Heathcliff Andrew Ledger
April 4 1979 - Jan 22 2008
Age 28
It was such a shock, to say the least, upon hearing the death of Heath Ledger. The last that I knew of him was his spilt with Michelle Williams and their co-parenting of their little daughter Mathilda, just like the rest of the tabloid addicts (ashamedly, I am one of them).
It still feels kind of surreal. I don’t know the guy, but being a person who is in the spotlight often, it just seems like everybody knows him… or think they know him.
The speculation was that he OD-ed on his prescription drugs. Was it intentional? Did he want to kill himself? All the circumstances that lead to his death did not suggest so; his massage therapist was arriving for their session, so that suggests he was going about in his daily routine. I’m no psychologist, but I have read somewhere that suicidal people often go about their routine like normal and are chillingly calm. That thought is a possibility.
Then again, he is part of young Hollywood and drugs are the norm. Somehow, I don’t think he did drugs. Recreationally, yes but not hard-core in the Pete Doherty fashion, because PD does not have a daughter and he’s simply f**ked up (ditto KM). HL is not that at all.
I first noticed him in Ten Things I Hate about You, with Julia Stiles. He was the typical rebel, the really cool and nonchalant sort that all the girls loved and admired from afar. He sang Can’t Take My Eyes off Of You atop the bleaches to Julia’s character, and I’m pretty sure at that scene, all the girls wanted their boyfriends to do the same. He was uninhibited and carefree, and he was having fun with that character. That makes it so memorable. In the perfect world, he’s the kind of guy I’d love.
He has many things people want, but the flutter of the eyelids, the faint gasp of the final breath and when the eventual darkness descends, all the things that we envied him for... means nothing.
It’s such a pity, and though his world is nothing like mine, he's still a person, a father, a lover, a friend, a son, and a brother to someone else out there and the loss is greatly felt. It is heartbreaking to read his sister’s letter to him. I send my sincere and deepest condolences to Heath’s family and he will be remembered from the many fans from this side of the Atlantic.
J.