In eerily similar circumstances to the death of Michael Jackson - with the story of a reported ‘death’ circulating online through Twitter and celebrity gossip site, TMZ - actress/singer Brittany Murphy is reported to have died earlier this morning from a heart attack.
Aged 32, the actress was said to have been found unconscious in the shower by her mother - and when paramedics were called to the house she shared with her husband Simon Monjack they immediately began CPR in an attempt to revive her.
They continued mouth-to-mouth as they sped to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, several miles away from her home, but Brittany was pronounced dead on arrival.
Today reports have emerged that Brittany has been very ill in the lead up to her death - with her vomiting and taking medication for flu like symptoms. Reports from TMZ claim that Brittany was found surrounded by vomit when her mother discovered her in the shower, and while the police search of the house has not yeilded any illegal drugs, a source has told the gossip website that Brittany was definitely taking prescription medicine.
Brittany’s mother also revealed to paramedics that her daughter suffered from diabetes.
Again, the similarities with the death of Michael Jackson earlier this year continue, with the internet already alive with speculation as to what caused Brittany to go into cardiac arrest - notorious blogger Perez Hilton has spent the evening Tweeting about Britanny’s alleged drug and eating disorders, going so far as to Tweet at fellow celebrities Courtney Love and Lindsay Lohan about the dangers of drug use.
Despite these allegations, Brittany had always strongly denied any drug abuse problems, saying in a previous interview “I have never tried it in my entire life, I’ve never even see it, and I don’t leave the house too much, except to go to work. My worst vice is caffeine. The rumour is pretty far - fetched, it couldn’t be further from the truth. I have known people over the course of my life that have bad problems with drugs, and it’s something really serious”.
Born in Atlanta and raised in New Jersey, Brittany shot to fame with her role in the 1995 film Clueless, and went on to star alongside Eminem in his semi-autobiographical film 8 mile, and Ashton Kutcher in the rom-com Just Married.
Ashton used his Twitter page to pay tribute to his co star early today:
’2day the world lost a little piece of sunshine. My deepest condolences go out 2 Brittany’s family, her husband, & her amazing mother Sharon. See you on the other side kid.’
Irrespective of the rumours and speculation, the death of a talented, successful young woman in such tragic and sudden circumstances deserves sensitivity and sympathy from the rumour mills and commentators.
Our thoughts go out to Brittany’s family and fans.
warholscat
2 months, 2 weeks ago
If you put yourself in the public eye and make a damned good living from it then everything you do is fair game for the rumour mongers and that includes your death.