Brittany Murphy Biography / Pictures

Brittany Murphy (November 10, 1977 – December 20, 2009) was an American actress and singer. She starred in films such as Clueless, Girl, Interrupted, 8 Mile, Sin City and Riding in Cars with Boys, and performed vocals on a range of films and with dance musician Paul Oakenfold, together garnering a number one dance music hit in the United States in 2006.

Biography

Brittany Murphy was born in Atlanta, Georgia on November 10, 1977. Her parents, Sharon Brittany and Angelo Bertolotti, divorced when she was two years old, and Brittany was raised by her mother, in Edison, New Jersey, and later in Los Angeles, where they moved so Brittany could pursue an acting career. Brittany said her mother never tried to stifle her creativity, and she considered her mother a crucial factor in her later success: "When I asked my mom to move to California, she sold everything and move out here for me. ... Brittany Murphy always believed in me." Murphy's mother is of Irish and Eastern European descent and her father is Italian American. Brittany Murphy was raised a Baptist and later became a non-denominational Christian.

Brittany landed her first job in Hollywood when she was age 14, starring as Brenda Drexell in the series Drexell's Class. She then went on to play Molly Morgan in the short-lived The Torkelsons spinoff Almost Home. Brittany also guest-starred on several television series including Parker Lewis Can't Lose, Blossom, and Frasier. She also had recurring roles on Sister, Sister; Party of Five; and Boy Meets World. In 1997, she began voicing the character of Luanne Platter (as well as the younger version of Joseph Gribble) on the long-running animated series King of the Hill.

Brittany starred in many successful films, including Clueless (1995); Girl, Interrupted (1999); Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999); Don't Say a Word (2001); the TV adaption of the novel The Devil's Arithmetic (2001); 8 Mile (2002) and Uptown Girls (2003) as well as many lesser-known films, such as Spun (2003). In 2004, she starred in the romantic comedy Little Black Book, and the critically acclaimed Sin City (2005). She starred in two Edward Burns films: Sidewalks of New York (2001) and The Groomsmen (2006). In 2009, she was cast in the Lifetime TV movie, Tribute, as the main character, Cilla. She was set to appear in the Sylvester Stallone film, The Expendables, which will be released in 2010

Brittany performs for the crew during a USO show aboard USS Nimitz on June 19, 2003.On June 6, 2006, Brittany and Paul Oakenfold released the single "Faster Kill Pussycat," from the album A Lively Mind. The song became a club hit, and hit number one on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart. It also hit number seven in the UK singles chart in June 2006.

Brittany Murphy dabbled in music again with the release of the film Happy Feet, in which she covered Queen's "Somebody to Love" and Earth, Wind & Fire's "Boogie Wonderland."

In late 2002, Brittany began dating Ashton Kutcher, her co-star in Just Married. Once engaged to talent manager Jeff Kwatinetz, Brittany became engaged to Joe Macaluso in December 2005, a production assistant she met while working on the film Little Black Book. In August 2006, they ended their engagement. In May 2007, Brittany married British screenwriter Simon Monjack in a private Jewish ceremony.

In 2005, Brittany signed as the spokesmodel for Jordache jeans.

At 8:00 a.m. (16:00 UTC) on December 20, 2009, the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to "a medical request" at the Los Angeles home Brittany and Monjack shared. She apparently collapsed in a bathroom. Firefighters attempted to resuscitate Brittany on the scene, and she was subsequently transported to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead on arrival at 10:04 a.m. after going into cardiac arrest. Cause of death is yet to be determined, but Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter told the Associated Press: "It appears to be natural." Full results will not be known until an autopsy is performed.