I have had three friends commit suicide in the past 5 years, the most recent dying only a few months ago, so this list is dedicated to them and others who have, sadly, ended their lives too early. As a teenager growing up I know that, for me, personally, suicide was always on my mind during a period of time. Most of us go through a stage where we become depressed but, luckily for us, we’ve either found better ways to deal with our issues or we’ve had a support group we were able to turn to. For some of us the phase just passed. For some people, though, the phase doesn’t end, they feel there is no one to turn to and there are no escapes. This list is intended to discuss the celebrities who have committed suicide and whose death was either unknown, not widely acknowledged or forgotten. This list is in no particular order.
Ruslana Korshunova happened to be a Kazakh supermodel that had a Russian heritage. She had posed in Vogue and had represented designers such as Vera Wang and Nina Ricci. She was discovered in 2003 and was immediately distinguished by her long, knee-length, chestnut colored hair. Part of what made her suicide so bizarre was the method she chose. June 28, somewhere around 2:30 P.M., Ruslana “fell” out of her ninth-floor balcony, after having watched the movie “Ghost” with a former boyfriend in Manhattan. Friends have said that she was usually a cheerful person and had never shown any signs of distress or feelings of failure, although there were things written on some social networking sites that seemed to suggest otherwise. She at one time stated “Death is a celebration of life…there is hope” and “I’m so lost. Will I ever find myself?” Ruslana Korshunova’s death was ruled as a suicide because the police could find no other witnesses. However, something odd that was noticed at the time of her death was that her trademark hair was considerably shorter, and looked as if it had been cut in haste.
I’m sure that everyone on this site is familiar with the popular hit “Southpark”, but maybe not so familiar with this leading lady who contributed to making this show so beloved. Mary Kay Bergman was born in Los Angeles, California, to Jewish parents and was a self-proclaimed nerd. Science fiction and fantasy were two main passions of hers, but she had always been an avid fan of Disney. She not only voiced the parts of Ms. Cartman and Wendy on “Southpark”, but she also was the voice of Timmy Turner in “The Fairly Oddparents” and was the official voice of Snow White for Disney. Bergman had been married for 9 years (a big accomplishment to some, including myself), seemed happy. Until her death, no one had known that she had suffered from chronic and acute depression for a multitude of years, despite having reached many of her goals and achieving a dream profession. Sadly though, on a Thursday night Mary Kay Bergman shot herself in the head. She was found an hour and 20 minutes later by her husband and friend, along with two suicide notes that have not yet been released.
I’m sure that on this one some may argue this person’s status as a celebrity because they only starred on reality television. Although it’s not nearly the same in status, I am absolutely addicted to reality television, so it’s enough for me. This awful event took place quite recently and although the reasons behind the act are difficult to hear, it was certainly bizarre and shocking enough to bear noting. Ryan Jenkins was a Canadian, born in British Columbia, who was also a self-made millionaire. He appeared on the popular VH1 show “Megan Wants a Millionaire” and went on later to star on “I Love Money”. He won the first place prize, along with $250,000 dollars. “Megan Wants a Millionaire” stopped airing after only a few episodes and “I Love Money” never aired, following the discovery on August 15, 2009 of the body of Jasmine Fiore. She was a former model who met Ryan in a Las Vegas casino, married him two days later and was brutally killed shortly thereafter. Fiore was found in a suitcase with no teeth and her fingers had been cut off. She had been strangled, and her body had been crushed, mutilated and beaten. Had she not had breast implants her identity might never have been discovered. Five days later, after an intense search had begun, Jenkins hanged himself with a belt in the room of a motel in Canada. The picture above is of Jenkins and Fiore in happier times.
Any readers who watch “American Idol” are sure to be familiar with Paula Goodspeed. Paula was a devoted fan of “American Idol” and especially of Paula Abdul. She had auditioned to be on the show to meet her idol and in the hopes of becoming infamous. She achieved infamy, but sadly for the wrong reasons. It was said that because of her outlandish fashion and flat audition she was rejected, and that she was ridiculed for having braces. Five months later Goodspeed would write on a social networking website that auditioning may have been a mistake and that reading fans comments about her were hurtful. As a consequence of her very serious crush on Paula (Goodspeed identified as being gay), an audition gone wrong, rejection and cruel remarks from her peers, Paula Goodspeed was found outside the home of Paula Abdul having killed herself with an overdose on prescription pills.
This was a widely publicized story that happened quite some time ago. Brynn Hartman was the third wife of famous actor and comedian Phil Hartman and the third time, in this case, was anything but a charm. Most of us will recognize Phil Hartman from the long running television show “Saturday Night Live”, where actors are known to improv a lot of their lines. Brynn was a former model who had a history of drug and alcohol abuse throughout their marriage, as well as behavioral problems. No-one knows if it was their two children, or Phil’s undying love for Brynn, but he was determined to make this marriage work. It ended up costing him his life. On the evening of May 27, Brynn and Phil had one of many arguments about her drug usage. Phil then went to sleep, and was later shot by a high and intoxicated Brynn. Brynn then confessed the murder to two people before she shooting herself in the head, taking her own life. Phil was shot twice in the head and once in the side and is believed to have died instantly. There was speculation that Andy Dick had provided Brynn Hartman with the cocaine she took that night, spawning her psychotic behavior, but he denies those claims to this day.
Elliott Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, and lived for a long time in Portland, Oregon. Elliott had a gift for creating music that took you to another place and his voice was totally unique. He was best known for having a large role in the creation of the soundtrack for “Good Will Hunting”, and for an Academy Award nomination for his song “Miss Misery”. Elliott had had suicidal tendencies before, having tried to jump off a cliff while drunk, only to have a tree break his fall. While in Portland he began to dabble in drugs. Following an argument with his girlfriend in late October, Smith was found in the kitchen with a knife in his chest after his girlfriend heard him scream. Elliott Smith died at 1:36 P.M.
Jonathan Brandis was born in Danbury, Connecticut, and began his film career at age 5. He starred in one of my favorite childhood films “The Neverending Story II: The Next Chapter”, as well as the film “Ladybugs”, with the late Rodney Dangerfield. Although those movies formed my biggest impression of him, it seems Brandis was most known for his role on “SeaQuest”, a television show created by Stephen Spielberg. It is in SeaQuest that he became a teen idol. Friends of the actor said he seemed to be depressed about his lack of a career, despite the fact that he was working on a film in his directorial debut, as well as other promising things in the works. Jonathan Brandis hanged himself on the evening of November 11th and died in the hospital the next day.
Andrew Koenig was best known as the character “Boner” on the sitcom hit “Growing Pains”, which was one of my favorites as a kid. He also played The Joker in a short film based on the “Batman” series, but otherwise didn’t have too much of an extensive resume. Koenig was said to mostly enjoy working behind the scenes and he was deeply involved in human rights. In February 2010 Koenig went to Canada to see the Olympics and never returned. He was later found hanged in Vancouver.
