:(

The news is especially sad for all the future work of his that we'll miss.  He could've chosen to simply get rich playing beefcake roles after that rock n' roll knights movie, but instead went about as legit as possible with "Monster's Ball", "Brokeback..", and "I'm Not There".  I really hope that "Dark Knight" is a film worthy of his very short legacy.

EC

It`s a tragedy when someone dies that young, celebrity or not.
:(
RIP

This is really sad. He was a good actor. Let's not forget his best movie, 10 Things I Hate About You.

Quote from: GogglesPizanno on January 22, 2008, 05:24:14 PM
...Iraq...

I've never even seen those particular troops. While I don't know Ledger, I have seen him and I like some of his movies so I feel worse about his death.

And because the world is stupid.... LINK REMOVED

[Mod Edit] Removed the link. [/Mod Edit]

The world isn't stupid, just a few narrowminded hateful people are. 

Quote from: Verfall on January 23, 2008, 08:55:48 AM
And because the world is stupid.... LINK REMOVED

seriously why has no one taken the morons out yet

Just saw a report - autopsy is inconclusive.  It's going to be a few more days before they can give a difinitive answer as to cause of death. 

Ughh...good heavens, it's people like that who give Christians a bad name....I can't stand it when people who call themselves Christians do things like this that are just plain hateful.  I won't say anymore, since this isn't the place for it, but just remember that those idiots don't speak for us.

Quote from: BentonGrey on January 23, 2008, 09:51:00 AM
Ughh...good heavens, it's people like that who give Christians a bad name....I can't stand it when people who call themselves Christians do things like this that are just plain hateful.  I won't say anymore, since this isn't the place for it, but just remember that those idiots don't speak for us.

Thanks Benton. I am a Christian and my dad is the Praise & Worship leader, but I don't judge people for that. Like Benton said this isn't the place for religion, but I feel sorry for those "Christians." I hope no one will judge Christians as a whole because of those extremist. They quote the old testament, when we live in the new. They judge with the book, and they too shall be judged by the same law. "Let he who is without sin, cast the first stone"

Quote from: Verfall on January 23, 2008, 08:55:48 AM
And because the world is stupid.... LINK REMOVED

Whooaa!! Jiminy Christmas! Jeepers! [Insert Family- Friendly Phrase Here]!

I'm not going to get into it, it's not the time or place to, plus BG and Vamp summed it up nicely, but... Crimeny, that's outta line!

Well I didn't think the link would last that long, but whatever. It'll be quite hilarious if the funeral is in Aussie and they waste their time flying in. Maybe we'll get lucky, the Aussie's will refuse em admittance, and the US will do the same. The Phelps family without a country to spread hate in....one can only hope.

Quote from: Verfall on January 23, 2008, 12:10:08 PM
The Phelps family without a country to spread hate in....one can only hope.

Amen, brother! ;)

I'd like to take the opportunity to raise a glass to a gutsy young actor who appears to have burnt the candle at both ends.  I will always remember him for bringing a nearly silent turbulence to a short story that never dreamt of becoming a celebrated, feature-length film.

Quote from: Edna St. Vincent Millay, "First Fig"
My candle burns at both ends;
     It will not last the night;
But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends--
     It gives a lovely light!

For some reason, my mind also moves toward these words:

Quote from: The Joker
I'm only laughing on the outside:
     My smile is just skin deep.
If you could see inside, I'm really crying--
     Won't you join me for a weep?

Goodbye, Mr. Ledger.  Sleep well.

ow_tiobe_sb

It's really quite sad. My film studies class was abuzz yesterday when we heard about it, girls were literally crying about it. It really is sad, he wasn't even one of those revolving door rehab celebs.

Hopefully Dark Knight is great, it'll be a memorable role for him to go out with.

Apparently he overdosed on the US-version of Stilnox, which was banned recently in Australia because it caused unpredictable behaviour (sleep-walking, etc).

Latest theory is that it mixed with a slight case of pnuemonia

Quote from: vamp on January 23, 2008, 10:27:05 AM

Quote from: BentonGrey on January 23, 2008, 09:51:00 AM
Ughh...good heavens, it's people like that who give Christians a bad name....I can't stand it when people who call themselves Christians do things like this that are just plain hateful.  I won't say anymore, since this isn't the place for it, but just remember that those idiots don't speak for us.

