Whitney Houston passed away on 2/11/12 - Part 1

[shana]

Yes, thank you, gngr~snap. You endorsed my point and then some.

There was such a re-creation done of JonBenet Ramsey's body at the scene of death. It was just that, an illustration, an artist's concept.

I've not kept-up with the latest Forbes incarnation and did wonder when I saw it linked in recent days. I find it terribly disappointing that this once-respected publication has gone to this, er, tabloid 'journalism' too?

 

[georger]

I am guilty! I did think perhaps Whitney had added a toxic esssential oil to the olive oil for aromatherapy. HOWEVER after looking at the after photo of the tub with the water still in it. (assuming the gravy boat was holding the "oil") there is no oily "film" on the top of the water as I would expect to see. I have no idea why a gravy boat was there or if the water was even tested for additives. She might have used epsom salt or something similar to try and "detoxify" OR not.
I will put this issue to bed and it will remain there UNLESS her tox screen shows minimal or not a high enough level to cause death.
I'm sure at autopsy her blood and urine were both checked for alcohol.
Those results are available rather quickly.
The ME already knows the results of that test and i have a sneaking suspicion she was not WAY over the legal limit at the time of death.
Time will tell.
Here is a pic of the water. I see no oil.

I just have a feeling all of the reports are going to dovetail and
identify a specific known cause, perhaps with some contributing
underlying pathology. The police now seem to be doing a thorough
search of all of her residences for some reason.

Nothing can change the outcome which is the sadest part.

 

[butwhatif?]

Thanks for the link. Sounds like an embarrassing cat-fight for both women.

Someone above posted about the possibility that Whitney was having "hormonal" issues. In one of the earliest reports about drugs in her hotel room, a bottle of Midol was mentioned

It's possible she had PMDD. It can cause severe mood swings and a lot of irritability/anxiety/ aggression .
I was rx'ed xanax for my PMDD, and always have to take something similar to Midol ( which we don't have over here). You can be a crazy screaming woman one minute, then be completely depressed and suicidal the next. Baths help give comfort from the extreme cramping. Antidepressants can cause excess sweating too, which is one of the first meds that would be rx'ed after a PMDD dx.
I have been on an almost identical cocktail of meds due to my PMDD.
Prior to my dx I self-medicated with illegal drugs. Unfortunately, for severe PMDD benzo's are the most effective drug to treat the irritability/anxiety.... which you end up becoming addicted to, because the symptoms are present for aprox half the month.
it's a horrible thing to live with because you know the next round of complete chaos is never more than two weeks away.
Please excuse all typos as i'm posting from my phone... kids have taken over all the computers in the.house.

 

[21merc7]

Preliminary report on prescriptions:

"Whitney Houston was not doctor shopping or using aliases to score prescriptions ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... although the L.A. County Coroner is subpoenaing medical and pharmacy records, there is nothing to suggest Whitney or her doctors did anything inappropriate or illegal."

http://www.tmz.com/2012/02/15/whitn...ping-prescriptions-dead-coroner/#.TzzwPc5Fuwg

 

[21merc7]

All I have to say is that I hope her death is not in vain. And all her friends and fans that may be in similar situations learn from this and get some help for themselves. It is interesting reading the articles of her friends who are recovering addicts and who tried to help her over the years. It is a great loss for such a stupid reason. jmo

I hope that someone learns something from it. I hope some actually cared about her and did not look to her as a money machine to borrow from, or a has been that just needed to go away but they could use for money for partying.

Mostly, I hope her daughter learns this sad lesson. Her daughter has only seen drug and alcohol use all of her life. It is her norm, from the day she was born. Everyone around her uses or pushes. I hope she decides to never use again and remains firm in that decision. To never be around any of it ever again.

 

[21merc7]

For complete coverage of Whitney Houston's death, tune in to CNN and HLN. On Saturday, CNN's Piers Morgan, Soledad O'Brien and Don Lemon remember the music legend at 11 a.m. ET, and a special CNN Presents at 8 p.m. ET takes a look at her life and death.

Saturday's funeral for legendary pop singer Whitney Houston is expected to be made available for television and web streaming from the New Jersey church where she grew up, Houston's publicist said Wednesday.

