Brittany Murphy Dies At 32

Brittany Murphy, age 32, was found dead, having collapsed in her bathroom early that morning. According to unnamed reports, the LAFD responded to a call for 'medical personnel' at around 8am on December 20, 2009 at the Hollywood home that Murphy shared with her husband, British screenwriter Simon Monjack. Although firefighters attempted to resuscitate Murphy on the scene and was quickly transported to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, she was pronounced dead nearly two hours later at exactly 10:04am after going into cardiac arrest.

The complete and underlying cause of the actresses death is currently unknown. Ashton Kutcher, who once dated Brittany, Tweeted upon her untimely death: "2day the world lost a little piece of sunshine. My deepest condolences go out to Brittany's family, her husband, and her amazing mother Sharon." Britney’s own father is in a state of shock, Angelo Bertolotti, tells Us Weekly, "There is nothing I can say. I can't believe this is happening. She was a young 32. She wasn't supposed to die like this. I don't understand how she died. This doesn't make sense to me." Much of the media speculation about the causes of her death has involved allegations that she was taking prescription drugs. TMZ reports that authorities did not find illegal drugs in the house, but Murphy might have been taking various prescription medications.

Brittany Murphy was best known for her lead role in the film Uptown Girls, alongside Dakota Fanning and House star Jesse Spencer, as well as her roles in Clueless, 8 Mile, as well as lending her voice to Luanne Platter for the show King of the Hill. It was impossible to avoid the fact that Brittany was a brilliant actress. Whether it was her large, tugging eyes, sad, pouty lips, or the deep and expressive emotional style her roles allowed her to bloom in, remorse and sorrow is more than an understatement for an icon of the 20-30 film genres she perfected in. A true Hollywood tragedy.

Our deepest sympathy to her parents, friends and husband.