Dana Plato was born in Moore, Oklahoma, and was best known for her role as Kimberley on “Diff’rent Strokes”. She was let go from the show because of an unplanned pregnancy. Not able to reach the status she wanted, she became involved in darker pastimes, and was arrested for armed robbery in 1991. She got breast implants and appeared in “Playboy” in the hopes of regaining stardom. She later moved in to films of a more erotic nature. She appeared on “The Howard Stern Show” the day before her death and claimed she had been sober for 10 years. Callers called to defend her and commend her on turning her life around, but Dana went on to overdose on pills the following day in a vehicle outside of her fiancé’s mothers’ house. Sadly, Dana’s son also committed suicide last month (May, 2010).
Peg Entwistle may be the oldest on the list but her story certainly isn’t the least interesting. Born in Port Talbot, Wales, UK, her dream, like so many others, was to become an actress. She started out on Broadway and went on to be known as a comedienne. Her last film was called “Thirteen Women” and, apparently, received very poor reviews. Upset by the comments of the critics, as well as the greatly reduced screen time featuring her, Peg walked up the hill featuring the famous Hollywood sign, climbed atop it and jumped off. Strangely enough, the following day a letter came in the mail for Entwistle offering her a role in a play about a woman who commits suicide.
great list!! creepy
I agree! The commentary hit the spot for me. Look forward to more from Si Si.
Great List!!! Jonathan Brandis was such a sad loss
I just wanted to confirm- Kurt Cobain also committed suicide, didn't he?
Yes, he did
No. He did NOT commit suicide. Watch the movie Kurt and Courtney. It was made to look like a suicide.
that movie wasn't the best example. However, read Love and Death. That has some seriously good evidence against the suicide theory. I've had people try to argue with me before, but if they haven't read that book, they don't have a case.
the best argument againts murder is courtney love , that crab couldnt even plan her way out of a wet paperbag , yet she managed to kill the biggest rocker in the world (at that time) and get away with it ? naah…
ok—-the thing about tom grant's notes, and book and general attitude almost makes it look like he's practicing to write a fiction story, and he needs to bounce ideas off of people. it just seems too forced to me.
dont get me wrong. courtney love and that male housekeeper dewitt could be playing the most intricate game of "let's play dumb" in the history of the universe, but im hard pressed to give her that much credit
Tom Grant is a money-loving attention *****, plain and simple. He claims that he has tape recordings that 'prove' Cobain was murdered, but refuses to release them for bizarre, illogical reasons. He sells the 'evidence kit' on his website, profiting from the musician's death in the process, and has been paid to make TV and radio appearances. It's painfully obvious that Grant saw an opportunity to gain fame and money, and gabbed a hold of it with everything he had. That alone doesn't necessarily disprove the murder theory, but it doesn't help it either.
it doesnt disprove the murder theory, but it doesnt help it either
yes—-
you win for the understatement of the day
what you said is true — doesnt disprove a murder theory, but it does go a long way in tainting the idea. see — if there wasnt people like grant (along with all those strange conspiry theorists who thing the moon landing was a hoax) then it *might* be more believable.
as it stands, however, you have a guy running aroundm gathering evidence on a potential murder, and claiming to have definative proof. now if this leech had info., it would be in hiis best financial interest to come off the info (it being clear that fincially is how he thinks)
when he says he wont release it b/c of some ethical connundrum it makes him instantly look like a liar. im not a pessimist by any means (opposite actually), but his rhetoric makes him look like a blithering idiot, and a liar of epic proportions.
and as for the rumour — knowing that the best source for this claim *is* a blithering idiot, it strips all the credibility from the possibility — causing many who would believe the rumour to shrug it off due to the extraneous amount of dumbassness involved in promulgating the rumour in the first place.
He was most likely murdered.
He most likely committed suicide. He talked about it frequently. He seemed to know that was his destiny. He was verydepressed and under the influence of drugs. To me, it’s pretty obvious.
While there are several discrepancies in the official explanation, some of which warrant another investigation, there has never been any compelling evidence that Courtney Love murdered him. The suicide theory is still very plausible. Personally, I think that any discrepancies are better explained by the suggestion that someone assisted him in killing himself rather than a murder plot, although even that is a bit of a stretch based on the current evidence. Like I said, another investigation into the death may be warranted, but the allegations that Courtney Love had him killed are completely baseless — and I say this as someone who despises that woman.
Depends on who you ask. Did Syd kill Nancy?
There are rumors but they couldn't tell if it was suicide or murder.
I personally believe it was murder and stand my case with two facts. Cobain was a herioin addict, and even though when found dead he had an excessive amount injected, this wasn’t enough to kill him. Although it was enough to temporally disable him, and he was unable to make any movements or thoughts, including the changes to his “note” and shooting himself.
Secondly, the angle in which the gun was shot at was a way that if Cobain wasn’t so *****ed on herioin, he could have held the gun, BUT because of the angle the only way he would have been able to pull the trigger was with him toes. Cobain was found wearing both shoes AND socks.
So it was either murder, or planned and assisted sucide, which would be accounted for as murder anyway. Courtney have connections in high places obviously helped her in this bizzare scandal.
Good Job!
Dana seemed familiar to me somehow
That’s why the title is “…celebrity suicides”.
Sad list. Well done, but sad nonetheless.
Being a survivor of a suicide attempt, this one hits home. Its very true though very cli’che suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.
Ruslana.. she was the most beautiful creature alive
Interesting. One of the weirdest onscreen suicides I've read about is that of Chris Chubbuck, who killed herself during a news broadcast – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christine_Chubbuck
There should be a second list of this, about Ian curtis(What a hero) and Kurt Cobain.
Don't forget Choi Jin Sil & Jang Ja Yeon.
curtis was the joy division guy, right?
didnt he have a lot of serious physical problems (complications from epilepsy, i think) as well as several affairs (i remember one with annika honore (sp?)) —
i have been told on a few occasions to read 'torn apart' — i think its a biographical piece — unfortunately i have never gotten the chance to do so.
admittedly, i had never heard of choi jin sil until her brother commited suicide last year — but i did like jang ja yeon in boys..flowers? — cant remember the name, but she played sunny. i later learned that those suicides were like…9 months apart, and wondered if any other promanent young south korean actresses also committed suicide around the same time.
Only one i knew was the guy from neverending story and ryan j (on CNN ) . But no.10 is a sweetie why would a babe like that need to kill herself ?.
