Category: Celebrity Deaths

Celebrity, Celebrity Deaths, Celebrity news, Whitney Houston

A Year After Whitney Houston’s Death:

The ReadyWriter

WhitneyHouston-jpg_172633

February 11, 2013, marks the one-year anniversary of the tragic death of singer Whitney Houston, which left both her fans and family devastated. Whitney Houston’s death at the age of 48 was shocking, but when the toxicology reports came back on March 29, the results were not. It was determined that the “I Will Always Love You” singer, who struggled for years with substance abuse, had traces of cocaine, marijuana, and several prescription medications in her system at the time of her death. Her drowning was credited to the effects of chronic cocaine use and heart disease….

A year later and is anyone else still shocked that Whitney Houston is gone?

Addiction, Celebrity Deaths, Conversations Of A Sistah

Tonight on “Conversations Of A Sistah” Functioning with an addiction

The ReadyWriter

On January 22, 2008 at about 2:45 p.m., actor Heath Ledger was found unresponsive in his New York city apartment by his house keeper; and after two weeks of intense media speculation, the New York city Chief Medical Examiner concluded that Ledger’s death was ruled an accident. Conclusions, based on an initial autopsy and a subsequent complete toxicology report. Ledger died as the result of acute intoxication by the combination effects of several drugs. The examiner also ruled, “Ledger’s death was a result from the abuse of prescription medications.”

On June 25, 2009, Michael Jackson died while in his bed at his rented mansion at 100 North Carolwood Drive in the Holmby Hills district of Los Angeles. Attempts at resuscitating him by Conrad Murray, his personal physician, were unsuccessful. The news of Michael Jackson’s death spread quickly online causing websites to crash and bringing twitter to a complete halt. On August 28, 2009 the Los Angeles coroner decided to treat Jackson’s death as a homicide; at the time of death, Jackson had been administered a deadly dose of propofol, lorazepam and midazolam. It was later revealed that Jackson hired a personal physician to administer the drugs to him nightly to help him sleep. After a full investigation of Jackson’s personal physician, Conrad Murray; Murray was charged with involuntary manslaughter and is now serving time in a CA prison.

July 23, 2011, singer Amy Winehouse was found dead of alcohol poisoning in her London home. The singer had battled drugs and alcohol for years while recording some of her best-selling hits. I had no idea one of her many hits “Rehab” was actually her true to life lyrics.

Then this year, on February 11, 2012; New Jersey native Whitney Elizabeth Houston passed away in suite 434 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, submerged in the bathtub. A Los Angeles County coroner’s office reported the cause of Houston’s death as a drowning and the “effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use”. The office stated the amount of cocaine found in Houston’s body indicated that she used the substance shortly before her death. The manner of death was listed as an “accident”, this all after a failed comeback for Houston in 2009.

All of these entertainers were talented and great and they all made history in their own right. But these same famous entertainers were all living and functioning every single day, with an addiction. This just goes to show us that; not all abusers are down and out with their indulgences, but it is true that if one continues to abuse drugs and/or alcohol, it will sooner or later take a toll on not only your body, but your life.

If you or anyone you know is functioning with an addiction and wish to share your story for this week’s show topic on “Conversations Of A Sistah” on “Conversations Live“, do send us an email at conversationsofasistah@readywriterproductioncompany.com

I hope you’ll join us at 8:00 P.M. Thursday October 4th on “Conversations Live” as we talk about this topic…

Celebrity, Celebrity Deaths, Dearly Departed

Actor Michael Clarke Duncan Dead at 54

The ReadyWriter

I remember him best from his bodyguard role in “The Players Club.” Duncan had been in a Los Angeles hospital since July 13 following a heart attack and died this morning after two months of treatment.

At 6-feet, 5-inches tall and approximately 300 pounds, Duncan is said to have become a vegetarian, and appeared in a video for animal rights organization PETA earlier this year.

Duncan was also nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for his role as gentle giant prisoner John Coffey in “The Green Mile,” also starring Tom Hanks. Duncan won the role, in part, due to a recommendation by Bruce Willis, who he worked with on 1998’s “Armageddon.” Duncan went on to appear with Willis in three more films — “Breakfast of Champions,” “The Whole Nine Yards” and “Sin City.”

Before he broke into acting, Duncan worked as a bodyguard for stars including Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Jamie Foxx, LL Cool J, and The Notorious B.I.G.  whose 1997 death prompted him to quit that line of work.

May he Rest in peace…

Celebrity Deaths, Dearly Departed, News

R.I.P. Sherman Hemsley

The ReadyWriter

according to the website TMZ: Sherman Hemsley, the actor who made the character George Jefferson famous in “The Jefferson’s,” has died, El Paso cops tell TMZ.

Hemsley died at his home in El Paso, Texas. 

Hemsley, who was 74, became famous during his appearances on “All in the Family.”  The spin-off, “The Jefferson’s” was a monster hit.  He also starred in the TV show, “Amen.”  He was also a professional singer and even released the single in 1989, “Ain’t that A Kick in the Head.”

Hemsley had no wife and no kids. It was rumored for years that Hemsley was gay.

It is unclear how he died.

Celebrity Deaths, Celebrity news, Dearly Departed

R.I.P. Yvette Wilson…Moesha Star Passes away…

The ReadyWriter

TMZ.com reports Yvette Wilson, one of the stars of “Moesha,” died Thursday following a long battle with cervical cancer. She was 48.

Wilson, played Moesha’s friend Andell Wilkerson through 5 seasons of the hit show — and she played the same role in the spinoff “The Parkers.”

Wilson’s cancer was Stage 4 when she passed away.

Her “Moesha” co-star Shar Jackson tweeted, “F*ck Cancer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh God. My heart is soooo unbelievably broken. I wanna thank all my tweeties for their prayers but God has chosen to take my sister Yvette home.”