Brittany Murphy: Life Tribute (1977-2009)

Ashton Kutcher tweeted, "The world lost a little piece of sunshine" after learning of the untimely passing of Brittany Murphy, who had just celebrated her 32nd birthday only a month ago. His sentiment is certainly appreciated, and undoubtedly sincere, but it's also incomplete... The world lost much more than that. The world lost a large piece of the sun.

As the gossip sites -- far too many to name -- continue to disparage this shining diamond, specualting that drugs were the cause of her early morning heart attack, giving little thought to the feelings of her family, friends, and fans, we're happy to see that not everyone agrees. (Thanks, Jamie Kennedy!)

In fact, I think if you asked Brittany what she thought about this latest round of attacks, she would borrow from her own quote: "I think they should take everyone who works for The National Enquirer and the Star, and everyone who works for Us Weekly, and put them all to work looking for terrorists. I think they would find the terrorists. All of them. It would be genius!" And she'd be right. (How do you think TMZ broke the story so fast? Do you think some of the paramedics at the celebrity hospital are perhaps on their payroll?)

Whatever the cause -- drugs, anorexia, or the inevitable result which will befall us all one day -- Brittany Murphy deserves nothing less than sincere praise and admiration. She was talented, beautiful (both inside and out, but especially within), caring, honest, and genuine. There was nothing pretentious about her. She carried with her a heart of gold and an infectious smile that touched everyone within her vicinity.

We wish to send our deepest, most heartfelt condolences to her friends, family, loved ones, and fans. We all grieve over this terrible loss, and it is with the most profound respect that we offer this "Life Tribute" to all of those who share our feelings...

Brittany was born in Atlanta, Georgia, but she was raised in Edison, New Jersey. She began her career at the tender age of nine -- having a natural talent for the arts -- in regional theater. By the time she was thirteen, she had already signed with a manager and appeared in television commercials; she and her mother moved to Burbank, California soon after. Brittany, an only child from a divorced family, had only her mother to lean on; a survivor of breast cancer, it's evident that Brittany's strength came from her mother, whom lived with her even through adulthood. (Her father lives in Branford, Florida.)

While many remember Brittany from Clueless (1995) as an awkward teenager turned socialite opposite Alicia Silverstone, I believe her most memorable role was Uptown Girls (2003) playing alongside the equally talented Dakota Fanning in what can only be described as an emotionally-charged, coming-of-age tale of "finding one's place in life, through the bonds of real friendship and love."

Starting out playing minor roles in dozens of movies and television shows, it was really in 2003 that her career began to take off. In addition to Uptown Girls (2003), she starred in Just Married (2003) with Ashton Kutcher, which was a simply perfect romantic comedy, the following year in Little Black Book (2004), where tears were quite frankly inevitable when her character meets Carly Simon, and a year later in Sin City (2005). She went on to lend her voice in Happy Feet (2006).

Her career was far from finished; with at least five titles in various stages of production, Brittany Murphy had plenty more stories to share with us. Her talents did not just include acting, however. She was the lead singer in her own band, "Blessed Soul," throughout the 90's, and she sang during the opening act of the MTV Music Awards of 2002. Never afraid to push her creativity, she consistently displayed through her actions all of the qualities that made her a wonderful role model.

And it is her actions that I will remember more than anything else. Always with a smile on her face and a warm radiance abound, she selflessly dedicated her time to charity. She worked with the clothing company Tt to help raise money for children who needed prosthetics. She performed for our military just three months after our government invaded Iraq. Considered a rite-of-passage among celebs, performing for our military was a fond experience for Brittany, who always loved singing.

It's impossible to say what Brittany could have accomplished in the years to come. Surely, she would have continued performing, bringing emotions out of us as we watched her on the big screen. And without a doubt, she would have continued to support those who were less fortuante than herself. But most importantly, she would have had more time to spend with the people who loved her most. We wish Brittany's family peace and love; words simply cannot express just how how much of a tragedy this really is, for all of us who admired her.

As for Brittany, she will continue to live on in the art she has added to our world, and in the countless hearts she has touched, and the next time you look up into the sky at that great bright sun that sustains our very existence, think of Brittany, because the symbolism is all too real -- warm, loving, and radiant -- the best qualities of humanity, all of which Brittany embodied.