All in all good list i apreciate it .
damn man……a little sheltered down there in south africa? i remember 9 of em — and every time i was thinking …wtf? why did they do that? knowing good and well the reasons are individualistic. of course, im not like…a suicide expert or fanatic, but i do subscribe to the usa today, and ive seen the stroies. knowing about 9 of them isnt a far stretch, since 9 of em happened in the window of the last 12 years (with #1 being like…..79 years ago).
oh–and i appriciate the list too ….. a lot …. but do you find it a little odd that 90% of the list happened between 1998 (hartman) and 13 weeks ago (that dude that played boner on family ties). maybe im too *****ing tired and beginning to hallucinate, but it seems that someone, somewhere offed themselves between 1932 and 1997. just seems weird…..this list could have easily been a top 25, and its only bizarre and tragic suicides…….
of course all suicides are tragic, and one can usually pick out something bizarre in each case.
never seen family ties, but maybe that guy off'd himself cause people kept calling him "Boner" even after the show was finished ?
my bad boss: didnt realize i *****ed it up til you responded but he was in a show called 'growing pains' with kirk cameron and tracy gold, and toward the end, it was one of the first things leonardo dicaprio did.
family ties was popular at the same time –with michael j fox, jason bateman's sister
if you never saw either one of them, you didnt miss much.
but look
the dude's name in the show was:
richard milhaus 'boner' stabone
i guarantee you i would have made fun of him…..
for years……
So you think the fashion world isnt effed up? Where are you from?
I only knew phil hartman and maybe the southpark voice. Id even state (even if i hate this joke) that this list is too unknown-centric
I was expecting hemingways grand daughter.
And paula goodspeed. I mean thats a really crazy person.
agree it is unkonwn centric lol i think it was supposed to be though, -but maybe i was wrong i mean models get paid obscene amounts of money to try on over priced clothes and walk around showing off ( something most girls love) and in the intrest of maintaining weight loss frequently take copious amounts of cocaine , a evil drug that turns all your bad feelings into good feelings ….my god !! it must be a living nightmare…..
I know all my problems could be solved with money , thats why i dont get these rich and famous people killing themselves .
“I know all my problems could be solved with money , thats why i dont get these rich and famous people killing themselves .”
now you are being insensitive. You see we average people, we have a dream. Make money. And try to make them and maybe we fail. If we fail we say well its cool money doesnt buy you happiness. But if we dont fail, we just get rich. And thats boring. You dont have that big dream of getting rich and we just spend.
I think we two are lucky. We have the real american dream: we dream we will get rich, and we hope we will always have that dream. Lets not spoil it by actually getting rich.
whoa that is seriously deep man… you make a very good/intersting point could imagine george orwell saying something like that…
Most of us DO NOT go through a stage where we become depressed……whatever makes you feel good i guess.
These people were hardly celebreties, with the exception of Phil Hartman. He also did the voice of Troy McClure. You may remember him from The Simpsons.
I mention that a reality stars may not be regarded as "celebrities" and maybe you haven't gone through a stage of depression but most people that I know have. This list is to acknowledge them.
A lot more people than you think go through a stage of depression. You were one of the luckier minority I'm guessing.
I have to agree with THAT if you haven't went through any depression in your life thank God you are one of the lucky ones, I have tried suicide twice its awful feeling there is no way but to end your life.
God bless these family's
Except for Elliot Smith and Peg Entwistle I knew of all these celebrities. Perhaps Sega you are just too young.
pipe down sega. they're more famous than you.
Thanks everybody! This is my first list so I'll only improve from here!
According to me, those who commit/attempt suicide or contemplate committing suicide seriously lack in spiritual enlightenment.
& courage.
put a loaded shot gun againt the roof of your mouth and tell me i dosent take courage to pull the trigger. Peolpe who commit suicide arent cowards or lacking in spiritual enlightenment (hara kiri is a very spiritual thing). some are crazy some are emotionally shattered and some just done need to go on ( hunter s thompson) . its very complex , even the scorpion will sting itself when it is cornered…
You can't compare the hara-kiri thing to the mental stress that the average person undergoes (or celebrities). Without sounding too 'cliched' or preachy type, I'd say that people who don't understand the true purpose of creation just don't have enough strength or willpower to cope with the difficulties of life. And that includes most of us who are living an easy life…
the true purpose of creation is to procreate and pass on your genes . If i try to get all spiritual id say the true purpose in life is to consume experience and in the same breath try to spread happiness ( through acts of compassion not religious enthusiasm tho its better than nothing) . How ever people could feel trapped in modern society because lets face it humas suck balls they kill and control EVERYTHING freedom is to a certain degre an illusion, Ducking out of the rat race because its making you feel like ***** isnt really something to look down on them for , its a reason to look down on ourselves as a society/species .
or maybe its just a suicide gene lol
Man, it's so easy for people to say what others think and feel isnt it? Wow! Ths is seriously the most judgemental comments on a list ive seen so far on this site.
"the true purpose of creation"? Oh sorry, I didn't know you knew the meaning to life lol. I've studied suicide as part of my degree and to say the lack courage or willpower is a bit naive, although the coping bit is a fair assumption I suppose. Some people just realise that they have lived their life, only their body hasn't got the message yet and so decide to help it along, although these cases (as stated in their suicide notes) are really limited to the elderly and so don't really correlate with this list. Concerning the "spiritual enlightenment" bit, studies by people such as Durkheim (and later critiques) found that actually any discrepancies between suicide and religion (in this case Protestant and Catholics) could be argued away due to the shame associated with it in certain religions and other factors – eg. A Catholic suicide would be less likely to be documented as such as it meant a difference in burial. This was an old study, though considered one of the Greats, but if you have newer research which backs up your claims I would love to hear it.
What does spiritual enlightenment have to do with it?
Research has shown nothing except an increased effort on both the suicide and the suicide's family/friends to cover up the fact that the death was deliberate, although some theorists have claimed that the sense of community found in a tight-knit church may lead to a support network which would spot early signs of depression etc. I would argue that this is the case with any community, be it family, friends, workmates or church gatherings; the idea of spirituality itself being a factor is not the case at all – unless you count the possible fear of what will be waiting in the afterlife for them if they did commit suicide, although this has been shown not to have a very big impact in reality: depression tends to leave to feelings of complete hopelessness, which often includes the person's Faith to be rejected etc.
Thank you. That summed it up nicely and it was exactly what I had a feeling of.
what about all those "suicides" where parents find their kids hanging in the cubboard david carredine style with their hands on their shclong so the parents do a quick wipe up , put on pants and say its suicide , id love to know how many cases there are of that….
Lol I'm sure there are a few, although the coroner would probably know what had really happened. I wonder if they feel compelled to make the truth known due to their position as a professional? A very interesting avenue of thought! The book "Haunted" by Chuck Palahnuik (?) covers this briefly – a very good read, although I warn you, while it is fiction he claims the *****ual escapades and misadventures he describes did happen to people he knew and it is a very, very dark read!
in your first sentence, the remark about the coroner — if they were properly examined, the coroner would know exactly what happened. i know the laws and limitations in usa, as i worked with the new mexico medical examiner for a short time, but internationally, i know there are differing rules and regulations regarding the required presence of a coroner. do you happen to know any demographics on this? — because i dont, although i know it makes a difference in examples from other countries.
and i want to note — im gonna joing this discussion after i get home — i dont yet have enough time to think about it right now. your remarks have gotten me thinking about a lot of premeses i encountered a few years back when i had to write a 75 page paper on vehicular suicide. including many risk factors surrounding accidential deaths — like your female auto-erotic asphyxiation example below.
im busy reading it now for the second time (where the thought came from) – his musings on the invisible carrot amuse me .