Thanks Benton. I am a Christian and my dad is the Praise & Worship leader, but I don't judge people for that. Like Benton said this isn't the place for religion, but I feel sorry for those "Christians." I hope no one will judge Christians as a whole because of those extremist. They quote the old testament, when we live in the new. They judge with the book, and they too shall be judged by the same law. "Let he who is without sin, cast the first stone"

Here-here to both of you!  I too am a Christian.  And it is people like these that give those of us who are trying to follow Christ a bad name.  Yeah, they don't speak for us.  Remember Y'all, if they don't have love, they don't know God. 

And VERY sad about Heath!!

RIP, Heath... Can't wait to see your last movie...

QuoteCharisma as Natural as Gravity
By Christopher Nolan | NEWSWEEK

Heath Ledger, 28, Actor

Best known for his haunting, Oscar-nominated performance as Ennis Del Mar, one of the gay cowboys in 2005 ' s "Brokeback Mountain," Ledger was a massive young talent on the cusp of greatness when he died last week in New York. The native Australian, who is survived by his 2-year-old daughter, Matilda, had recently finished work on this summer's "Batman" sequel, "The Dark Knight," in which he plays a villain, the Joker. Christopher Nolan, the film's director, shared these memories:

One night, as I'm standing on LaSalle Street in Chicago, trying to line up a shot for "The Dark Knight," a production assistant skateboards into my line of sight. Silently, I curse the moment that Heath first skated onto our set in full character makeup. I'd fretted about the reaction of Batman fans to a skateboarding Joker, but the actual result was a proliferation of skateboards among the younger crew members. If you'd asked those kids why they had chosen to bring their boards to work, they would have answered honestly that they didn't know. That's real charisma—as invisible and natural as gravity. That's what Heath had.

Heath was bursting with creativity. It was in his every gesture. He once told me that he liked to wait between jobs until he was creatively hungry. Until he needed it again. He brought that attitude to our set every day. There aren't many actors who can make you feel ashamed of how often you complain about doing the best job in the world. Heath was one of them.

One time he and another actor were shooting a complex scene. We had two days to shoot it, and at the end of the first day, they'd really found something and Heath was worried that he might not have it if we stopped. He wanted to carry on and finish. It's tough to ask the crew to work late when we all know there's plenty of time to finish the next day. But everyone seemed to understand that Heath had something special and that we had to capture it before it disappeared. Months later, I learned that as Heath left the set that night, he quietly thanked each crew member for working late. Quietly. Not trying to make a point, just grateful for the chance to create that they'd given him.

Those nights on the streets of Chicago were filled with stunts. These can be boring times for an actor, but Heath was fascinated, eagerly accepting our invitation to ride in the camera car as we chased vehicles through movie traffic—not just for the thrill ride, but to be a part of it. Of everything. He'd brought his laptop along in the car, and we had a high-speed screening of two of his works-in-progress: short films he'd made that were exciting and haunting. Their exuberance made me feel jaded and leaden. I've never felt as old as I did watching Heath explore his talents. That night I made him an offer—knowing he wouldn't take me up on it—that he should feel free to come by the set when he had a night off so he could see what we were up to.

When you get into the edit suite after shooting a movie, you feel a responsibility to an actor who has trusted you, and Heath gave us everything. As we started my cut, I would wonder about each take we chose, each trim we made. I would visualize the screening where we'd have to show him the finished film—sitting three or four rows behind him, watching the movements of his head for clues to what he was thinking about what we'd done with all that he'd given us. Now that screening will never be real. I see him every day in my edit suite. I study his face, his voice. And I miss him terribly.

Back on LaSalle Street, I turn to my assistant director and I tell him to clear the skateboarding kid out of my line of sight when I realize—it's Heath, woolly hat pulled low over his eyes, here on his night off to take me up on my offer. I can't help but smile.

© 2008 Newsweek, Inc.

That's pleasant to read. He really was a great man.