Is Brittany Murphy our Karen Carpenter?

Interesting that the Los Angeles County Coroner immediately dismissed drugs as a factor in the death of tragic actress Brittany Murphy-- despite the large quantities of prescription medication found in the home where she died and the perception around town that she had substance issues. And whether the coroner's statement is Danny Gans-style parsing or a legally shrewd move, it has combined with true shock among many people who remember Brittany from her brighter days to lead to hopeful speculation that Brittany died not from excess but as a result of anorexia. Hopeful, because if that were to be the case, Brittany would not be another wasted talent, but a victim of society's cruel expectations, our culture's twisted demands, and the resulting distorted body image among many women and girls. She would be a feminist icon. She would be this generation's Karen Carpenter. She would have died for our sins. At least for the next six weeks until the toxicology results come through.

Michael Lohan weighs in on Brittany Murphy

"My heart and condolences go out to Brittany Murphy,
her family and even my daughter, who all have suffered
and have to deal with the effects of this horrible tragedy
of a gifted and blessed human being."

Michael Lohan, Tabloid Baby's 2007 Person of The Year, was already dealing with a Twitter imposter who claims he's suicidal, new legal troubles with his ex-galpal Erin (and the second high-profile shoe-attack incident in his tabloid career), and worrying about the health of talented and troubled daughter Lindsay, when word of tragic actress Brittany Murphy's premature death at 32 hit a little too close to home.


In the early hours of the morning, he sent us this email:

Update if you care to post...

To rebut all the phony individuals pretending to be me on Titter, my attorney (Stephanie Ovadia), has contacted Twitter's legal Dept., to track down and prosecute the imposter(s). She has also advised me to open a REAL Twitter account, to prove the others are not me.

In the meantime, my attorney (Tony Grandinette) has sent subpoenas out to John Ankleman, Stratis Morfogen, Adam Liberman, John Murray ( Erin's brother in law), Dr. Pitch, Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Psych Ward, Marriott, Verizon Wireless and Michael Kors, in order to prove ALL the charges against me are FALSE!

Lastly, my heart and condolences go out to Brittany Murphy, her family and even my daughter, who all have suffered and have to deal with the effects of this horrible tragedy of a gifted and blessed human being.

Regards,

Michael Lohan

Brittany Murphy was the voice of Luanne on King of The Hill

Tragic actress Brittany Murphy, who died of an apparent drug-related heart attack this morning at the age of 32, will remain forever young and naive through her role as Luanne on Mike Judge's animated television series, King of The Hill.

The show ended a twelve-year-run on Fox in September, but continues to be seen in syndication. Brittany's character, Luanne Leanne Platter, is, according to Wikipedia, "sensitive and a bit of an airhead, (and) her conflicts most often stem from her inability to think for herself and her naiveté, which allows others to take advantage of her. She follows a very implicit pattern in the men she dates, which are usually all the wrong kinds."

Will that be the way we remember Brittany?