Here's the news from CNN.

Here is a link that might be useful: Heath Ledger found dead

Holy cow! How awful! He had a lot going for him. Also had a toddler with Brokeback Mtn co-star Michelle Williams. What a shame.

That's too bad. I really liked him. He had a full life and good career ahead of him.

What a shock,so young. I thought he broke up with Michelle Williams. Oh,well,it's none of my business.

SAD!!!! I really liked him.

That's just terrible! How can this be?

I thought he was a great actor- especially in "The Four Feathers". So sad...

Blessings,
Haley

My DD emailed me the news earlier; what a sad end for such a young man.

That's just very sad...he was a talented, handsome young man. Everytime I see him I think about the movie "Ten Things I Hate About You". Now his daughter will grow up only knowing her Daddy from his movies.

I read one site that said he complained that his role as The Joker in the next Batman film took a lot out of him because it caused him problems with being able to shut his mind off and get to sleep, after long days of shooting. Sometimes sleep problems are difficult to conquer once the pattern of insomnia begins. He said he tried Ambien to help him sleep, but it only worked for an hour or so. The news reports are saying his body was found with a large number of sleeping pills nearby, and no suicide note. That sounds like he maybe wasn't attempting suicide if a large number of pills were found, as opposed to none or only a few left. If that's the case it's even sadder to think he maybe took 3 or 4 pills thinking he'd finally be able to get decent sleep, and just didn't wake up. I thought he was a quite a talented young actor.

I just saw this on the news and was shocked! I really liked him as an actor-10 Things I Hate About You and Brokeback Mountain, plus others. Not to mention how handsome he was and that accent was wonderful! I'm hoping it was just an accidental overdose, but either way he is gone.

He did break up (or divorce?) Michelle Williams, but not before they had a daughter, Matilida, together. She's young-maybe 2 or 3? I feel for the both of them to lose Heath.

So young, so sad...

If you want to follow the latest rumor mill here's the link to all the gossip at TMZ.

Here is a link that might be useful: latest rumors/facts

Oh my gosh, this is so sad. I can't believe it. Dd's and my all-time fave movie is his movie "10 Things I Hate About You". I also love "A Knight's Tale".
This is so shocking, he isn't one that you read about partying and acting like an idiot, he so loved his little daughter.
He's so young, I will truly miss his handsome face and his great acting.

I watched this all afternoon as it unfolded and couldn't believe how the media had so many stories about how it happened....he wasn't even out of the apartment yet and they had him comitting suicide, OD-ing, etc. No one knew anything yet, but they were specualting all kinds of reasons why he couldn't sleep, and why he would kill himself! It's amazing to listen to the stories fly and the coroners hadn't even taken him out of the bed yet! It is so sad though....just wish they wouldn't specualte until they get the facts. I think about his family and how they would feel hearing all of this.

On TV ...

... or radio ...

... you can't have dead air.

And "I don't know" isn't very glamourous/attention catching.

ole joyful

such a shame...he was such a talented young man...

Ledger had been sick with pneumonia and having poor results from the Ambien he was prescribed for insomnia.

PDR Health site says this:

Special warnings about Ambien

When sleep medications are used every night for more than a few weeks, some may lose their effectiveness. Remember, too, that you can become dependent on some sleep medications if you use them for a long time or at high doses.

Some people using AmbienÂespecially those taking serotonin-boosting antidepressantsÂhave experienced unusual changes in their thinking and/or behavior. Alert your doctor if you notice a change.

Ambien and other sleep medicines can cause a special type of memory loss. It should not be taken on an overnight airplane flight of less than 7 to 8 hours, since "traveler's amnesia" may occur.

When you first start taking Ambien, until you know whether the medication will have any "carry over" effect the next day, use extreme care while doing anything that requires complete alertness, such as driving a car or operating machinery. Older adults, in particular, should be aware that they may be more apt to fall.

Use Ambien cautiously if you have liver problems. It will take longer for its effects to wear off.

If you take Ambien for more than 1 or 2 weeks, consult your doctor before stopping. Sudden discontinuation of a sleep medicine can bring on withdrawal symptoms ranging from unpleasant feelings to vomiting and cramps.

When taking Ambien, do not drink alcohol. It can increase the drug's side effects.

If you have breathing problems, they may become worse when you use Ambien.

My point exactly ....this could have been an accident. Ignorance of the medication he was taking. The media seemed to have it all figured out before he was even out of the apartment. I sat here and shook my head at all of the suggestions they came up with. So many experts weighing in and really had no answers in the end. I thought to myself, how terrible for his mother to hear these people suggesting he had a drug problem, or was depressed, crazy, etc.

I think the media has been rather fair in their coverage. Everything I've seen and read since last night has pointed to an accidental overdose or some other form of accidental death. Every report has said that the drugs were prescription drugs prescribed to him. He himself mentioned his sleeping problems and sleeping pills in interviews so it's natural that the media has been discussing that. I'm sure there are tabloids that will try to turn this into something else but I don't get my news from them.

I watched some coverage last night, and Fox News said (about every other sentence) that "We don't know for sure what happened" OR "We don't know what the autopsy will reveal" OR "We are simply speculating here" OR somethng similar. At least on that network, they were very clear about the fact that they don't know what happened.

I think they keep covering it non-stop because - well, because people watch it non-stop!

Another thing that may have been a factor is that he had just come home after a long plane flight.

My friend flew from L.A. to New York last year. A blood clot had formed in a blood vessel from him sitting down for several hours. He got off the plane, went straight to his hotel, then collapsed and died when the clot moved into his lung.

That tragedy taught me that it's very important to get up and walk around on plane flights as much as possible.

Anyway, the final autopsy results won't be back for at least a week. Whatever the reason, he's gone too soon.

Sad, sad, sad

The news just reported that he had a history of drug usage but friends thought he'd been clean for the past year. Even if it was accidental, drugs are nothing to play around with.
In the end, dead is dead...no matter how it happens.

Star Jones did an excellent segment about this with a media critic on her program today. They lamented fact that journalism has gone down hill in the age of the 24-hour news cycle. Newscasters seem to think it's okay to say "we don't know what happened, but it could've been ..." And then they feel free to speculate for hours on end, interviewing his doorman's cousin or his 'friends' who want to be on television.

The citation of unnamed sources on a story such as this is just sad. Watergate, prison torture, destroyed CIA tapes - sure we have a right to know. But just to fill time by soiling a young man's repution? It makes me a bit squeemish. He has made enough movies that they could fill time with highlights of his life and career. Clips of interviews when he was giddy with excitement over the birth of his daughter, Oscar nomination, falling in love, breaking up or whatever.

My heart goes out to his parents with all the speculation, which may or may not be true. All we really know is that a talented actor has died way too young and the final autopsy results won't be available for several days. From what I've seen, he conducted his life like a normal guy (albeit famous). He was polite and respectful in interviews. I don't recall any reports of drunken rages or beating his girlfriends or wild parties.

I saw the Star Jones show on that today...it was exactly what I was feeling.