February 2, 2014

"The actor Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead in his New York apartment on Sunday morning..."

"... of an apparent drug overdose...." He was 46.

Another great actor died yesterday, Maximilian Schell. He was 83.

UPDATE: Hoffman "was found unconscious in the bathroom of his fourth floor apartment in the Pickwick House around 11:15 a.m. by screenwriter David Katz, who called 911, a law-enforcement official said. He was pronounced dead at the scene. 'He had a needle sticking out of his arm,' the official said."

50 comments:

Jim said...

Larry London: Carmine said one boy, here are two! Is this interesting?

joethefatman said...

Never heard of him before today.

David said...

Wonderful actor. I first saw him in The Talented Mr. Ripley. He made the movie hum, absolutely stole it from the bigger stars, who all were very good in their roles. The poor guy was living on the edge for quite a while, according to reports. The edge got him.

Scott said...

Gee that's sad about Hoffman.

George M. Spencer said...

Boy, was Hoffman in a ton of great movies.

Here's one that's little known...."Last Stop in Wonderland."

ThreeSheets said...

Wonder if Piers Morgan will call for a renewed push for drug control laws.

Jose_K said...

The Iron cross
The nuremberg trials.
He was a great actor

WestVirginiaRebel said...

Sadly, fame can't buy you happiness. Ironic that Mr. Schell died of old age.

David said...

St. George said...
Boy, was Hoffman in a ton of great movies.

Yup. Mainly because he made them so.

Anonymous said...

I really liked his work - everything from 'Almost Famous' to 'Doubt.'

Michael K said...

Both great actors. I don't care about movies for the most part but I saw them in some good ones and they both stood well above their colleagues.

Michael said...

Great actor. Absurd death, uncool death. RIP.

Michael said...

Great actor. Absurd death, uncool death. RIP.

Amexpat said...

Sad and surprising news - he seemed too smart to die this way.

Unknown said...

Hollywood. Child molesters and drug addicts. We should probably seek their advice on who best to be president.

traditionalguy said...

Hoffman was a very good actor of male roles requiring emotional sensitivity. Many will mourn him.

But he was not a free man. He was enslaved to drugs.

Mary Beth said...

A couple of days ago there was a FB hoax saying he died. Yesterday they announced he was fine. Now he's dead. Weird coincidence.

JoyD said...

He was sweet and lovable in David Mamet's "State and Main", chillingly good in "The Talented Mr. Ripley" and just hilarious in "Charlie Wilson's War". If he was part of the cast, it was reason enough to see the movie. I always felt for him, the man, some connection. Not due to my great instincts, but his great talent. I am so sad he's gone.

Paddy O said...

I first saw him in Twister, but he wasn't a somebody then. When I got to know his work later on and I saw he was in Twister, I couldn't remember which part. Then I saw it again, saw his role, and again thought how varied an actor he was, Twister being his more extreme fun sort of role.

kjbe said...

Found with a needle in his arm, the disease claims another, goddamnit.

Rest in peace, Philip Seymour Hoffman.

donald said...

Dude.

KCFleming said...

I've seen the needle
and the damage done
A little part of it in everyone
But every junkie's
like a setting sun.

Anonymous said...

Apparently, he was clean for 23 years and had been open about relapsing just last year.

That's a long time. It would be an additional hardship on an older body to go back to your youthful ways.

Xmas said...

SOJO,

As an on-the-wagon heroin addict told me, every moment of every day he wants to stick the needle back in his arm and he'll feel that way until his dying day.

twinsdaddy said...

I said God Damn....God Damn the pusher man

Revenant said...

Pity about Hoffman, he was a great actor.

donald said...

The death of the great Me Schell would not have been mentioned here if Hoffman didn't die.

As a libertarian, Seymour did what he did and there are consequences.

donald said...

We can all proceed accordingly.

ganderson said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
ganderson said...

"Zerstöre Arnheim"!

FullMoon said...

Was he another addict inspired to try heroin by that "genius" Lou Reed?

Anonymous said...

The problem with experimenting with drugs. What are you gonna do if you like them?

Moose said...

No people - not tragic. Fuckin' stupid. Would we care if it was a teenaged black kid? Don't think so.

