QUOTE
HEATH Ledger has been found dead from an apparent drug overdose in a New York apartment.
The actor's family has said police have concluded the death was accidental, according to celebrity website TMZ.com. The site has also reported he was recently suffering from pneumonia.
Ledger, an Academy Award nominee, was found naked and unconscious in bed at the apartment in the trendy Manhattan area of SoHo by a housekeeper at 3.35pm (7.35am AEDT).
Prescription pills were found strewn near his body. The New York Post reported bottles of Diazepam and Alprazolam, both anti-anxiety drugs, were found in the house. Ledger said in an interview last year that he had been taking sleeping pills to combat insomnia.
New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne said: "We are investigating the possibility of an overdose."
The actor's former partner, American actor Michelle Williams, with whom Ledger had a daughter, Matilda Ledger, was "devastated" by his death and was flying to New York, TMZ said.
Ledger and Williams separated in September last year.
His death has shocked Hollywood, with stars Mel Gibson, Nicole Kidman, Aidan Young expressing their sorrow at his death. (More)
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said: "It is tragic that we have lost one of our nation's finest actors in the prime of his life." (More)
The New York Times reported that a masseuse arrived at the apartment and was let in the door by a housekeeper, who then knocked on the door of Ledger's bedroom.
When no one answered, the housekeeper and the masseuse opened the bedroom door and found Ledger unconscious.
They attempted to wake him, and when they couldn't they called 911.
When paramedics responded, the actor was in full cardiac arrest. They attempted to perform CPR on him but were unsuccessful.
He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police said they did not suspect foul play.
Calls by the NY Times to Mara Buxbaum, a publicist for Ledger, and Steve Alexander, the actor’s agent, were not immediately returned.
Ledger plays the Joker in the upcoming Batman film The Dark Knight.
Ledger is best known for his groundbreaking role as Ennis in Brokeback Mountain, for which he was nominated as best lead actor for his role as a gay cowboy.
The award went to Philip Seymour Hoffman for his role as Truman Capote.
Ledger played the suicidal son of Billy Bob Thornton in Monster's Ball and had starring roles in A Knight's Tale and The Patriot.
Ledger grew up in Perth and began doing amateur theater at age 10.
At 16, he moved to Sydney to pursue an acting career, quickly landing TV movie roles and guest spots on Australian television.
After several independent films and a starring role in the short-lived Fox TV series Roar, Ledger moved to Los Angeles and co-starred in 10 Things I Hate About You, a teen comedy reworking of The Taming of the Shrew.
Offers for other teen films came his way, but Ledger turned them down, preferring to remain idle than sign on for projects he did not like.
"It wasn't a hard decision for me," Ledger told The Associated Press in 2001.
"It was hard for everyone else around me to understand. Agents were like, 'You're crazy,' my parents were like, 'Come on, you have to eat'."
His latest role was in I'm Not There, in which he played one of the many incarnations of singer Bob Dylan - as did Cate Blanchett, whose performance in that film earned her an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress.
The actor's family has said police have concluded the death was accidental, according to celebrity website TMZ.com. The site has also reported he was recently suffering from pneumonia.
Ledger, an Academy Award nominee, was found naked and unconscious in bed at the apartment in the trendy Manhattan area of SoHo by a housekeeper at 3.35pm (7.35am AEDT).
Prescription pills were found strewn near his body. The New York Post reported bottles of Diazepam and Alprazolam, both anti-anxiety drugs, were found in the house. Ledger said in an interview last year that he had been taking sleeping pills to combat insomnia.
New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne said: "We are investigating the possibility of an overdose."
The actor's former partner, American actor Michelle Williams, with whom Ledger had a daughter, Matilda Ledger, was "devastated" by his death and was flying to New York, TMZ said.
Ledger and Williams separated in September last year.
His death has shocked Hollywood, with stars Mel Gibson, Nicole Kidman, Aidan Young expressing their sorrow at his death. (More)
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said: "It is tragic that we have lost one of our nation's finest actors in the prime of his life." (More)
The New York Times reported that a masseuse arrived at the apartment and was let in the door by a housekeeper, who then knocked on the door of Ledger's bedroom.
When no one answered, the housekeeper and the masseuse opened the bedroom door and found Ledger unconscious.
They attempted to wake him, and when they couldn't they called 911.
When paramedics responded, the actor was in full cardiac arrest. They attempted to perform CPR on him but were unsuccessful.
He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police said they did not suspect foul play.
Calls by the NY Times to Mara Buxbaum, a publicist for Ledger, and Steve Alexander, the actor’s agent, were not immediately returned.
Ledger plays the Joker in the upcoming Batman film The Dark Knight.
Ledger is best known for his groundbreaking role as Ennis in Brokeback Mountain, for which he was nominated as best lead actor for his role as a gay cowboy.
The award went to Philip Seymour Hoffman for his role as Truman Capote.
Ledger played the suicidal son of Billy Bob Thornton in Monster's Ball and had starring roles in A Knight's Tale and The Patriot.
Ledger grew up in Perth and began doing amateur theater at age 10.
At 16, he moved to Sydney to pursue an acting career, quickly landing TV movie roles and guest spots on Australian television.
After several independent films and a starring role in the short-lived Fox TV series Roar, Ledger moved to Los Angeles and co-starred in 10 Things I Hate About You, a teen comedy reworking of The Taming of the Shrew.
Offers for other teen films came his way, but Ledger turned them down, preferring to remain idle than sign on for projects he did not like.
"It wasn't a hard decision for me," Ledger told The Associated Press in 2001.
"It was hard for everyone else around me to understand. Agents were like, 'You're crazy,' my parents were like, 'Come on, you have to eat'."
His latest role was in I'm Not There, in which he played one of the many incarnations of singer Bob Dylan - as did Cate Blanchett, whose performance in that film earned her an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress.
I never liked him, but he was a good actor. I wonder if all the his scenes for The Dark Knight were completed.
I better get my insomnia under control really soon as well.
movie that he picks??? didn't the one report say that character he portrayed was very very dark and caused him to have porblems?
