Ledger at 3:26 p.m., and tried to wake him for his appointment with a masseuse. When they were unable to wake him they immediately phoned the authorities byut there was nothing anyone could do. A medical examiner conducted a preliminary investigation and Ledger's body was wheeled out of the fifth-floor apartment in a stretcher, covered in a black body bag, about three hours after he was found.
"I had such great hope for him," Mel Gibson said in a statement released by his publicist. "He was just taking off and to lose his life at such a young age is a tragic loss." Gibson, who starred alongside Ledger in the film "The Patriot," said his thoughts and prayers were with the younger actor's family.
Named after the lead in Emily Bronte's WUTHERING HEIGHTS Heathcliff Andrew Ledger was born on April 4 1979 and grew up in the West Australian city of Perth. With such an auspicious name he was destined for fame. His love of acting was apparent from an early age and he was soon auditioning and getting big roles firstly on the small screen then converting his success onto the big screen.
Heath rose to fame when cast in the TV series ROAR in 1997 and within two yearswas box office gold starring in the Australian Gangster flick TWO HANDS before heading off for his first major Hollywood filmrole in 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU alongside Julia Stiles. Th efollowing year he worked with Mel Gibson in THE PATRIOT and continued to impress before he was finally awarded an OSCAR nomination for his role as a gay cowboy in BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN.
Ledger had a daughter Matilda with his then girlfriend Michelle Williams in 2005 before they finally seperated last year.
Heath was a definite star in his own right and was one of the leaders of the new generation of genuinely talented actors, those few who pave the way for the rest to follow and like such other notable tragic deaths such as James Dean and River Phoenix before him the film world has lost another of their sons to the pitfalls that sometimes appear within their industry.
FILMOGRAPHY.
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) (filming)
The Dark Knight (2008) (post-production) .... The Joker
I'm Not There. (2007) .... Robbie Clark
Candy (2006) .... Dan
Casanova (2005) .... Casanova
... aka Femur (Philippines: English title)
Brokeback Mountain (2005) .... Ennis Del Mar
The Brothers Grimm (2005) .... Jacob Grimm
Lords of Dogtown (2005) .... Skip
... aka American Knights (Philippines: English title)
... aka Dogtown Boys (Germany)
The Order (2003) .... Alex Bernier
... aka The Sin Eater (Australia) (Singapore: English title) (UK) (USA: working title)
... aka Sin Eater - Die Seele des Bösen (Germany)
Ned Kelly (2003) .... Ned Kelly
... aka Ned Kelly: Public Enemy No. 1 (Philippines: English title: poster title)
The Four Feathers (2002) .... Harry Faversham
Monster's Ball (2001) .... Sonny Grotowski
... aka Bal du monstre, Le (Canada: French title)
A Knight's Tale (2001) .... Sir William Thatcher / Sir Ulrich von Lichtenstein of Gelderland
The Patriot (2000) .... Gabriel Martin
... aka Patriot, Der (Germany)
"Roar" .... Conor (13 episodes, 1997-2000)
- Sweet Bridget (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- The Cage (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- Daybreak (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- Traps (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- Tash (2000) TV episode .... Conor
Two Hands (1999) .... Jimmy
10 Things I Hate About You (1999) .... Patrick Verona
"Home and Away" (1988) TV series .... Scott Irwin (unknown episodes, 1997)
Paws (1997) .... Oberon
Blackrock (1997) .... Toby Ackland
"Sweat" .... Snowy Bowles (1 episode, 1996)
- Just Good Friends (1996) TV episode .... Snowy Bowles
"Ship to Shore" (1993) TV series .... Cyclist (unknown episodes)
Clowning Around (1992)
FILMOGRAPHY COURTESY of WWW.IMDB.COM
RIP Heath Ledger April 4 1979 - January 22 2008
He was pronounced dead at the scene but no cause had been determined.
"We are investigating the possibility of an overdose. ... There were pills within the vicinity of the bed," police spokesman Paul Browne said, adding that the prescription medicine included sleeping pills.
"I had such great hope for him," Mel Gibson said in a statement released by his publicist. "He was just taking off and to lose his life at such a young age is a tragic loss." Gibson, who starred alongside Ledger in the film "The Patriot," said his thoughts and prayers were with the younger actor's family.
Named after the lead in Emily Bronte's WUTHERING HEIGHTS Heathcliff Andrew Ledger was born on April 4 1979 and grew up in the West Australian city of Perth. With such an auspicious name he was destined for fame. His love of acting was apparent from an early age and he was soon auditioning and getting big roles firstly on the small screen then converting his success onto the big screen.
Heath rose to fame when cast in the TV series ROAR in 1997 and within two yearswas box office gold starring in the Australian Gangster flick TWO HANDS before heading off for his first major Hollywood filmrole in 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU alongside Julia Stiles. Th efollowing year he worked with Mel Gibson in THE PATRIOT and continued to impress before he was finally awarded an OSCAR nomination for his role as a gay cowboy in BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN.
Ledger had a daughter Matilda with his then girlfriend Michelle Williams in 2005 before they finally seperated last year.
Heath was a definite star in his own right and was one of the leaders of the new generation of genuinely talented actors, those few who pave the way for the rest to follow and like such other notable tragic deaths such as James Dean and River Phoenix before him the film world has lost another of their sons to the pitfalls that sometimes appear within their industry.
FILMOGRAPHY.
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) (filming)
The Dark Knight (2008) (post-production) .... The Joker
I'm Not There. (2007) .... Robbie Clark
Candy (2006) .... Dan
Casanova (2005) .... Casanova
... aka Femur (Philippines: English title)
Brokeback Mountain (2005) .... Ennis Del Mar
The Brothers Grimm (2005) .... Jacob Grimm
Lords of Dogtown (2005) .... Skip
... aka American Knights (Philippines: English title)
... aka Dogtown Boys (Germany)
The Order (2003) .... Alex Bernier
... aka The Sin Eater (Australia) (Singapore: English title) (UK) (USA: working title)
... aka Sin Eater - Die Seele des Bösen (Germany)
Ned Kelly (2003) .... Ned Kelly
... aka Ned Kelly: Public Enemy No. 1 (Philippines: English title: poster title)
The Four Feathers (2002) .... Harry Faversham
Monster's Ball (2001) .... Sonny Grotowski
... aka Bal du monstre, Le (Canada: French title)
A Knight's Tale (2001) .... Sir William Thatcher / Sir Ulrich von Lichtenstein of Gelderland
The Patriot (2000) .... Gabriel Martin
... aka Patriot, Der (Germany)
"Roar" .... Conor (13 episodes, 1997-2000)
- Sweet Bridget (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- The Cage (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- Daybreak (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- Traps (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- Tash (2000) TV episode .... Conor
Two Hands (1999) .... Jimmy
10 Things I Hate About You (1999) .... Patrick Verona
"Home and Away" (1988) TV series .... Scott Irwin (unknown episodes, 1997)
Paws (1997) .... Oberon
Blackrock (1997) .... Toby Ackland
"Sweat" .... Snowy Bowles (1 episode, 1996)
- Just Good Friends (1996) TV episode .... Snowy Bowles
"Ship to Shore" (1993) TV series .... Cyclist (unknown episodes)
Clowning Around (1992)
FILMOGRAPHY COURTESY of WWW.IMDB.COM
RIP Heath Ledger April 4 1979 - January 22 2008
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