Heath Ledger found dead in New York He was reportedly battling Drug Addiction and depression.
It is all too common these day to hear that a famous man or woman has succummed to drug addiction and or drug abuse, celebrity addiction. Ledger was found dead by a housekeeper and was surrounded by prescription drugs, sleeping pills. Although in the news, this particular incident is only one of countless examples of the damages drug abuse visits upon our society.
Overdoses of and addiction to prescription drugs take a continuing toll. The not infrequent death of a famous personality from these drugs may bring it more into the public consciousness, but the damage is non-stop.
The list of celebrities who have died from drug overdoses and drug related diseases is extensive to say the least. Although there are many more, below is a list of some of the more visible of these tragic celebrity overdoses:
Celebrity drug related deaths
Nick Adams (1931-1968) -
actor, drug Overdose.
Honoré de
Balzac (51) -
Caffeine poisoning from drinking over forty cups of coffee per day.
John Belushi
(33) -
of the Blues `Brothers, actor, and comedian, Heroin and Cocaine overdose
(speedball).
Lenny Bruce (40) -
comedian, Morphine overdose.
Montgomery Clift -
actor, heart attack due to severe alcoholism and drug abuse.
Brian Cole -
musician, the Association, heroin overdose.
Pamela Courson -
common law wife of Jim Morrison of The Doors, heroin overdose.
Dorothy Dandridge (42) -
actress, singer, anti-depressant overdose.
Tommy Dorsey
(51) -
jazz musician and bandleader, choked to death while sleeping with the aid of
drugs.
Chris Farley
(33) -
comedian, cocaine and heroin overdose (speedball).
Sigmund Freud
(83) -
Austrian neurologist, long-term cocaine use, physician assisted morphine
overdose.
Judy Garland -
American singer and actress, disputed drug overdose as cause of death.
Margaux
Hemingway (41) -
actress, disputed suicide, overdose of sedatives.
Billie Holiday
(45) -
jazz singer died from cirrhosis of the liver attributed to longtime alcohol and
heroin abuse.
Howard Hughes
(70) -
aviator, engineer, industrialist, movie producer, playboy, liver failure -
autopsy showed lethal amount of Codeine and also valium in body.
Anissa Jones - actress ("Buffy" on Family Affair) - accidential
overdose of cocaine, angel dust, Quaaludesand Seconal. and Seconal. Janis Joplin
(27) -
rock and roll and blues musician, heroin overdose.
David Kennedy -
fourth child of Robert F. Kennedy, cocaine and Demerol overdose.
Bela Lugosi (73) -
actor, drug-related heart attack.
Marilyn Monroe -
actress, overdose of sleeping pills.
Christina
Onassis -
daughter of the billionaire Aristotle Onassis, pulmonary edema, caused by
constant drug abuse and dramatic weight changes. River Phoenix (23) -
actor, overdose of heroin and cocaine (speedball).
Dana Plato (34) -
actress, of Diff'rent Strokes, suicide - overdose of Vanadom and Vicodin.
Elvis Presley
(42) -
singer, heart attack brought on by overdose of Barbiturates.
Freddie Prinze
(22) -
comic, actor (Chico
and the Man), self-inflicted gunshot wound while under the influence of
Quaaludes.
Anna Nicole
Smith (39) -
Playboy playmate, actress, reality show star, lethal combination of chloral
hydrate and various benzodiazepines.
Inger Stevens -
American actress, suicide - overdose of sleeping pills.
Vinnie Taylor -
musician, Sha Na Na, heroin overdose.
Gary Thain -
musician, Uriah Heep, drug overdose.
Dylan Thomas -
poet, chronic alcoholism.
D. M. Turner
(34) -
author/psychonaut, drowned in a bathtub while on ketamine.
Natalie Wood -actress,
drowned when intoxicated.
Musicians
Tommy Bolin
(25) -
musician, Deep Purple, drugs overdose and/or alcohol poisoning.
John Bonham
(32) -
musician Led Zeppelin, alcohol related asphyxiation caused by choking on his
own vomit.
Toy Caldwell -
musician, Marshall Tucker Band.
Paul Butterfield (44) -
musician, drug and alcohol overdose.
Gene Clark (46) -
musician, the Byrds, bleeding ulcer due to long term alcohol abuse.
Steve Clark
(30) -
musician, Def Leppard, accidential death (anti-Depressants, painkillers and
alcohol).
Michael Clarke
(47) -
musician, the Byrds, liver failure due to long term alcoholism.
Brian Cole -
musician, the Association, heroin overdose.
Brian Connolly-
musician, Sweet, liver damage caused by long-term substance abuse and
chronic alcoholism.
Tommy Dorsey
(51) -
jazz musician and bandleader, choked to death while sleeping with the aid of
drugs.
John Entwistle
(57) -
musician, bassist for the Who, died from heart failure brought upon by cocaine
use.
Howie Epstein
(47) -
musician, ex-bassist with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, heroin overdose.
Rick Evers -
musician, drummer and songwriter, was married to Carole King, heroin overdose.
Andy Gibb -
singer, younger brother of the Bee Gees; cardiac damage strongly exacerbated by
cocaine and alcohol abuse.
Bobby Hatfield - musician,
The Righteous Brothers, heart attack triggered by cocaine overdose.
Rudy Lewis -
musician, the Drifters.
Janis Joplin (27) -
rock and roll and blues musician, heroin overdose.
Jimi Hendrix
(27) -
rock and roll musician, respiratory arrest caused by alcohol and barbiturate
overdose and vomit inhalation.
Gregory Herbet -
musician, Blood, Sweat & Tears.
Bob Hite -
musician, Canned Heat, heart attack.
Keith Moon -
musician, the Who, overdosed on anti-seizure medication prescribed for
alcoholism.
Jim Morrison
(27) -
musician, The Doors, heroin and alcohol (cause and fact of death disputed).
John Phillips -
musician, of the Mamas and the Papas, heart failure due to lifetime of alcohol
and narcotics abuse.
Dee Dee Ramone -
musician, the Ramones, heroin overdose.
Joe Schermie -
musician, Three Dog Night, heart attack resulting from long-term drug abuse
Bon Scott -
musician, AC/DC, aspiration brought on by alcohol Intoxication.
Bobby Sheehan -
musician, Blues Traveler, drug overdose.
Hillel Slovak
(26) -
musician, Red Hot Chili Peppers, heroin overdose.
Vinnie Taylor -
musician, Sha Na Na, heroin overdose.
Gary Thain -
musician, Uriah Heep, drug overdose.
Sid Vicious
(21) -
musician, the Sex Pistols, heroin overdose, disputed suicide
Alan Wilson -
musician, Canned Heat, drug overdose (possible suicide).
Hank Williams (29) -
musician, drugs and probably alcohol.
Dennis Wilson
(39) -
musician, The Beach Boys, alcohol-related drowning
TheRoadOut
If you know someone who is battling addiction to sleeping pills or other prescription drugs, don't wait. Call for help:
Toll Free: 888-9NO-DRUGS or 888-966-3784
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