ET confirms that Anna Nicole Smith died this afternoon after she collapsed at a Florida hotel.
The actress and TrimSpa spokesperson was staying at the Hard Rock Hotel in Hollywood, Florida.
According to reports, Anna Nicole collapsed around 2 p.m. and paramedics were called. They reportedly performed CPR at the scene. She was then taken to the Memorial Regional Hospital.
Her partner, Howard K. Stern, tells ET that Anna Nicole's temperature was running high last night. The couple was shopping for a new boat in Florida.
RIP Anna Nicole Smith - here she is last month with Howard K. Stern
Hugh Hefner on Anna Nicole Smith via TMZ
"I am very saddened to learn about Anna Nicole's passing. She was a dear friend who meant a great deal to the Playboy family and to me personally.
"My thoughts and prayers are with her friends and loved ones during this difficult time."
- Inside Anna Nicole Smith's Refridgerator
- Prescription medication found at the scene included the stimulant Provigil, the anti-anxiety drug Xanax, the powerful pain reliever Vicodin, and the morphine-like pain reliever Methadone — "a lot of Methadone," a Star source reports. [Read More]
- Zsa Zsa Gabor's Husband Says He Might Be the Daddy
- Anna Nicole Smith Planned to Marry Howard K. Stern
- Illegal narcotics as well as prescription medications found in her hotel room - 8 Bags of evidence removed by investigators [CBS 2]
- Anna's Mom Speaks Out: "I think she had too many drugs - just like Danny."
TMZ
- Anna choked on her own vomit [Acess Hollywood]
- Howard K. Stern Gets Custody of Anna's Baby [TMZ]
- Paramedic first on the scene says Anna was dead when he arrived to her hotel room. [TMZ]
- Hear the audio file.
- Anna's autopsy planned for tomorrow morning. [TMZ]
- Smith's former lawyer says Anna wanted to be like Marilyn Monroe [TMZ]
He said: "She wanted to be like Marilyn her whole life and ironically died in a similar manner."
Anna's Life
Anna Nicole's death came during a time of personal grief and a bitter
paternity battle.
Her 20-year-old son Daniel, died in the Bahamas five months ago - just three
days after Anna Nicole gave birth to her daughter Dannielynn. Toxicology
reports determined Daniel had taken a lethal combination of antidepressants
and methadone.
Anna Nicole was ordered to have her daughter undergo a paternity test, after
former lover photographer Larry Birkheard filed a lawsuit claiming he was
Dannielynn's father.
Anna Nicole insisted Stern, who was also her lawyer, was the father of the
child.
The actress-and-model was ordered to complete the test before February 21 by
a Los Angeles judge on Wednesday (02.07.07).
Dannielynn was not with her mother when she died. She is in the Bahamas -
where she was born - in the care of a family friend.
Anna Nicole was born Vickie Lynn Hogan and raised in Texas by her mother and
aunt.
After dropping out of high school aged 17, she met her first husband Billy
Smith, but later split from him and moved to Houston to become a stripper.
It was here that she met elderly oil billionaire J. Howard Marshall.
Anna Nicole, 26, married Marshall, 89, in 1994, before he died the following
year. She spent the next decade battling his family for his estate.
In May 2006 the US Supreme Court ruled Anna Nicole could pursue her case in
federal court.
The blond got her big break in 1991 when Playboy boss Hugh Hefner
personally chose her to appear on the cover of the magazine.
She was named Playboy magazine's Playmate of the Year in 1993 and appeared
in 'The Hudsucker Proxy' and 'Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult'.
She also had her own outrageous reality TV series 'The Anna Nicole Smith
show' from 2002 to 2004.
Celebs on Anna
US talk show host Larry King said: "She was a special person, she was an
unusual person. She was genuine, she was funny, she had some class. I feel
very, very sorry for everybody concerned, but mostly for her daughter
Dannielynn."
The 39-year-old model-turned-actress was once the poster girl for Guess
jeans, and starred in 'Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult'.
CEO of Guess jeans, Paul Marciano, said: "She had something magic. This is a
very tragic and sad day. Personally I feel she did not recover from the loss
of her son Daniel who was the love of her life."
She was working as the spokesmodel for diet pill Trimspa when she died.
CEO of Trimspa, Alex Goen, said: "Today, Anna Nicole Smith's grief-stricken
and tumultuous personal life came to an end. Anna came to our company as a
customer, but she departs it as a friend. Anna knew both the joy of giving
life, and the heartache of losing a child. We pray that she is granted the
peace that eluded her more recent days on earth, and that she finds comfort
in the presence of her son, Daniel."
Anna Nicole also did a lot of work for animal rights group PETA.
PETA released a statement saying: "PETA is extremely upset by the news of
Anna Nicole Smith's untimely death. She was a great friend to animals and
used every opportunity to speak out against senseless cruelty. We always
thought Anna Nicole was a perfect fit for PETA because, just like us, she
not only hated cruelty to animals and loved her dog. It is a tragedy when
anyone passes away before their time, but with Anna Nicole, animals have
lost a true hero and PETA has lost a good friend. We will miss her."
Filed under: Anna Nicole Smith • Celebrity • Marilyn Monroe •
