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Heath Ledger Dead at 28

Ramon Novarro biography Beyond Paradise

A few hours ago, Heath Ledger was found dead at his home in New York City, possibly from an overdose of sleeping pills. He was 28.

I’m not a fan of Brokeback Mountain, but the film, though only a couple of years old, has undeniably become one of cinema’s cultural landmarks. In large part, the tragic love story turned into a worldwide sensation because of Ledger’s performance as the uptight Ennis Del Mar, a gay ranch hand who lets life pass him by without ever daring to live it.

Among Ledger’s other films are Roland Emmerich’s The Patriot (2000), with Mel Gibson; Marc Forster’s Monster’s Ball (2001), in which he is quite effective as Billy Bob Thornton’s suicidal son; Shekhar Kapur’s The Four Feathers (2002); and Gregor Jordan’s Australian-made Ned Kelly (2003), in which Ledger plays the legendary Australian outlaw.

Also, Terry Gilliam’s The Brothers Grimm (2005), opposite Matt Damon; Lasse Hallström’s Casanova (2005), in the title role; Neil Armfield’s Australian drug-addiction drama Candy (2006), for which Ledger received a best actor nomination from the Australian Film Institute; and Todd Haynes’ I’m Not There (2007), as one of the many incarnations of Bob Dylan.

Ledger won several awards for Brokeback Mountain, including best actor mentions from the New York and the San Francisco critics, in addition to numerous nominations including those from the Screen Actors Guild, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and the British Film Academy.

Ledger’s last completed film was Christopher Nolan’s sequel to Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, in which he plays the Joker.

At the time of his death, he was working in Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, the tale of an unusual traveling theater company. The fate of that film is unclear at this point.

The Perth-born (on April 4, 1979) Ledger met Michelle Williams (above) during the Brokeback Mountain shoot. The couple had a daughter in 2005, but were separated last year.

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1 comment

John Trudell -

Help Wanted

I’m looking for volunteers to help on the project.

I’d love to see a comprehensive biography of Heath Ledger for the website, and if anyone would like to tackle the challenge, please email me.

Not looking for cut-and-paste from other bios, rather something original and heartfelt from his fans.

I’d also like to start getting testimonials from Heath’s friends, co-workers and family, so if anyone has contact info that would be very helpful. Letters need to be written to solicit these testimonials.

This is at least a 4 year project, so there is plenty of time, but I would like to get the website off the ground at least by January 22 or April 4 at the latest.

One of the cirteria for the nomination is community involvement and charitable work by Heath. If anyone has suggestions, please share.

Fan testimonials will be included on the site as well, so if you’d like yours included please email to me and I will get them on the site ASAP.

Thank you.

john@astarforheath.org

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