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Philip Seymour Hoffman: Brilliant Actor, Beloved Friend and Relapsed Addict

On February 2, 2014, acclaimed actor Philip Seymour Hoffman died from an apparent heroin overdose in the bathroom of a rented lower Manhattan apartment. Mr. Hoffman was an award winning talent who infused challenging, dramatic and absurd comedic roles with a humanity rarely seen on film or stage. Unfortunately, in the end, he was also a man who succumbed to the tragedy of opiate addiction. Found on the floor of his bathroom by a friend and his personal assistant with a heroin-filled needle stuck in his arm, Mr. Hoffman leaves behind an estranged partner and three children. An Early History of Substance Abuse Mr. Hoffman demonstrated early promise on the stage and graduated from New York University’s prestigious Tisch School of the Arts. Soon after graduation, he developed a substance problem so serious he checked into a substance abuse rehabilitation program. “It was all that [drugs and alcohol], yeah. It was anything I could get my hands on … I liked it all,” Hoffman acknowledged during a 60 Minutes interview. Hoffman stayed sober for 23 years but relapsed in 2013. Hoffman allegedly began using prescription pills, then moved on to snorting heroin. Quickly realizing he needed help, he checked himself into a residential treatment program and stayed for 10 days. Another Relapse Residents of the Greenwich Village neighborhood where Mr. Hoffman and his family lived expressed shock and profound sadness at the news of his death. Locally known as a low key family man who was friendly and accessible, area residents reported to the New York Post and New York Times that Mr. Hoffman appeared, “gray,” “sad,” “lonely” and “ill” over the past several days. An eyewitness apparently observed a “sweaty” Mr. Hoffman taking out a large sum of cash from a neighborhood ATM and subsequently purchasing drugs from two dealers; New York police are reviewing a surveillance tape from the ATM location. Mr. Hoffman had even appeared at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting on January 26th near his West Village apartment. The initial autopsy report was inconclusive and more tests are needed to determine the precise cause of death. However, police found 70 baggies of heroin in the apartment and there have since been four arrests made in connection to the heroin Mr. Hoffman purchased. Addiction and Overdose Can Happen to Anyone Hoffman, regarded as “the most ambitious and widely admired American actor of his generation,” had a loving family, loyal friends, an incredible career and the respect of critics around the world. Unfortunately, he also had a monkey on his back that ultimately caused his death: opiate addiction. Although we may never know the events or conditions that spurred his relapse, he will certainly be remembered for the depth of character he brought to every role he played as well as the loss of what might have been. For 23 years, Mr. Hoffman fought the good fight. All it took was one accidental overdose to end the life of a man who had everything going for him, yet did not ask for help when he needed it most. Image: Wolf Gang   

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