I was pretty surprised at my own response to the death of Heath Ledger today. Just like Newscoma, I found out by Jag breaking the news on Twitter. I wasn’t a huge fan of his, but his work on “Brokeback Mountain” had a lasting impact on me — because, well, the subject matter of that movie is quite personal to my own journey.

Anyway, this sad event has definitely affected many of you as well, so I thought it would be good to highlight some of your responses:

Liz at Dancingfoe:

I can’t believe that Heath Ledger is dead. I mean, he’s one of the last actors I would expect to die so young from an apparent overdose, and on the heels of Brad Renfro’s overdose. I could believe it if it had happened to someone like Britney Spears, or Amy Winehouse, but not such a quiet, seemingly “normal” person such as Heath. I don’t think I’ll be able to see The Dark Knight now…

…I’m sure this post is just echoing the sentiment of hundreds of others, but I felt like commenting on it anyway.

What’s Alan Watching?:

I don’t ordinarily get into celebrity news (gossip or otherwise), but the unexpected death of Heath Ledger (only 28, and with a two-year-old daughter), on the day that the Associated Press had to defend the practice of preparing obituaries for at-risk celebrities under 30, is very strange, and very sad…

…Life is weird — and, for some, far too short.

Katie Allison Granju:

That makes two amazingly talented young American actors dead in a single week - both Brad Renfro’s death and now Heath Ledger’s appear to be drug-related.

Addiction is one hell of a terrible disease.

Randy Elrod at Ethos:

Ledger leaves behind a two-year-old daughter with former fiancée Michelle Williams.

Our prayers are with his family and friends.

The Seeking Pastor:

What I’m wondering is this—How long will it be before some right-wing nut calls his death divine punishment for Ledger playing a gay cowboy in Brokeback Mountain?

Holly:

I’m just sick about this…

…He wasn’t one that automatically got me into the theater usually, but I had come to really respect the actor he was turning out to be.

Indeed, I had come to appreciate his representation of my generation’s talent. We were born the same year.

My best to his little girl and all who loved him as a person.

More from Newscoma:

I feel all of my age this morning because the first thing I thought of was it’s sad that this kid had to die. But young people die everyday. They die in war, they die in reckless car crashes, they die from disease. But they are not famous they are just our people and we mourn.

And for some reason, we are connected with the instant loss of life because I think it targets some of our most primal fears. And for the news industry, the other stories take the bottom fold because people want to know about the world of celebrity and watch from a safe distance. That includes me, I assure you.

Kathy T:

Man, I can’t even begin to describe how sad that makes me for his family and friends. I know what it’s like hearing about a friend being found dead next to his bed. And then worrying that the cause of death could’ve been due to drugs. Even the relief we felt when we we heard that he died of natural causes was weird because he was still gone.

The Vol Abroad:

Both the Vol-in-Law and I reacted a little more strongly to the death of Heath Ledger than we would have thought. It’s not like we were big fans. It’s not like we even go to the movies. But it did seem a little shocking.

Ron:

I know I was one of many people to dismiss him when he was cast in the role, thanks in no small part to the six months of awful “Brokeback Moutain” jokes I had to endure. However, the more I saw Ledger in the Joker makeup, and the more I heard him deliver The Joker’s lines, the more I warmed up to him. I think this trailer below is what finally made me stop with all the reservations and be finally, truly excited about the man behind the makeup.

RIP, Heath.

sadcox:

Why is it that the death of an actor is able to top just about any other story with such ease? Why is so easy for us to obsess with the life of celebrities and so hard for us to concern ourselves with things that affect our own lives? Why?

I’m not casting stones here–I do it too.

Eric from A Pound of Thoughts:

And a final word to those who say they don’t care about this death, and ask “What about our troops?” “What about all the others that are dying?” Yes, I agree more stories should be told regarding true American heroes that die everyday. However, you must realize that the publicity from Heath Ledger’s death, while definitely tragic, may help to bring to light the dangers in relying on drugs to assist with anything, especially going to sleep. Care must be taken in using them, and you never know what might make those who depend on sleeping pills aware of these dangers.

Cheryl from Richardson Zoo:

It’s such a shame. He was SO young, with so much life ahead of him. Casey was just as shocked as I was. I’m not really into following the entertainment fluff that much, but he seemed so under the radar. You never really heard much negative press about him.

Sharon Cobb:

I didn’t know Heath Ledger personally, but I remember the extremely classy and sensitive answer he gave when he was constantly being asked by the media what it was like for him being a straight man and having to kiss another guy in ‘Brokeback Mountain.’

Heath’s reply was,”It’s not like I’m kissing dirt. I’m kissing another human being. I’m kissing someone with a soul.”

That pretty much told me all I needed to know about Heath Ledger. He saw the humanity in all, and more importantly, the recognition of the soul.

Rest in peace.