I know you were probably only joking but I looked it up and it is a genuine problem for coroners and such – it's only really obvious if the parents don't "clean up" properly, which either the coroner or any forensics would pick up on. Also, there's research going into the amount of accidental auto-erotic asphyxiation deaths among females, a notion which was previously considered ridiculous as it was thought it was something only practiced by males. It's a funny old world, eh?
and dude — listen to tara — you would like haunted. its dark and creepy, but you'd probably find it interesting.
the aea death that made me notice it was a unique (and misleading) type of suicide was michael hutchence. i mean — at first, the report came in that he was dead. at this point the media and everyone with an opinion stepped up —- oh…he had squandered a lot of money — oh the latest inxs tour didnt go as well as he wanted — paula yeates threatened to harm herself and his daughter tiger lily if he didnt do something (i dont remember what) — and yeats' husband, bob geldof, was giving them both *****, and after he crashed his bike in denmark, he assualted every band member at least once, and was labled a loose cannon, and getting into relationships with some pretty baller chicks (elana christiansen, kylie monogue, terri mann, elle macpherson, etc) that didnt last 3 weekends, and paula yeates slipped heroin into his pocket at his wake and on and on and on.
everyone was thinking — ok– some people suicide themselves. whatever — sucks, but happens.
*then* the auto erotic asphyxiation claim was suggested — and reiterated by yeates
a lot of people's attitudes changed after that — wherein they tried to justify an occurence of an accident, rather than suicide
it confused me probably because i was still semi young in '97 and i had never seen that kind of press associated with a suicide, even though i had a friend that had died in the same way a year prior.
I completely agree to the fact that it is a spiritual vacuum that makes people feel empty and useless…
Anyone that doubts that should prove to me that they do not feel useless or depressed or down some times.
Open ur eyes people….if you knew nothing about being close to God(Jesus) it is about time you looked into it and stop basing your findings on bloody research.
God is our creator, sense of hope and reason to live… if he is void in your life there will be a vacuum nothing else can fill..not alchohol or drugs or *****…nah…its his space boi
i know guy who was hijacked stuffed in the boot (trunk) of his car and taken to a shack (district 9 style hut ) and gangraped by 3 stinking aids infested scum for 3 days . He hung himself a few days later….try tell his dad that it was because we wasnt close to god……where was god?
…now dont sound dumb… even the average dumb-ass atheist believes in karma lol…mate, what goes around definately comes around…
..dat said, who says cos there is a God bad things dont happen? you sound like a kid that has seen the numerous spiderman episodes too many times. mate even I know there is a God, and i also know that if i do bad *****'s gon happen, and i also know that innocent people sometimes suffer cos of the devil trying to take d ***** outta them.
…if you are close to God he protects you cos you've committed your life to him… God saves people in miraculous ways, dont be decieved, if ur not close to him and ***** happens to you dont ask where he was cos you decided not to have anything to do with him in the first place… tell that to everyone you know even that poor guys dad if u can. out*
dude who the ***** are you to lecture me about someone you dont even know ? get off your high horse ! i know that ***** happens i was making a point , douche…….for me when ***** happens it means that ***** happens , but for you it means that it all part of some mystery plan that god has constructed ………this was about suicide i dont wanna argue any further i wont get us anywhere ….
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Priceless. You should ring up your *****bag god on the ol' prayerphone and ask him what he thinks of 'karma'. Considering it's not a tenet of *****stianity, I'm pretty sure he'd call it blasphemy. Just so you don't have to look that word up in another window, it means irreverence for religious beliefs or customs.
Speaking of karma, telling someone whose friend suffered and later killed themselves that they probably had it coming is probably great karma. Even if there was a god (and there most certainly isn't), he'd probably think you're the most miserable piece of ***** he ever made the mistake of creating.
Depression (as in clinical depression) is actually a physical imbalance in the brain. It has nothing to do with any sort of deity. Research is what helps us to find out more instead of just blindly believing in a god.
If this so called 'god' is all great then why do people feel so down? Is he so *****ing insecure that he needs people to believe in him? Isn't it all about love, compassion and empathy?
OMG.. r u serious what kind of cold human being are you??
Let me tell you about your F****** spiritual enlightenment , my father in-law fought for you to live in this F***** up country and was shot 4 times and suffered in pain and misery and over 30 surgery's for 30 years .. his wife and kids never had a normal life. Finally at the YOUNG age of 51 he couldnt take the physical/mental pain anymore and shot him self in the head with my self my husband and my
(son 11 at the time) in the house you have NO IDEA what people feel or WHY and have NO right JUDGING them for not being able to go on in life I agree its not the answer and I wish EVERYDAY my father inlaw was still here we miss him BUT I know what he went through and we are not in their bodys/minds to feel how bad he/she felt/hurt and you cant just assume its repairable. Watch what you say u never know what life may bring down your road ahead.
I'm sorry for your family's loss. I've had to live my whole life wondering and dealing with my fathers suicide,he was 28, I was only 2. The person that made that comment is just a bad human, plain and simple. Look up the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
I hope for your sake that your comment never comes back to haunt you. You probably consider yourself a christian, you probably shouldn't. Why would you come on here and make such a selfish, hurtful comment? I bet you're the kind of person that protests soldiers funerals. You know what, I take it back. Go ahead and keep calling yourself a christian, I forgot about how vengeful your god can be to his own people.
wow, this was a poorly written list.
also, where is the bizarre? where is the tragic? where is the proper grammar and the interesting articles? please note that i am not trying to troll when i say this, but "ten bizarre and tragic celebrity suicides" was one of the worst lists i have read in a while.
I didnt find anything too bizarre about it either…
Imo. you have a valid point.
These might not be bizarre, but they certainly are tragic – I might not shed a tear for them but I'm sure someone did.
Agree completely. Nothing bizarre about these at all. And what makes them more tragic then regular suicides? Rubbish list. I dont want to hear some little girl talking about her boy crush on this website.
I agree that this was really badly written. Isn't there an editor for this sort of thing now?