The services, to be held at New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, will be in a much smaller, more intimate setting than the concert halls and arenas Houston packed during her heyday.

In every sense, she will be going home.


more at link:

http://www.cnn.com/2012/02/15/showbiz/whitney-houston-funeral/index.html

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Report: Aretha Franklin to sing at Whitney Houston's funeral

Houston found dead last weekend at age 48

Published On: Feb 16 2012 10:10:53 AM EST Updated On: Feb 16 2012 10:19:41 AM EST

DETROIT -
Motown's own Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, will sing at Whitney Houston's funeral this Saturday, according to the New York Daily News.

Houston was Franklin's goddaughter...

http://www.clickondetroit.com/enter...eral/-/1718940/8786260/-/qnjo3hz/-/index.html

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

I was checking out the weekend TV movie lineup and noticed that "The Bodyguard" will be on Lifetime at 5:00 (EST) on Sunday, 2/19.

 

[BigMomma]

:seeya: Our news reports( out of the Los Angeles area)just mentioned that Clive Davis will not be paying for the funeral since he was 'supporting' Whitney because she was broke. I am so so sorry this very talented entertainer passed away, but as somebody above stated and as C. Khan has boldly stated-The people who invited Whitney to participate in this years Grammys knew exactly what was up with her and they knew they had to protect her somewhat - But then-when a huge celeb falls from grace, they do unfortunately become a liability and eventually become invisable to the very people who put them before the masses. The entertainment business is much rougher than it used to be and nobody cares much about anything except the darn money now. Lookie what happened in Whitney's case. All her recordings went to Sony music, they are turning these albums of hers out at break neck speed, but will Whitney's estate see any of the profit? Of course not. Listen to the words of C. Khan and of some of the others, what they say is so so true.

Wanted to add something else that sort of shows how soon the Execs forget about their main draw, or whoever made them a fortune at 1 time. Whitney was staying at the B.Hilton. Nice place, it's somewhat dated, been there for a few years. What is so strange is in her heyday which wasn't that long ago, what she was more accustomed to was something more along the lines of the Beverly Wilshire Hotel(Pretty Woman hotel)which is just down the road by 2 or 3 blocks. I liken what I witnessed to something like a convention, where the top dogs get the nicer hotels to stay at and then the used to be's get the lesser, not as fancy hotels down the way-kwim? I was telling DH that it is almost like they placed her at a motel 6 when she was more accustomed to the finery of the Beverly Wilshire. That is a complete shame. She deserved more, she deserved her respect no matter what. The business don't care about their stars anymore, they just keep turning up the heat on a new dancing chicken, it's very very sad.

 

[MaryAnn]

:seeya: Our news reports( out of the Los Angeles area)just mentioned that Clive Davis will not be paying for the funeral since he was 'supporting' Whitney because she was broke. I am so so sorry this very talented entertainer passed away, but as somebody above stated and as C. Khan has boldly stated-The people who invited Whitney to participate in this years Grammys knew exactly what was up with her and they knew they had to protect her somewhat - But then-when a huge celeb falls from grace, they do unfortunately become a liability and eventually become invisable to the very people who put them before the masses. The entertainment business is much rougher than it used to be and nobody cares much about anything except the darn money now. Lookie what happened in Whitney's case. All her recordings went to Sony music, they are turning these albums of hers out at break neck speed, but will Whitney's estate see any of the profit? Of course not. Listen to the words of C. Khan and of some of the others, what they say is so so true.

I don't understand, why wouldn't the royalties from her records go to her Daughter like in the Michael Jackson case? If her Daughter isn't getting any of the money it's really wrong! JMO

 

[21merc7]

I don't understand, why wouldn't the royalties from her records go to her Daughter like in the Michael Jackson case? If her Daughter isn't getting any of the money it's really wrong! JMO

It all depends on the contract with:

the songwriters (WH did not write any songs);
Clive Davis;
Sony;
any one else in the middle there;
then WH's cut.

For a "created" star such as WH, where she did not come up with anything on her own, she just sang, there are a lot more middlemen getting cuts. Don't know how that worked out for here once she was no longer a star, or postmortem. There could be all kinds of clauses in the contract(s).