Rob said...

On second thought, maybe it wasn't such a good idea for Peyton Manning to shoot heroin last night with Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Anonymous said...

So sad, so very sad.

Just view this clip from Charlie Wilson's War:

Helsinki Job Was Mine (or WTF)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQ_4m2ocxhI

PSH was a legend. He outshine every-one in all his movies. Think of the Scent of the Woman where he even out-shined Pacino.

He will be missed. R.I.P.

Guildofcannonballs said...

I've seen quotes close but not "Seen the man use the needle; seen the needle use the man" from Megadeath if I recall.

If no God why not?

Fuck this shit country and world and most of all, humans.

You ever hear about shit humans do to each other? Or the environment?

Guildofcannonballs said...

Oh yes, yes indeed, here it is, it was Megadeath:

"Use The Man"

I heard somebody fixed today
There was no last goodbyes to say
His will to live ran out
I heard somebody turned to dust

Looking back at what he left
A list of plans and photographs
Songs that never will be sung
These are the things he don't get done

I've seen the man use the needle, seen the needle use the man
I've seen them crawl from the cradle to the gutter on their hands
They fight a war but it's fatal, it's so hard to understand
I've seen the man use the needle, seen the needle use the man

Just one shot to say goodbye
One last taste to mourn and cry
Scores and shoots, the lights go dim
Just one shot to do him in

He hangs his head and wonders why
Why the monkey only lies
But pay the pauper, he did choose
He hung his head inside the noose

I've seen the man use the needle, seen the needle use the man
I've seen them crawl from the cradle to the gutter on their hands
They fight a war but it's fatal, it's so hard to understand
I've seen the man use the needle, seen the needle use the man
Cryptic writing on the wall, the beginning of the end
I've seen myself use the needle, seen the needle in my hand

Guildofcannonballs said...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uh7hH8ka5hQ

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

He first stood out to me in Twister and then Magnolia with Tom Cruise.

He played a male nurse to a dying man.

David said...

tmitsss said...
The problem with experimenting with drugs. What are you gonna do if you like them?


But pot is not harmful. Or no more harmful than alcohol. Or something.

Revenant said...

No people - not tragic. Fuckin' stupid.

You seem to think "tragic" and "stupid" are antonyms. You are mistaken.

Would we care if it was a teenaged black kid?

Playing the race card is fun!

chickelit said...

This is terrible news. He was a favorite actor of mine to watch.

How will this affect part 3 of "The Hunger Games"? His part in part 2 was supposed to greatly expanded in the third part. Hopefully, most of it was already shot.

Irreplaceable loss.

chickelit said...

I was rereading some of Keith Richards' "Life" the other night, searching unsuccessfully for a quote about Brian Jones. Richards described how he first tried heroin and it was quite astute: he was hanging out with friends snorting cocaine and somebody slipped it in...the next day, he asked what it was.

Thus there was no volition on his part to try heroin--only a careless openness to opportunity.

furious_a said...

At least Phillip Seymour didn't have to watch the Super Bowl!

Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...

I remember Schell! We watched that movie in high school. He was a good-looking fella… and at least had the decency to die a more timely death.

Clyde said...

Our bodies all contain the seeds of our own destruction. Some people feel the need to plant more; they are usually the ones who have an early harvest.

prairie wind said...

But pot is not harmful. Or no more harmful than alcohol. Or something.

Do notice, though, how keeping heroin illegal did not stop Mr. Hoffman from using it. Would he have been a better actor or a more productive citizen if he had been caught and imprisoned for using an illegal drug?

kjbe said...

"No people - not tragic. Fuckin' stupid. Would we care if it was a teenaged black kid? Don't think so."

Then you'd be wrong.

Trashhauler said...

Had to look him up. Face doesn't look all that familiar, which probably says more about my choice of movies than anything else.

My confusion increased after reading on Facebook that he was "one of the most quoted actors in our household." My first thought was, "Who in the hell quotes actors?" The poster must be talking about movie lines or something.

Anyway, it is sad that he did himself in.

Paul said...

I don't care a bit out Hollywood drug addicts.

Of all the people in the world who could stay away from drugs it would be them, but their liberal mindset they have just seems to attract that kind of behavior.