There is, but at what point does a list cease to become an individual’s work? I edit someone else’s work, I don’t write it for them. It’s their efforts and hard work that go in to making the list, and I think that their ‘stamp’ should be left on it. If I re-write totally, then it’s my list, not Si Si’s, and that wouldn’t be fair to her.
what a good copy editor would do is correct it, and send it back for a re-write, until it's publishable. It keeps the tenor of the original writer, but has the oversight of the site admin. What was the rush to publish?
o shut up and stop being so damn bitter
Very interesting list about a sad topic. I was surprised I knew of 7 of the 10 mentioned. It's a shame to see any persons life cut short and Si Si, if you do another similar list, perhaps a quick note advising readers that if they're in that frame to mind to try and reach out to someone, even if it's a phone call to some prevention line. Cheers & a good first list.
Noted.
also i happen to be an expert in counseling beautiful vulnerable young women – so feel free to mention my services also… ;-p lol
yes. he did.
mary-kay —- the south park voice actress (who used the name shannon cassidy for some of the shows episodes — she used this alias to protect her reputation as a kid-friendly voice for several disney characters, such as snow white,, as si si pointed out)) not only voiced leann cartman and wendy testaburger, but also sharon marsh, shelia brovloski, veronica crabtree, carol mccormick, butters mom, the principal and the governor (i think) plus a few other girls along with some characters making only a one-time appearance. also, one of the last things she did was provide the voices for the movie (bigger, longer, and uncut) although, if i'm remembering correctly, she didnt live to see it released.
not that she wont be dearly missed, but a side note, the 3 female actresses that followed her sounded a lot like her, and many people arent aware that every female lead voice changed in 1999
Just saw the US federal goverment asked James cameron to help fix the iol leak because of the work he did for titanic . didnt they do the same thing in "Imaginationland" with kurt Russel ?
hahaha im cracking up , apperently he is an expert at under water remote controlled devices tho . ….still think tarantino would do a more awesome job lol .
i dont know man — i can guarantee you one thing though — if james cameron gets involved, the "run-time" of the clean up will be twice as long as its needs to be.
and i'd be cracking up too if i couldnt actually see the oil on the beach from my front door (sidenote: timothyjames—-i dont know when youre going to gulf shores, but there is oil on the beach here, as well as 45miles east of gulf shores, in pensacola 7 miles from shore — although i dont know about gulf shores itself, keep an eye out)
and bluesman —– yep– they did do that with kurt russell — in the middle episode of the 3 of imaginationland (the drying of the balls episode) —- and what was so *****ing funny about it was the clear spoof of stargate, and the subsequest gangrape of kurt russell by the woodland creatures. — that whole episode was hysterical — i mean — the counsel of 9 imaginary friends (jesus, popeye, morpheus, aslan, glenda, wonder woman, luke skywalker, gandolf, and zeus) made the whole damn episode by itself.
living on the beach here — i have lest terns, seagulls, soft shell crabs, sand crabs, and flounder fish that burrow in the sand at the water's edge. they arent woodland critters, but theyre all covered in oil, and theyre *****ed off — james cameron better not find himself alone with these creatures, lest he meet the same fate as russell.
oh— and although i just wrote this previous statement 15min ago, i already have 3 pm's about this: this is off-topic — for you food people
–oysters are already off the menu all over new orleans, in anticipation of demand not meeting the serious lack of supply
–crawfish havnt disappeared in the markets yet, but have almost doubled in price (at taranto's — the biggest and best place in biloxi)
–blue crabs and soft shell crabs will be unedible soon
–catfish and flounders will be skyrocketing in price locally
–there are differing ideas of what will happen to the supply (and price) of shrimp — with many people thinking it wont take as hard of a hit, but raising prices drastically anyway, to off set the lack of supply of other types of seafood.
wow that does actually suck balls aswell ….
Actually she did see it released I should know I sat next to her husband when I saw it for the first time. Mary Kay's husband is my oldest friend so I knew her very well. Her death was a shock to all of us who actually knew her. We had no idea of the pain she was in. Looking back even now I still can't see it. I talked to her the Tuesday before she did it and we were planning a trip my wife and I were going to take with them in the spring. She was her usual upbeat self. I still wish she would have confided in someone so we could have tried to get her the help she needed.
As a side note I definitely hear a difference in the voices especially Mrs. Brovloski. Her death is also the reason that the bus driver hasn't been heard from since. No one could do the voice right.
i knew someone here would know — and albeit 11 years late, condolences to dino — its always more shocking the less that's understood. i've been to forest lawn, off of ventura, and she is buried directly between a family friend, and the court of rememberance (where bette davis, liberace, and others are interred) — her plaque is very touching…….
you'll have to excuse me, i am not at a point where i can look anything up, but didnt she also voice daphnie (in some of the scooby-doo movies), as well as one ofthe characters in the little mermaid (tv)? and some part in the phantom menace?
let me begin by saying that i noticed a difference in the voices that mona marshall took over (mrs. brovsloski and the mayor, most notably) but i didnt notice as much of a difference in the ones eliza (last name?) took over, like stan, kenny, and cartman's moms. now, when april stewart took over for eliza in 2003, and you listen to mary-kay's lianne cartman, vs. april's mrs. cartman, there is a big difference.
here's what i have never been able to figure out: i always suspected that the bus driver mrs crabtree was lost because of the unique voice (which is extremely clear, as mrs. crabtree did appear after mary-kay's death, and sounded nothing nothing like mary-kay's), why in the world did they wait 5 years to kill her off? trey parker and matt stone had a very interesting character ontheir hands, based on the bus driver from forrest gump (right down to the bird in her hair) with about 5 catchphrases, and interesting interactions with the students.
so when the decision came to kill her off, had they just finally given up on finding a suitable replacement? i mean — at the time mrs crabtree was murdered, there was the underlying idea that part of the reason killing her off didnt matter as much because she had been an ancillary character for some time, but that was over 5 years after the death of kary-kay bergman. just wondered if i missed somehing
Sad but interesting list. Thanks si si!
i have no idea who #'s 5-10 are. are they even real celebrities?
Same here. I recognized only 2 of these …
All suicides are tragic but what made these suicides so bizarre? It just reads like a sad list of semi-famous people's suicides… none of them are particularly bizarre. Lupe Velez had a bizarre suicide…
A list about semi-famous people’s suicides. That sounds sad
unfortunately you gotta call a spade a spade.
it sounds really sad, actually
perhaps if they had been broken down catagorically (musicians, artists, tv, movie, lit., somehting like that) — hell si si would have 5 more lists to write, if approached in that mannerr
If you are referring to the story of Lupe Velez drowning in her toilet, that is not true.She died in bed from an overdose of sleeping pills. The "toilet" story was made up by Andy Warhol for his 1965 film Lupe and expounded upon by Ken Anger in his book Hollywood Babylon.
I know listverse picks the title, but I agree with others, there is nothing bizarre about these deaths.
