"Heath Ledger dead
Email Printer friendly version Normal font Large font Ian Munro
January 23, 2008 - 8:50AM


Found dead ... Heath Ledger.

Academy Award nominee Heath Ledger, 28, has died of a possible drug overdose involving sleeping pills in New York, police have confirmed.

He was found dead in his bed at his apartment on Broome Street, Soho in Manhattan, by his housekeeper at 3.35pm local time, the TMZ website said.

A police spokesman told smh.com.au the cause of death was unknown, despite the presence of drugs.

"We don't have that [the cause of death] yet. The matter is still under investigation," the spokesman said.

He was pronouced dead at 3.45pm (7.45am AEDT) by a medical examiner who went to the apartment.

US television network NBC reported his body was found surrounded by pills.

The New York Times reported Ledger was discovered by a masseuse who arrived at his apartment for an appointment.

The masseuse was let in to the home by a housekeeper, who then knocked on the door of Ledger's bedroom, The New York Times reported.

When no one answered, the housekeeper and the masseuse opened the bedroom and found Ledger unconscious.

They shook him, but he did not respond. They immediately called the authorities. The police said they did not suspect foul play.

Hollywood star

Ledger was an Oscar nominee for his role in Brokeback Mountain and had numerous other screen credits.

His breakthrough role was the Australian movie Two Hands, directed by Gregor Jordan and in another movie from the same year, 10 Things I Hate about You, he established himself as an up-and-coming star.

Ledger's other film credits included A Knight's Tale, The Patriot and Monster's Ball.

He starred in I'm Not There, one of several actors playing a role representing Bob Dylan, and was due to appear as The Joker in the next Batman film.

Ledger had a difficult relationship with some sections of the media.

In 2004 he allegedly spat at and assaulted a photographer in Sydney. The retaliation was during the premier to Brokeback Mountain when photographers squirted him with water on the red carpet.

Websites crash

Less than an hour after news of Ledger's death broke, fan sites including heathledger.net and heathledger.com had melted down and were inaccessible.

Messages of sorrow from fans are flooding unofficial Heath Ledger pages and fan groups on MySpace and Facebook. Already, at least two "R.I.P Heath Ledger'' Facebook groups have been created as memorials.

Perth boy

Ledger was born in Perth, Western Australia.

He had a two-year-old daughter, Matilda, with former fiancee and Brokeback Mountain co-star Michelle Williams.

He was the son of Sally Ledger Bell, a French teacher, and Kim Ledger, a racing car driver and mining engineer.

- with Dan Ilic'