1. HEATH LEDGER
Heath Ledger was a pretty boy with scene-stealing work under his belt. Unfortunately, as was later revealed, he’d been dealing with depression. He died of an overdose of prescription drugs. On the left, you see one of the last pictures of the versatile actor before he died. Horribly stressed and tired, Heath Ledger looks nothing like his usual self in that shot.
2. MARILYN MONROE
Beautiful even in death, it’s hard to tell the legendary sex symbol was suffering from depression and addicted to drugs. But she was, and this addiction caught up with her and led to her death.
3. AMY WINEHOUSE
Troubled and depressed, this Grammy-winning singer took to crack, cocaine, heroin and alcohol to ease her pains. Having had too much of it all, Amy Winehouse’s habits would get the best of her. Dying in her London home, the official cause of the singer’s death was alcohol intoxication. Winehouse had managed to refrain from drugs for several years by this time, and had even stayed sober for over 5 weeks. Winehouse relapsed while alone in her home, making it so no one was there to save her this time.
4. ANNA NICOLE SMITH
Former Playboy centerfold model, TV personality and a true beauty. At her best, Anna Nicole Smith was a sight to behold. But, she let her addiction get the best of her and she died of an overdose of painkillers back in the spring of 2007 at her hotel room in Florida.
5. BRUCE LEE
Bruce Lee is the epitome of true physical fitness. At 32, he had a bright future, one full of promise, but unfortunately that would never be. Lee had been losing drastic amounts of weight prior to his death and in the last month of his life he had collapsed and been taken to the hospital, as well as complained of headaches. In his weakened state he had taken a friend’s painkiller to help with a headache – not knowing about an existing sensitivity issue with one of its components – and his body couldn’t fight on.
6. SID VICIOUS
The bassist of the then-famous punk rock band, Sex Pistols, died at 21, the night he was released on bail – pending trial for the murder of his former girlfriend, Nancy Spungen. The reason? He overdosed on heroin. But this isn’t a run of the mill overdose. While it is true he had overdosed earlier that night – he was revived and went to sleep after having overcome. But his mother, who confessed to her actions on her deathbed, gave him a lethal amount while he slept, “so he wouldn’t have to go to jail.”
7. WHITNEY HOUSTON
Whitney Houston had been highly addicted to cocaine, and continued to use it up to the very last moment of her death. In fact, it led to her death. The official coroner’s reports states that Houston had drowned in a bathtub in the Beverly Hilton Hotel on February 11, 2012. The singer who fell unconscious after using cocaine had a weakened heart due to a 60% blockage caused by her heavy cocaine use.
8. PEACHES GELDOF
Peaches Geldof died on April 7, 2014, at her home in Wrotham, England. She was 25. On July 23, 2014, a British coroner officially declared that Geldof had died of a heroin overdose.
Geldof’s mother, Paula Yates, also died of a heroin overdose in 2000.
9. JIMI HENDRIX
Jimi Hendrix died September 20, 1970, under exceptionally mysterious circumstance – those being something no one seems able to agree upon. Some believe Hendrix was murdered, others believe he committed suicide, and yet another group believe it was an unfortunate case of an overdose. The official report claims he died of asphyxiation sometime after midnight. He had taken too many prescription pills (a lethal amount) and remained unconscious even after vomiting – thus the asphyxiation. Many, however, believe the circumstances surrounding these events are far too suspicious.
10. JANIS JOPLIN
Janis Joplin, who had been close friends with Jimi Hendrix, died of heroin-morphine overdose on October 4, 1970 – just 14 days after Hendrix. Such a shame, really, considering how famous she was for her connection to her audience. Sure, she may have been under the influence of drugs and alcohol in her performances, but they didn’t seem to stop her.
11. JIM MORRISON
They say that drugs and alcohol can fuel the human mind and make it more creative. Though, whether it was Morrison who made the drugs and alcohols work for him or the other way around, we don’t know. But, the latter seems likely after he joined the infamous “27 Club,” which includes Winehouse, Hendrix and Jopline, after dying of a drug overdose (heroin) back in 1971.