Hmmm, I second Kurt Cobain and Christine Chubbuck (To be fair, Chubbuck was mentioned on another list before http://listverse.com/2007/12/24/top-10-people-who… ). Also possible would have been Hunter S. Thompson (Author of "Fear&Loathing in Las Vegas), Justin Fashanu (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Fashanu very sad story), Chris Benoit ( I'll miss the Crippler's Crossface, it was a nice move
), Salvador Allende (Shot himself during a Coup D'etat), or Prince Alfred of Edinburgh, or even, a lot of the people involved in the 20 July plot to kill hitler (Wessel Freytag von Loringhoven, Max Habermann, Werner Schrader, Bodo von Harbou, Hans-Ulrich von Oertzen)
Anyways, a lot of possibilities for a second list, although this one was already nice.
I second Hunter S Thompson as this list was supposed to highlight lesser known celebrity suicides i disagree with Kobain , everyone knows about that .
Well, in terms of tragic- and bizarreness, Kurt Cobain's Suicide (/ murder for all you conspiracy theorists) would deserve a spot, but I suppose it is too well known…bonus inclusion maybe?
tragic and bizarre is right yes agree there ,bonus definatly……
Really sad topic, but well written and I thought quite respectful. The amount of suffering caused by these sorts of things would be horrific. Murder-suicides are particularly depressing, robbing someone else of their life then taken your own seems quite cowardly imo.
I think it would be a good idea to include a few links to depression and support related websites or helplines at the bottom of this list. You never know who might read it, and where they're at emotionally. Just might be what someone needs to see.
im surpised brittany murphury wasn't on here, god rest your soul
Brittany Murphy? I don't think she intended to commit suicide, she was tryin' to cure herself
sigh, not a suicide.
Come on, si si, have you ever heard of, let's say, Ernest Hemingway, Virginia Woolf, Vincent van Gogh, George Eastman, Just to name a few real celebrities (Not counting Cobain, M. Monroe, Rudolf Diesel, in which cases questions are raised.) Anyone on my list beats everyon on Your list by far, talking of celebrities.
Marilyn Monroe didn't commit suicide! she was murdered.
I have said I'm not counting those, because some people might find them questionable
I was expecting these names too!
I was trying to honor lesser known celebrities.
si si, ignore the worst comments and learn from the best comments. Writing a list is not an easy thing. You won't please all the people all the time (you may not please some people any of the time, but that's another matter), but you will learn from experience.
Sad list but interesting. However, I'm not sure I found any of them bizarre….just sad.
Good list though it is sooooo sad:-(
Wonderful and inspirational list! I have written about several of these celebrities on my own blog. (I have an affinity for unusual celebrity deaths. So sue me.) "Thirteen Women" was not only Peg Entwistle's last film, it was her only film. My enrty about Peg cused a bit of anger with an obsessive (and possessive) fan.
Please take a look at http://blog.marshotleonline.com and search "death".
oops! the correct ink is http://blog.marshotelonline.com
how is someone taking their own life "Wonderfil and inspiring?" You are truely demented person!
I miss Phil Hartman… that selfish *****.
agree
glad to see elliott smith acknowledged
"There was speculation that Andy Dick had provided Brynn Hartman with the cocaine she took that night, spawning her psychotic behavior, but he denies those claims to this day. "
Andy Dick walked up to Jon Lovitz and said he put the Phil Hartman curse on him and he was going to die next. Lovitz then proceeded to smash Andy's head into the bar. Imagine it, not only getting whupped soundly in front of your peers, but by JON LOVITZ! Epic.
#1 – Oh, the irony…
Some useless trivia
#3 Andrew Koenig is the son of Walter Koenig aka Chekov from the original Star Trek series.
This list would've been a lot better had you omitted some of the entries and included Jimi Hendrix, Phyllis Hyman, Kurt Cobain, River Pheonix, Chris Benoit, Donny Hathaway plus a whole bunch more. Keep writing man you'll get better.
"This list is intended to discuss the celebrities who have committed suicide and whose death was either unknown, not widely acknowledged or forgotten. This list is in no particular order." Sorry I didn't read that part. I retract my last comment.
Yeah exactly – I am sick of reading comments from people saying that the names should be changed to more famous celebrities. People already know about them. Why do people look for the negatives in everything! Such a well written and respectful list. I didn’t know who most of these people were until I read this. Amazing job.
Did Janis Joplin commit suicide? I thought Hendrix was an accidental overdose: you learn something new every day!
I'm pretty sure River Phoenix was an accidental overdose though (such a shame!)
Janis Joplin did NOT commit suicide. Neither did Hendrix. Neither did Jim Morrison. Neither did Marilyn Monroe. All accidental overdoses.
a continuation of randall's comment……
neither did river phoenix, neither did elliot smith 9maybe — inconclusive), neither did brittany murphy, neither did rudolf diesel, neither did jeff buckley, neither did shannon hoon, neither did heath ledger ………..etc accidental overdoses, accidental drowning
jimi hendrix did not commit suicide because god cant die!
The list blows. None of these suicides are bizarre, nor are most of them particularly "tragic," except insofar as all suicides are to some extent "tragic" (though I hate the overuse/misuse of that word). For the most part these are second- and third-rate "celebrities" whose passing leaves little or no mark behind, and they will be forgotten soon, if they aren't already, except as footnotes to other, greater lives that they may have touched, such as Phil Hartman's crazy-***** wife, who offed one of the most beloved and talented comedians we've seen in decades. Stupid *****ing *****. Though it almost serves Phil right for wanting a *****ed-up California-shallow-blonde-trophy wife instead of some more normal human being for a spouse. But I loved the guy's public persona, and still miss his humor. THAT'S the tragedy here, that we lost Phil to murder. It's no tragedy that his drug-fueled Barbie Doll wife then killed *herself*–except to their children, which is no small tragic matter, to be sure.
If anyone can't already tell, I'm not particularly moved by suicide. I freely and fully admit that some suicides are very troubled, sad people who deserve help. Depression is no laughing matter and I've dealt with it myself, albeit at a low level. (And yes, I do mean real depression–I'm not saying I've just been sad or blue at times). But it's also a fact that many people who threaten to commit suicide—and many who actually succeed—are suffering from what can only be called a kind of intense narcissism. It requires, in many instances, a special brand of self-centeredness and self-absorption to threaten suicide, and even to carry it out. People who do so often leave behind loved ones—often children—thinking nothing of what affect this will have on those people. Oh yes, we hear the old BS about this, that the suicide thinks his or her loved ones will be "better off without them," but this is, as I say, often just BS. It's a species of extreme self-drama that some people are only too well accustomed to and obsessed with, and it can go, at times, to the greatest extreme of actually attempting (though usually not with the intent of actually carrying it out) suicide, hoping for the attention they crave, so that they can pull back from the precipice until the cycle plays around again. Extreme cases of borderline personality often pull this *****.
