Okay, so the second part of the title is my own thoughts and not real news…but hey, it’s not like TMZ reports real news, so turnabout’s fair play, right?
Anyway…from CNN.com, which is at least a less disreputable news source then Harvey Levin:
An autopsy Wednesday morning on actor Heath Ledger was inconclusive, and a cause-of-death determination will take 10 to 14 days, a medical examiner’s spokeswoman said.
The Academy Award-nominated actor was found dead Tuesday of a possible drug overdose in a Lower Manhattan apartment, the New York Police Department said. He was 28.
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said Wednesday that Ledger was found face down in a normal sleeping position and not at the foot of his bed, as had been previously reported.
Kelly said technicians collected a $20 bill found in the apartment for testing, because of the way it was folded.
Flowers, notes and a candle were left by mourning fans on the sidewalk outside the Soho apartment building.
“You did great work and I know your fans were looking forward to what more you had to offer,” read one note.
Ledger’s former girlfriend, actress Michelle Williams, who was shooting a movie in Sweden, was informed of his death late Tuesday night, a movie production company spokesman said.
Williams left early Wednesday morning with 2-year-old daughter Matilda Rose, the spokesman said. Ledger was the child’s father.
Ledger, Oscar-nominated for his role in “Brokeback Mountain,” was found by a housekeeper trying to wake him for an appointment with a masseuse, said police spokesman Paul Browne.
Browne later told reporters some prescription medications were found in the room, including sleeping pills. He said the pills were not “scattered around,” as had been reported.
No note was found, and there was no indication of foul play, Browne said.
“As previously reported.” “As had been reported.” Both of these facts were reported primarily by TMZ, which is a gossip site. And I’ve been noticing something interesting with the Ledger death; almost everyone’s been going to TMZ or PerezHilton.com to get their news. My initial thought goes something like this:
ARE YOU MOTHERFUCKING KIDDING ME?!?!?!?
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’ve made the occasional foray to TMZ or TheSuperficial.com while I’m bored at work. Why? Because I’m an admitted pop-culture freak, and I can usually get a chuckle out of something there. But when I want real news? I go to the BBC or Associated Press reports, or maybe CNN. I don’t go to a place where they don’t even try to hide the fact that they’re posting sensationalist crap in order to get website hits. I mean Jesus H. Christ, gimme a fuckin’ break. Yes, TMZ sometimes gets something right. When they’re reporting every gods-damned hour about whatever tiny little tidbit they can pull out of the traffic cop who was assigned to guard the front door, they’re bound to get SOMETHING right.
The latest news, of course, is that TMZ was reporting that drug packets and white powder on the $20 bill in question; information that reputable sources contradict. Ahh, TMZ, always looking to smear someone’s reputation, even post-mortem, for a “headline.”
I guess you can’t expect any better from them, though. After all, Harvey Levin, the scumbag legal reporter who famously nearly caused OJ Simpson’s murder case to get thrown out by inaccurately reporting that prosecutor Marcia Clark searched OJ’s home before a warrant was issued, is most known for such crap as Celebrity Justice. And he was named 2007 Journalist of the Year by a media watchdog site called Tabloid Baby. Sounds impressive, right? Not when you realize Tabloid Baby’s rationale…
“Who did more damage to entertainment reporting in 2007 than Harvey Levin?… he and his gutter operation… almost singlehandedly transformed Hollywood entertainment reporting into a gutter-level street battle fueled by self-hatred, jealousy and anger, with no concern for what once determined greatness, excellence or fame…”
Yeah, that’s some great credentials, Harvey. Asshat. My TMZ-reading days are officially fucking over.
Oh, also…side note that pisses me off. Who owns TMZ? That’s right…Time-Warner/AOL. The same people who own CNN. Deplorable.
Shit like this really pisses me off; when someone’s dead, the last thing you should be doing is posting unfounded speculation about how they died. Heath Ledger has family. He has fans world-wide. He has a DAUGHTER. They don’t need to hear this shit. I mean, yes, do I post snarky shit about Britney Spears & Amy Winehouse, Paris Hilton & Lindsey Lohan? Of course. But will I be pointing and laughing when they die? Hell no. Because in death, people deserve respect.
Except for Fred Phelps, but that’s a whole different bucket of worms. I’m calling in sick and holding a fucking party the day Phelps kicks it.
–Jer
Now Playing: Linkin Park – Meteora – Breaking The Habit