 

[BigMomma]

I don't understand, why wouldn't the royalties from her records go to her Daughter like in the Michael Jackson case? If her Daughter isn't getting any of the money it's really wrong! JMO

:seeya: They might, eventually, but sit back and watch how these same people that were involved with M. Jackson go about wracking up all sorts of bills and the accounting will go out the window.I'm sure Mr. Davis is keeping a good accounting of how much he has 'given' to Whitney. I'm not so sure how many songs she sang were written by her, that's an added thing that the Jackson children have that makes much more $ for an estate. These Execs will tie it up for years and hand out pittance. Then there is her Ex. Being a huge star isn't really what it's cut out to be, the Execs; your life belongs to 'them', 'they' own you, 'they' control you-you do as 'they' say or you're turned out to pasture one way or another. Once they are done with you, they are done, lifeline is cut and you're out to sea without any floatation device.

 

[BigMomma]

It all depends on the contract with:

the songwriters (WH did not write any songs);
Clive Davis;
Sony;
any one else in the middle there;
then WH's cut.

For a "created" star such as WH, where she did not come up with anything on her own, she just sang, there are a lot more middlemen getting cuts. Don't know how that worked out for here once she was no longer or star, or postmortem. There could be all kinds of clauses in the contract(s).

This is exactly it. Thank you:seeya:

 

[21merc7]

I think the new music generation, the ones writing their own stuff, need to do what happened in the 70's (iirc) with film. Martin Scorsese, Francis F. Copola, etc... all were doing their own thing at a certain point. They made their art their way, got it produced their way (at the time).

I guess the internet has started a possible change in the music arena, but mega corporations will find a way to drag all that $$$ making potential back to them. The stars need to stand up for themselves now. They should also stop fearing speaking the truth, thank you Chaka, and the moguls.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

:seeya: They might, eventually, but sit back and watch how these same people that were involved with M. Jackson go about wracking up all sorts of bills and the accounting will go out the window.I'm sure Mr. Davis is keeping a good accounting of how much he has 'given' to Whitney. I'm not so sure how many songs she sang were written by her, that's an added thing that the Jackson children have that makes much more $ for an estate. These Execs will tie it up for years and hand out pittance. Then there is her Ex. Being a huge star isn't really what it's cut out to be, the Execs; your life belongs to 'them', 'they' own you, 'they' control you-you do as 'they' say or you're turned out to pasture one way or another. Once they are done with you, they are done, lifeline is cut and you're out to sea without any floatation device.

None. All of Whitney's recordings were songs that were written by others; she had no original music.

I'll see if I can find the Dolly Parton interview that I saw on Tuesday in which DP talks about how much money she made once WH's version of "I Will Always Love You" became an international hit. DP wrote the song, so she collected massive residuals and continues to do so whenever the recording is played or performed in concert.

During an interview on CNN with Anderson Cooper last month, the Steel Magnolias actress revealed: 'When Whitney did it, I got all the money for the publishing and for the writing, and I bought a lot of cheap wigs.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbi...ong-I-Will-Always-Love-You.html#ixzz1mZLR0dkR

 

[BigMomma]

None. All of Whitney's recordings were songs that were written by others; she had no original music.

I'll see if I can find the Dolly Parton interview that I saw on Tuesday in which DP talks about how much money she made once WH's version of "I Will Always Love You" became an international hit. DP wrote the song, so she collected massive residuals and continues to do so whenever the recording is played or performed in concert.

Thank you. Yes, Dolly made a small fortune and still does with the residues from not only the movie, but the soundtrack. Parton is one of handful of very very smart women in the industry, nothing gets past that head of bleached blonde hair-lol. So so many celebs have got it very hard now. Look what happened to Nic Cage-OMG! If you could see just the estate he owned in Bel Air-used to be owned by T. Jones-HUGE place-lost because somebody mis managed the money. There are so many crooks in the business more than ever before and there's no accounting for any of it. Look what happened with P. McCartney. Is it any wonder why they are smoozin him now? It's because that music book is coming due to go back into his hands again, so the same people who have their hands on it gives him a special award thru MusiCares-same people who 'owned' and played MJ.