I realize this will ***** a lot of people off—especially those who've lost family or other loved ones to suicide—but of course I don't say that ALL people who kill themselves are guilty of this—just some. Perhaps many. The same goes, too, for many "accidental suicides." But what I'm referring to really are the drama-obsessed people (it often doesn't seem to be "drama" to those close to them, because they're *too* close, and can't see it) who find some kind of sick solace in their wallowing self-pity, however internalized and un-expressed it may be—and eventually try, or succeed, in reaching that ultimate level of self-absorption, which is self-immolation. That's the crescendo of narcissism—that the world revolves around them (even if they never talk as such, and instead phrase it in ways that seem to express just the opposite) and that nothing else matters if they leave this life—not the love of family, friends, children—nothing.
Of course, such people truly ARE sick, and need help…. but it's funny how they're often the least likely to seek it in earnest, and the ones where help is least likely to succeed even when it's offered and taken.
No Ian Curtis?
Name
Name
Good riddance to these emotionally unstable, celebrity wannabe, failures.
A bit mean Mr. Gribbler! I would wish someone wasn't on my TV so often, but not that they were dead!
I'm sorry to be "that person" but you may want to look at the definition for infamous. From #7 about Paula Goodspeed this part doesn't work: "…in the hopes of becoming infamous. She achieved infamy, but sadly for the wrong reasons." Infamous acctually means, "having a reputation of the worst kind, disgraceful." Serial killers are often discribed as being infamous. It could be I'm wrong, maybe she acctually wanted to be well know for terrible reasons? Or did she acctually want to be famous? How can one be infamous "for the wrong reasons"? – OK, OK, I'll shut up now…
By the way SiSi, it was a good idea for a list, and shows concern for people and the hope for preventing suicide. Thanks for creating it.
Moonbeam, playing devils advocate here, haven't we, as a society, made the definition of infamy to mean people such as serial killers, when, in actual fact, the 'official' definition could be applied here? There is no doubt that Paula Goodspeed had a very poor reputation, based mostly on her actions and behaviours. Some would characterize her behaviour as 'disgraceful'.
Thanks for being 'that person'. 
Thus, is it not that the use of infamy here is incorrect, but, rather, that we have narrowed the meaning of the word in popular speech?
Again, just playing devils advocate.
The definition is being applied here, but the mistake Moonbeam pointed out is still there as well. Paula Goodspeed was not trying to have a very poor reputation…she did not want the actions and behaviors that her reputation was based on to be what it was based on at all. She wanted a good reputation. She wanted the judges on American Idol to think she was a good singer. She wanted to be known as having good fashion taste and being a good artist. She was hoping to become famous, NOT infamous. Because of her behavior, she became infamous. So, even though the official definition can be applied to her (and is)…it is not what she hoped for personally.
I would argue that a "Celebrity" is someone who is likely to have a short burst of fame and then be forgotten about by the general public. Paris Hilton is a "Celebrity", Marilyn Monroe was a "Star". Maybe i only make the distinction because of the amount of one hit wonders around at the mo
On another note, while you are right in expressing frustration at people who effectively abandon loved ones in suicide, it's good to remember that, in the case of those who are truly depressed, many have ceased to care about anything, as horrible as that seems. it's not an insult to them, just a fact that an illness so black, all encompassing and endless drowns out absolutely everything, to the point where killing oneself seems like a rational decision. Also, illnesses like Schizophrenia, whereby someone may hear voices telling them to kill themselves, may truly believe that people are better off without them (i.e. because God tells them so or the Devil will punish the loved ones if they don't) – or possibly even worse, that their loved ones really want them dead.
On saying that, there sadly are cases of "revenge suicide". I've read notes that explicitly blame someone else for their actions with the obvious hope that the person blamed will be forced to live with the guilt for the rest of their lives. However these are rare and the fact remains that you are applying reason and logic to something which is the exact opposite. Of course, to a healthy, sane person, the idea that anyone could kill themselves believing that their loved ones would be better off without them is BS, but that's not the case, these people are not (psychologically) healthy and reason has no bearing. I'd also (tentatively) suggest that anyone who would try suicide in order to get attention (or revenge!) is also not completely psychologically healthy either, so again reason and logic would fail.
I don't mean to start an argument, hope you don't take my comments as such
No, I don't take your comments as argumentative—I simply wish to reiterate what I said, and point out that, in MANY cases (not all), what you call "an illness so black" is often no such thing. At least not to the degree and the character which you imply.
Just a correction you may want to change: Mary Kay Bergman wasn't the voice of Timmy Turner on The Fairly Oddparents. Tara Strong voices that role, and Mary Kay Bergman simply did a one-time character in one episode.
its probably just a mix up…..
mary-kay did the voice of timmy in all of the oh yeah cartoon shorts, and was slated for the main series. she did one episode, like you said, as a one time character, and another episode of fairly oddparents (and one ep. of the zappers(?)) as timmy..
its probably just a mix up…..
mary-kay did the voice of timmy in all of the oh yeah cartoon shorts, and was slated for the main series. she did one episode, like you said, as a one time character, and another episode of fairly oddparents (and one ep. of the zappers(?)) as timmy..
Hi, Randall, I'd have to disagree with some of your characterizations of suicides. Those suffering from genuine, deep, treatment-resistant depression, are not inconsiderate of the effects of their actions on those who love them. It's often what's kept them from doing it previously. It is indescribably hard to get out of bed each day, when each day looms in front of you, endlessly, with no hope or optimism.
My experience has been that for those who are genuninely suicidally depressed, it is not that they WANT to die, but rather that that DON"T want to live. I know that sounds counter-intuitive, but what I mean is that it's less a positive want for something than it is a negative – a want (need) to no longer live. They don't want to kill themselves, they just don't want to live.
Ultimately, there are those (including myself) who would champion any person's right to choose to end their life if they were desperately ill. For those crippled by disease or infirmity, should they not have the option to end that pain? And if so, does crippling depression not qualify as being desperately ill?
Randal doesn’t understand SHT about TRUE EMOTIONAL PAIN & dispair that certain people might BATTLE AGAINST for their entire fking lives until TOO MANY TERRIBLE THINGS happen to them all at once, & they FINALLY reach their breaking point (like I have FINALLY done after suffering through TOO MUCH my entire REGRETTABLE life) and just can’t tolerate the ENDLESS PAIN any longer. Randal can call that SELFISH all he fking wants to, because NOBODY understands-EVER-exactly what another person is going through…Many of us DO STAY ALIVE for the sake of those who love us, but that doesn’t mean that we do not wake up every fking day & wish that we had not woken up at all….
For a first list, I thought it was a great effort Si Si
People who can’t understand the emotional turmoil that leads to suicide are seriously lacking in empathy.
(I’m looking at you comment 19: Geronimo1618
June 2nd, 2010 at 9:57 am: “According to me, those who commit/attempt suicide or contemplate committing suicide seriously lack in spiritual enlightenment.”)
–
That being said, people like #6 (Brynn Hartmann) who feel compelled to kill others before killing themselves are infinitely worse. Same thing goes for any of the school-shooters like the Columbine guys. If you hate life so much then kill yourself, sure, but leave other people out of it.
