On the 10th day of Perezmas, pop culture gave to us…
A lot of unexpected heartbreak.
There were many celebrities taken from us in 2019, but something we saw quite a bit of this year was celebrities who died so far before their time…
Some were taken by natural causes which seemed unnaturally early. There were also drug overdoses and even murder…
Then we also saw several freak accidents, like in the case of Mythbuster Jessi Combs — who was killed trying to break the landspeed record in a rocket car — or “King of Random” Grant Thompson — who filmed his own fatal paragliding accident with a GoPro. So awful.
Here are just a few of the famous faces we said goodbye to long before the party was supposed to end…
Contents [hide]
Cameron Boyce
The Disney star, who amassed tons of fans in Jessie and Descendants, passed away suddenly at the tender age of 20 during a seizure; he had suffered from epilepsy.
The rising star was known for his philanthropy; he was a huge supporter of charities like the Thirst Project and the United Way. In the wake of his death the Cameron Boyce Foundation was founded in his honor, with the goal of inspiring young people to turn to creative outlets instead of violence.
Nipsey Hussle
Rapper Nipsey Hussle, aka Ermias Joseph Asghedom, had become known as much for his community activism as his music. Sadly, that story ended in March when he was gunned down in the street.
The murder case is still ongoing and many details are still unclear, but one thing is certain; at just 33, Nipsey was taken too soon.
Beth Chapman
Undoubtedly the sweetest bounty hunter you ever met, Beth Chapman was well known for her role on the reality TV show Dog The Bounty Hunter, in which she and her husband Duane “Dog” Chapman tracked down criminals in Hawaii.
Sadly, Beth was diagnosed with throat cancer in late 2017 and lost that battle in June after it spread. She was just 51.
Mya-Lecia Naylor
British actress Mya-Lecia Naylor found early success, acting alongside Tom Hanks in the film Cloud Atlas and on TV shows Almost Never and Millie Inbetween. But her burgeoning career ended on April 7 when she was found by her family, dead from hanging.
Her family refused to accept the bright young star intentionally took her own life, saying it must have been an accident. According to the official report, the 16-year-old’s cause of death was misadventure.
Whatever happened, Mya-Lecia’s light left this world far too early.
Kristoff St. John
One of the most consistent faces on daytime TV, Kristoff St. John played Neil Winters on The Young and the Restless for 28 years, earning two Emmys along the way.
That impressive stretch ended in February when the soap star died of hypertrophic heart failure, apparently exacerbated by alcohol use. He was only 52 years old.
Carl Ruiz
Carl “The Cuban” Ruiz was an award-winning celeb chef whose food and enthusiasm were hard not to love. Sadly, he passed on September 21 from atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. He was just 44 years old.
Laurel Griggs
At just 13 years old, Laurel Griggs had a more impressive resume than many adult actors. She had already acted on Broadway in two different productions, with Scarlett Johansson in Cat On A Hot Tin Roof and co-starring in Once for two years. She also had a Woody Allen film under her belt and had been on SNL more than once.
Unfortunately her promising career was ended before it began as she passed away after suffering a “massive asthma attack.” 13. Just so unfair.
Emily Hartridge
The British YouTuber and TV presenter was killed in a shocking electric scooter accident in July, just a month after turning 35 years old.
Emily’s 10 Reasons Why videos, focusing on everything from sex to Disney movies, had gotten millions of views and made her a staple of the platform and beloved by her 350K subscribers.
Félicité Tomlinson
The Tomlinson family was hit with tragedy yet again back in March when Félicité, younger sister to One Direction singer Louis Tomlinson died of a drug overdose. Fizzy, as she was known to friends and fans, was a model and aspiring fashion designer; sadly we’ll never know her full potential. She was just 18 years old.
Louis and Fizzy’s mother, Johannah Deakin, was only 43 years old when she died of leukemia in December 2016. It’s more than enough heartbreak for one family. Our hearts go out to all the surviving Tomlinson kids.
Luke Perry
It really felt like Luke Perry was in the beginning of a renaissance. The former 90210 teen heartthrob had returned to TV as Fred Andrews on the CW‘s Riverdale and had a small role in Tarantino’s new movie, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Sadly that resurgence was cut short when Luke suffered a massive stroke in late February. He passed away at only 52 years old on March 4.
After his passing, it became clear what a good man Luke was, besides being a sexy star. It seemed everyone, celeb or not, had a story of down-to-earth actor being kind, helpful, and charitable. Honestly, we didn’t know what we had until it was gone.
[Image via Adriana M. Barraza/FayesVision/WENN.]
Related Posts
