Actress Brittany Murphy died Sunday morning.
I don't know about you, but the first thing I thought about when I heard the news was "Man, what a shame...." followed by "I wonder if the drugs were of the prescription variety or the kind bought on the street..."
Then, I wondered if there is a difference any more.
I know that's an incredibly callous, insensitive thing to think, much less write, at this point. Initial news reports state that the 32-year-old star of "Clueless" and "8 Mile" and "Don't Say a Word" died of cardiac arrest and that her mother found her in the shower, unconscious.
I know I'm making a leap here. But, I just have trouble with the notion that a seemingly healthy woman of that age would die of natural causes.
Remember the shock you felt when Michael Jackson died this summer or when Heath Ledger died nearly two years ago?
At the time of their deaths, I wondered if the media would shine a light on what seems to be an epidemic of abuse of substances like oxycodone, hydrocodone, diazepam, temazepam, alprazolam and doxylamine among young people in Hollywood and nation-wide.
If those substances contributed to Murphy's death, maybe it will be a wakeup call.
Host of “The Drew Olson Show,” which airs 1-3 p.m. weekdays on The Big 902. Sidekick on “The Mike Heller Show,” airing weekdays on The Big 920 and a statewide network including stations in Madison, Appleton and Wausau. Co-author of Bill Schroeder’s “If These Walls Could Talk: Milwaukee Brewers” on Triumph Books. Co-host of “Big 12 Sports Saturday,” which airs Saturdays during football season on WISN-12. Former senior editor at OnMilwaukee.com. Former reporter at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