"Empathy" can be carried much too far, Trapper. Yes, emotional turmoil of one form or another is at the heart of every suicide, but is "emotional turmoil" enough to grant a blank check of "empathy," excusing the actions of the person in question? I don't think so. Geronimo1618's statement is largely correct for *many* such people—though I would agree not all.
Maybe trying for a bit of understanding then, if empathy can't be achieved? Writing people off for being cowards, or not spiritually enlightened, is a massive (and largely untrue) generalisation and certainly won't help in the continued search for understanding why people kill themselves so as to hopefully prevent it.
I never used the word "coward." Not once. I wasn't talking about cowardice.
I agree that we should continue to search for the causes of why people attempt suicide, or contemplate it, or take actions to accomplish it.
What I am saying is that not all those causes are rooted in a single "illness" that we call "depression." Some–and I think many—are rooted in something that is less "illness" and more a kind of maladjustment: narcissistic personality disorder, if you like, and Borderline personality.
No not you, that was a different point made by someone else, I didn't mean that aimed at you – sorry!
"I agree that we should continue to search for the causes of why people attempt suicide, or contemplate it, or take actions to accomplish it.
searching for the causes behind those three actions is easier said than done
i mean — i fully agree with this line of thinking, but research on this subject almost created more confusion than understanding.
i think a lot of this confusion comes from people who: either assume there is a blanket answer, or just hope one exists.
the fact is that the reasons behind the actions are so individualistic, that they cannot be placed in any particular paradigm. concurrently, the "need" to find the answers causes *some* people to force an answer where an answer is wrong and convaluted. depression is undoubtedly the conventional wisdom to explain away other factors (like they watched ghost and *****ing snapped, or they were so lost that it actually seemed like a good idea.
why people contemplate suicide — probably a high incidence rate of depression among these people
Ian Curtis & Nick Drake.
Rest In Peace Elliott Smth.
☮
How would you define those who are "genuinely suicidally depressed" and "overweening narcissism"? Especially if they do actually kill themselves? Surely if they just wanted the attention they would ensure their survival (maybe through some other sort of self harm)?
Unfortunately, many people (through whatever thought process) commit suicide for attention. Perhaps they think they will get to see everyone missing them from heaven, or (and trust me, this is a real thing) they just don't grasp that death is permanent. It is one of those "duh" things, you would think, but I have seen some examples in my life of attention-*****s not really getting exactly what death entails. You wouldn't think that, but it happens. As for people being depressed, I still find that to be cowardly. I hope anyone effected sees no offense coming from that, but aside from people in movies sacrificing themselves to save others, I haven't ever seen or heard of brave people killing themselves bravely. I realize there are different scenarios and different circumstances, but nearly 100% of the time, people are looking for an easy way out because they don't want to try.
I'd say that it's more for a trained psychiatrist to make such a call, and not you or me. I only know, from education and experience, that many people–perhaps most—are far too willing to simply accept that a suicide or potential suicide are simply troubled people who are not responsible for their actions and deserve our sympathy, and of course our help. Whereas, the reality is that suicide ITSELF—regardless of circumstances—is an action essentially tinged with a kind of narcissism. Is every suicide narcissistic, per se? No. But MOST suicides require a kind of self-absorption that leads to a worldview that says that life is solely predicated on the moment, and on the limits of what is immediately perceived by the individual–and as most of us know, this is just not actually so.
Think of it this way: we call people "selfish" who go through life eating up resources, using others, making demands, taking what they want without care or concern for the well being of others, the planet, or what have you. Fairly easy call to make. Such people, we feel, view the world as their own, or view "the world" as only that which is within their grasp, and that it is theirs for the taking. They then take, and use, as they see fit.
But it is a very similar kind of "selfishness" which also sees the world as an enemy, or as a black pit which hates you—a selfishness which manifests itself as a bottomless self-pity, if you will, to the point where it goes past self-pity into self-loathing of the deepest nature. It is SELF SELF SELF to the highest degree. *I* am in the blackness… *my* life is unbearable… *I* am worthless.. and so on. There is little or no connection to the vastness that is real life, the universe, the world around us, or other human beings. Just a kind of self-centered self-pity, like those who ask why, if there is a god, he allows bad things to happen. It's a kind of childish self-centeredness that all children are consumed with, until they learn that they are not the center of the world or even the center of life–and in a sense not even the center of their OWN lives—but rather that they are only a part of life, a part of the lives of others, and so on. Some people never grow to this realization, and many who are suicidal—either in attempt or actuality—fit that category.
Quite insightful. Your views atr right out of psyc 600
I loved Ruslana Korshunova… Such a beautiful girl, such beautiful long hair.
Tragic and sad – well done for a first attempt
…What about Heath Ledger? Accidental suicide is still suicide. Plus he was an actual celebrity, it was truly bizarre and losing such an amazing talent at a young age was tragic.
It's not suicide if it's accidental – it's accidental death. You could argue that anyone taking that kind of cocktail of drugs is asking for trouble, but if the intent to end one's life isn't there, it's not suicide.
It wasnt a suicide full stop. It was an accidental overdose.
Suicide, in this context, means intentionally ending ones life. Causing your own death without actually having intended to do it doesn't fall into the category.
To clarify, Heath Ledger did not commit suicide. He didn't even accidentally overdose. He took a lethal cocktail of medicines. This meaning, medicines that interacted with each other poorly, but alone might not have killed him. It was not in over-abundance, but the mix that was the problem. This happens rather often, but is often mistaken for overdose. And sadly, it is usually the fault of a general practitioner's ignorance of drug combinations, or people taking "herbal supplements" in combination with prescribed medications. Always check with your pharmacist to see if your prescribed medications or OTC medicines have any interaction warnings.
Good first attempt.
A little more research could have retrieved quite a few names throughout history. Even Socrates deserves to be on this list, considering his celebrity status then and now.
But keep it up. Anyone can whine about a list’s shortcomings or grammatical errors. But it takes that special something to make it through JFrater’s selection process, well alone create a list and submit it in the first place. Bravo!
Hey, Si Si, hang in there. Kudos for avoiding the obvious (Kurt Cobain, Heath Ledger, et al.).
Pretty good list, kind of *****ily written though.
Richard Jeni
David Strickland
It's also speculated that perhaps it wasn't a suicide because his 'suicide note' spelled his name incorrectly, and he had stabbed himself twice. And also, he died in Los Angeles…just saying.
JEFF BUCKLEY?!?!?!
Possibly Michael Jackson, too. Good list, very tragic.
Was not a suicide.
Michael Jackson wasn't a suicide. He was killed by an incompetent whack posing as a Dr.
Yukio Mishima.
Seppuku in the 20th century, how about that for tragic and bizarre?
Wow, that took some time. But seriously, everything that I wasnted to say has been written here by Randall.