 

[21merc7]

What's this about WH writing a 2 million dollar check to get Sparkle finished if she was broke? Gotta' love the celebrity gossip reports, she's broke bumming Benjamins off friends, Clive paid her bills but no pocket money, she's writing checks out for millions, she stopped payment on the houses b/c of divorce, then paid the back due amount in full. Argh! All stories contradict each other. The big check:

Whitney cut $2 Million check to keep “Sparkle” alive

http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/...alive/-/1719418/8636114/-/asjfgj/-/index.html

 

[shana]

Snipped for brevity, with respect:

Wanted to add something else that sort of shows how soon the Execs forget about their main draw, or whoever made them a fortune at 1 time. Whitney was staying at the B.Hilton. Nice place, it's somewhat dated, been there for a few years. What is so strange is in her heyday which wasn't that long ago, what she was more accustomed to was something more along the lines of the Beverly Wilshire Hotel(Pretty Woman hotel)which is just down the road by 2 or 3 blocks. I liken what I witnessed to something like a convention, where the top dogs get the nicer hotels to stay at and then the used to be's get the lesser, not as fancy hotels down the way-kwim? I was telling DH that it is almost like they placed her at a motel 6 when she was more accustomed to the finery of the Beverly Wilshire. That is a complete shame. She deserved more, she deserved her respect no matter what. The business don't care about their stars anymore, they just keep turning up the heat on a new dancing chicken, it's very very sad.

Clive probably got a deal on the room rate, seeing as he was hosting the pre-Grammy party at the Beverly Hilton.

And yes, it's an old hotel but so too are the Beverly Wilshire and the Beverly Hills Hotel. To me, it's always looked "dated" as you say, and a lesser place, even back in the day. (I touched JFK's hand at that hotel and you know how long ago that was!) I think of the Beverly Hilton as a convention/event hotel while the other two have maintained their 4-star status consistently thru the years.

P.S. Thank you for all of your informative posts re the business.

 

[gngr~snap]

What's this about WH writing a 2 million dollar check to get Sparkle finished if she was broke? Gotta' love the celebrity gossip reports, she's broke bumming Benjamins off friends, Clive paid her bills but no pocket money, she's writing checks out for millions, she stopped payment on the houses b/c of divorce, then paid the back due amount in full. Argh! All stories contradict each other. The big check:

Whitney cut $2 Million check to keep “Sparkle” alive

http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/...alive/-/1719418/8636114/-/asjfgj/-/index.html

~jmo... Whitney might have been a "broken" woman, but she wasn't a "broke" woman.

 

[BigMomma]

What's this about WH writing a 2 million dollar check to get Sparkle finished if she was broke? Gotta' love the celebrity gossip reports, she's broke bumming Benjamins off friends, Clive paid her bills but no pocket money, she's writing checks out for millions, she stopped payment on the houses b/c of divorce, then paid the back due amount in full. Argh! All stories contradict each other. The big check:

Whitney cut $2 Million check to keep “Sparkle” alive

http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/...alive/-/1719418/8636114/-/asjfgj/-/index.html

There's so many stories out there it isn't very funny. This could be interpeted to her putting up her own insurance or her paycheck-a Bond of sorts to complete the film. I am so surprised, but not surprised when somebody like Piers Morgan comes out and starts this trash drug talk, could be true, but for the sake of sanity and respect, they need to put a lid on it. I tell my DH in a dire joking manner that I hope for the media's sake that the tox screen comes back with nothin but Midol in her system-give the media their black eye. I just hope that LAPD does not muck this investigation up. Whitney was going to sing the night she passed ---and she supposedly takes in a turkey sandwich with a huge side of sliced jalepeno's to the bath? HA! Singers do NOT eat ANYTHING that will make them belch. Really love how TMZ caught that photo op, how'd that happen? Darn media hounds. I do agree with a lot of the posters here that said in essence that perhaps Whitney could see she was on the outs and her behavior was one of 'look at me' and I also believe that she was in her own little way saying goodbye, hate to think that way tho'. She was so pretty, I'm just sorry she didn't have a real true friend to pull her aside and be there for her. She made love to millions of people and wound up alone. Sad.