Norman Wisdom was born in Paddington, London on 4th February 1915. Heroes of Comedy s4e1: Norman Wisdom
Norman’s [Wisdom] first major film There’s Trouble in Store broke house records almost everywhere during its first four weeks on release. ibid.
Walking Happy opened on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on 26th November 1966, and Norman recreated his success at the Tony Awards the following year. ibid.
Norman’s international fame extended to South America, China, Eastern Europe, as well as the former USSR. ibid.
Norman received critical acclaim for his portrayal of a cancer patient in Going Gently which won the BAFTA drama award for 1981/2. ibid.
Kenneth Williams died from an overdose of barbiturates on 14th April 1988. Heroes of Comedy s5e1: Kenneth Williams
Upon his death in 1997 Russell Davies took on the massive task of editing his diaries and letters for publication. ibid.
After Share My Lettuce Kenneth starred in Pieces of Eight with Fenella Fielding and One Over Eight with Lance Percival. ibid.
Kenneth starred in 25 of the 30 Carry On films, more than any other member of the team. ibid.
Sid eventually became a stalwart of the post-war British film industry and starred or featured in no less than 113 movies. Heroes of Comedy s6e2: Sid James
Hattie was born Josephine Edwina Jacques in Sandgate Kent on 7th February 1922. Heroes of Comedy s6e4: Hattie Jacques
Hattie joined the company of the Players Theatre shortly after World War II. ibid.
Hattie joined Hancock’s Half Hour as Hancock’s secretary Miss Grizelda Pugh during the fourth series in 1956. ibid.
Hattie’s television partnership with Eric Sykes ran for sixteen series between 1960 and her death. ibid.
Hattie died of a heart attack on 6 October 1980. ibid.
Norman began appearing in small theatres. The Unforgettable s5e1: Norman Wisdom
By the early ’50s Norman was one of Britain’s biggest variety acts. ibid.
The Rank Organisation contracted him for a seven-year deal. ibid.
Over the next thirteen years Norman would make fourteen more comedy films. Most with the same winning formula. ibid.
By the mid-60s Norman Wisdom was one of Britain’s biggest stars.
In Going Gently Norman was cast as a man on a terminal ward dying of cancer. ibid.
A 29-year-old talk-show hostess shot herself in the head live on television. The woman, Christine Chubbuck, was taken to hospital in critical condition. Miss Chubbuch wrote and starred in a daily show called the Suncoast Digest on station WXLT-TV. Kate Plays Christine, news, Sundance Festival 2016
She’s the first person who killed herself on air, and that’s like a remarkable moment. But it does seem that the story has been largely forgotten. ibid. actor Kate
So I have to learn as much about Christine Chubbuch as I possibly can, but I also have to try and understand the mind of a person who would kill herself. ibid.
[Garbo to Cecil Beaton]: What a waste of the best years of my life. Always alone. It was so stupid not to be able to partake more. Now I’m a gypsy living a life apart. Garbo: Where Did You Go? Sky Arts 2025
Garbo’s hding place is her home. ibid. Bob Moak
The Greta Garbo Syndrome: A state where celebrated personalities lose the meaning of life and shut themselves in. ibid. caption
A Hollywood icon. A poster girl from the golden age of cinema. But as the years past her fan base gets smaller. ibid. narrator
In her time Garbo was the most famous woman in the world. ibid.
At the absolute height of her fame she disappeared. ibid.
[comment]: Richard Burton was nominated for seven Academy awards. Richard Burton: Wild Genius, BBC 2025
They were addicted to each other, and they were addicted to drugs and alcohol. ibid.
I was overawed by his presence and his star appeal. ibid.
He moved so quickly from stage to Hollywood. ibid.
He’s self-destructive, isn’t he? ibid.
His life became something else when he met Elizabeth Taylor. ibid.
At 2.49 p.m. February 8th 2007 Anna Nicole Smith – Playboy cover girl, fashion model, and tabloid target – is pronounced dead in Florida. A small-town girl, she modelled her rise to fame on Marilyn Monroe. Autopsy: The Last Hours Of … s1e3: Anna Nicole Smith
In 1994 the paparazzi turned against her – they exposed a near fatal overdose. ibid.
She married 89-year-old oil billionaire J Howard Marshall. She was labelled the ultimate gold digger. ibid.
Since arriving in Florida, Anna is burning up with a high fever. ibid.
Anna’s twin implants were a step too far. ibid.
Benzodiazepines – by the time of her death she was taking them in massive quantities. ibid.
The sedative chloral-hydrate ... Anna was an expert self-injector. ibid.
Brittany is suffering from a virus which has given her a nasty cough. Autopsy: The Last Hours Of … s2e3: Brittany Murphy
The autopsy shows Hydrocodone was not the only serious drug that she got hold of before she died. ibid.
In five months’ time, her husband Simon Monjack would also die from the same symptoms. ibid.
Elvis was not a well man ... Most of his organs were about twice the size they should have been. Autopsy: The Last Hours Of … s3e1: Elvis Presley
What causes the arrhythmia? ibid.
By the time he got into his forties Elvis was showing clear signs of physical and mental decline. ibid.
Could the abuse of prescription drugs have led to the death of the king of rock-n-roll? ibid.
Demerol has not played a direct part in Elvis's death. ibid.
On August 11th 2014 Robin Williams was found dead in a bedroom of his home. Autopsy: The Last Hours Of … s4e1: Robin Williams
His moods had been controlled by a variety of prescription drugs. ibid.
Robin Williams lived with Parkinson’s Disease for many years. ibid.
Robin Williams was suffering from undiagnosed dementia. ibid.
Marilyn was found dead in the bedroom of her Hollywood home. Autopsy: The Last Hours Of … s4e2: Marilyn Monroe
There were eight different types of drugs around her when she died. ibid.
Nembutal ... Marilyn was already being prescribed chloralhydrate for her sleeplessness ... Nembutal on top of chloralhydrate was like signing her death warrant. ibid.
Keith Ledger was Hollywood’s rising star … At 3:36 pm on 22nd January 2008 Ledger was pronounced dead in the bedroom of his New York apartment. He was just 28 years old. Autopsy: The Last Hours Of … s5e2: Heath Ledger
Keith Ledger battled drug use, personal life in crisis and the psychological trauma of playing The Joker. ibid.
He’d been fighting off a nasty cold … He’s tired. He’s exhausted. ibid.
There were no illegal drugs in his system. ibid.
The presence of prescription drugs in his system at the time of his death … Diazepam … Doxylamine … Temazepam … Alprazolam … Zoloft … Hydrocodone & Oxycodone. ibid.
‘Last week I probably slept an average of two hours a night.’ ibid. Heath to journalist
The medical examiner concluded that Heath died as a result of the abuse of six prescription drugs. ibid.
It’s unusual for a single drug to be the cause of death, Autopsy: Last Hours Of … s5e4: Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Channel 5 2016
He’s found dead with a needle in his arm. ibid.
Could it be the quality of the drug he was taking? ibid.