Heath Ledger

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Heath Andrew Ledger was born April 9, 1979. His death on January 28, 2008 of an accidental drug overdose was a shock to Hollywood as well as to the entire world. The young actor was found dead in his apartment by his massage therapist. The actor had just finished work on his movie The Dark Knight. We may never really know what happened.

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River Phoenix was the older brother of known actor Joaquin Phoenix.

Born River Jude Bottom on August 23, 1970. The 23 year old actor died October 31,1993. He died of a drug overdose. The mixing of street drugs he ingested was called a “speedball.” What a talent lost to the evils of drugs.

Marilyn “Norma-Jean” Monroe

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June 1, 1926 to August 5, 1962

She was a rising star and today she is one of the worlds most emulated Hollywood women of all time. Her death at the young age of 36 has been the speculation of rumors and conspiracy theories since the news broke out. Who knows what really happened and how far she could have gone with her career?

John Belushi

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John Adam Belushi was the older brother of current actor Jim Belushi. Born January 24, 1949 He was found dead at a hotel in Hollywood on March 5, 1982, at the young age of 33. He was a comedian and a great actor in his time.

Chris Farley

Christopher Crosby Farley was born on February 15, 1964. His untimely death at the age of 33 on December 18, 1997 was an upset to his die-hard fans. He started his career on SNL and moved onto movies. He was a true comic. He made everyone laugh. His death was from a drug overdose. That seems to be an epidemic in Hollywood in the past 50 years.

James Dean

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James Byron Dean was born February 8, 1931. Known mainly for his role as Jim Stark in “Rebel without a cause.” The actor died at the tender age of 24 on September 30, 1955 due to an automobile accident on route 46 in California.

John Candy

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John Franklin Candy was born October 31, 1950. He died of a heart attack on March 4, 1994. Known for roles where he always seemed to be the lonely loser, he still stole our hearts and made us laugh. What a loss of a great talent.

Anna Nicole Smith

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Born November 28, 1967, Vickie Lynn Hogan Marshall, AKA Anna Nicole Smith died February 8, 2000. She was a Playboy model and The Guess Jeans girl. She died of an accidental overdose of mixing a lethal combination of prescription drugs.

Brad Renfro

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Brad Renfro was born on July 25, 1982. He started his career at age 10. He went on to play in over 20 films. He got his big break in the “Client” in 1985. In and out of trouble and rehabs during most of his adult life, Renfro never seemed to get a handle on his addiction. He died January 15, 2008 of a heroine overdose.

This List could go on and on. There seems to be a problem with young Hollywood. Either they live fast and die from endangering themselves or they’re dying from drug overdoses. This seems to have been a problem for decades. It makes me wonder, Did they get into acting to cover up their personal problems or did getting into acting create their personal problems?

I guess we will never know. Too much great talent has been lost over the years and I wish something could be done to help new comers from following in these stars footsteps.

RIP

All of you fallen stars.