12. DEE DEE RAMONE
Douglas Glenn Colvin, aka Dee Dee Ramone, was the founding member, bassist and main songwriter of the Ramones, and had a long history of drug abuse. Mainly, he loved heroin. Authotities found drug periphinalea in his apartment following his death, which was confirmed to be caused by a heroine overdose, it is believed the death was accidental.
13. ELVIS PRESLEY
Elvis Presley died on August 16, 1977 at the age of 42. Toxicologists found at least 10 different prescription drugs in his body, at an insanely high level that no doctor would ever prescribe. It is also suggested that a trip to the dentist the day before may have also contributed to his death, as the codeine he received there while getting a crown caused severe allergic reactions, including anaphylactic shock.
14. JOHN BELUSHI
John Belushi, one of the original members of the Saturday Night Live cast, died after injecting himself with a speedball (a combination of cocaine and heroin) in 1982. His wife and high school sweetheart said that people would just hand him drugs on the street, and he would do them all. His substance abuse was reportedly so bad, that the classic movie The Blues Brothers (in which he starred) nearly fell through.
15. MICHAEL JACKSON
The King of Pop was an entertainer like no other. Aside from his many legal issues, he was also suffering from extreme insomnia and a rather negligent doctor. In 2009, while working on his comeback tour that would pay off his debts and restore his standing, he received nightly injections of the anesthetic propofol. It would seem that entire time he had not had a single REM cycle – if he hadn’t died from the overdose, doctors say it is likely he would’ve died from that.
16. RIVER PHOENIX
At 23 years old, Phoenix died a little too early. Unfortunate, really, since many believed that he’d be the next big thing. If only he’d been able to manage his drug addiction, he probably wouldn’t have died from a cocaine and heroin cocktail overdose. A friend of the actor who was there at the time says that just minutes before he collapsed, Phoenix said “I don’t feel so good. I think I’m OD’ing”
17. BRITTANY MURPHY
What’s worse? Anemia, anemia or drug intoxication? How about a mixture of all 3? Brittany Murphy died due to a complication that arose from the combination of all 3 on December 20, 2009 at the young age of 32.
18. CHRIS FARLEY
This comedian struggled with weight issues, and drug and alcohol abuse. In 1997, after a heavy night of party-hopping and recklessness he overdosed on cocaine and morphine.
19. DAVID RUFFIN
David Ruffin died in a crack house back in June 1, 1991. And, why wouldn’t he? Reports say that he split 10 vials with a friend and consumed it in less than 30 minutes. Thirty MINUTES. Though, you may wonder, what happened to his friend?
20. CHRIS KELLY
One half of the 90’s hip-hop group Kriss Kross, Chris Kelly died of a drug overdose on May 1, 2013. His mother reported that the rapper was fond of using cocaine and heroin and that the two may have been the cause of his death.
21. HILLEL SLOVAK
Back in 1988, cops discovered founding Red Hot Chilli Peppers guitarist Hillel Slovak’s lifeless body in his Hollywood apartment. Autopsy reports later revealed that he’d been dead for 2 days before being found, and that he had overdosed on heroin. At a time when most famous figures were taking drugs left and right, it’s amazing that among the band only Hillel died.
22. ODB
On November 13, 2004, Rapper ODB complained of chest pains, then collapsed and died. After an investigation was initiated, it was found that the rapper had taken a mix of cocaine and Tramadol. The latter is a synthetic opiate used to treat severe pain.
23. COREY HAIM
Corey Haim was a former child star who struggled with many dark inner demons. Having been molested as a young child, Haim fell to drugs. Haim struggled to get back on his feet after his fame waned in the 90s, and lived with his mother, while both helping her through cancer and abusing prescription drugs – mainly Valium. In 2010, at the age of 38, he was found dead in his apartment. But while initial news reports conjectured that he died of an overdose, it seems Corey’s death was contributed to mainly by his heart issues and pneumonia.
24. DANA PLATO
Dana Plato died too young, too soon. The Different Strokes star had led a timultuous life, and the negativity surrounding her battle with drugs seemed to have had a devastating effect on her. It is believed that Plato’s overdosing on Lortab and Valium was not accidental.
