Brittany Murphy: Dead at 32
Early Sunday morning, actress Brittany Murphy, famous for her roles in the film Clueless, Girl Interrupted, 8 Mile, and Sin City, was found dead in her home from what is being reported as “full cardiac arrest.” The news shocked many fans and colleagues of the young actress, who, at the young age of 32, had impressed the entertainment world with her talents as both an actor and singer.
Murphy was born in Atlanta Georgia in 1977. In her early teens, she landed her first acting roles in the series, Drexell’s Class and The Torkelsons. It wasn’t long before she was able to get screen-time on popular shows, including Sister, Sister, Party of Five, and Boy Meets World. Since 1997, Brittany had been the voice of King of the Hill’s Luanne Platter, a character she would voice throughout the entire run of the comedy series, which ended this past September.
Brittany shot to major stardom when she was cast as the cute and naïve Tai Frasier in the 1995 comedy Clueless. Although Alicia Silverstone was the dynamic lead, audiences were charmed by Brittany and her ability to be both insecure and then overly confident as the character’s progression demanded. Brittany would turn heads four years later in the psychological drama Girl, Interrupted as Daisy Randone, a sexually abused teen with an eating disorder and self-destructive tendencies. Brittany’s performance as Daisy was superb and tragic.
The years following would bring Brittany a wide range of roles that would land her acting alongside big names like Michael Douglas, Drew Barrymore, Ellen Barkin, Christopher Walken, and Benicio Del Toro. She quickly became known as an actress who could be the sweet girl and the gritty woman, while also having a natural and endearing flair for humour.
What few people knew about Murphy was how dedicated she was to music. While she did occasionally use her musical abilities on film (like she did singing covers of Queen and Earth, Wind, & Fire in the animated Happy Feet), she was very hush-hush about her contributions as backing vocalist: 
"I've been singing anonymously my whole life,” she was quoted as saying. “I've sung the hooks on a lot of rap and R&B songs - I just never took the credit ... Music has been a part of my soul since I was born. It's something that I've always done, but I've done it very quietly."
Brittany, who had been married to British screenwriter Simon Monjack since 2007, was involved in several projects (now in post-production), including Sylvester Stallone’s all star action/thriller The Expendables and a comedy entitled Shrinking Charlotte in which she portrays the eponymous character. There is no news on whether these projects will be significantly affected by her death.
Several of her fellow actors and friends have come forward with words of sorrow and condolences since the news of her passing. Alicia Silverstone spoke briefly of their friendship saying, “I always felt connected to her as we shared a very special experience in our lives together. I feel love in my heart for her – and hope she is at peace.” Ashton Kutcher, who starred alongside Brittany in the 2003 romantic-comedy Just Married (and also shared a brief real-life romance with her) used his Twitter to express his sympathies: “2day the world lost a little piece of sunshine. My deepest condolences go out 2 Brittany’s family, her husband, & her amazing mother Sharon.”
Cardiac arrest has been reported to strike up to 400,000 Americans without warning every year. Of that umber, nearly 4,000 of these deaths occur in the person under the age of 35. Investigators are currently looking it whether or not other factors were at play. For now, friends and family are grappling with the loss of a talented young woman who was considered “a ray of sunshine” by everyone who had to good fortune of knowing her. Rest in Peace.
