Cause of Death Update for Brittany Murphy:

Chief Coroner Investigator Craig Harvey of The Los Angeles County coroner's office specified that the primary cause of death of actress Brittany Murphy was community-acquired pneumonia, with contributing factors of iron-deficiency anemia and "multiple drug intoxication." The death was ruled accidental.

Harvey declined to specify what drugs were involved but did say that they were all prescription medications. Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter said that the star's death could have been preventable if she had been taken to the hospital sooner.

Murphy's husband expressed shock over the findings, "I'm ridiculously upset. Everything surprised me and Brittany's mom about the report. I expected the cause of death to be her heart...She was not that ill. She wasn't coughing up. I've had pneumonia and coughed up handfuls of spittle. So yeah, everything surprised us, everything."

Ian Carmichael, June 18, 1920 – Feb. 5, 2010, known for his character Bertie Wooster on TV, has died at his home in the Esk Valley on the North Yorkshire Moors. According to his wife, novelist Kate Fenton, Carmichael had fallen ill over Christmas. He was 89.

His first claim to fame was in the 1950s, starring for the Boulting Brothers in their satirical comedy films including  “Private’s Progress,” “Brothers in Law” and “I’m All Right Jack” which also starred Peter Sellers.

In the 1960s & 70s, Ian Carmichael, successfully switched to television. He portrayed Bertie Wooster on the earlier BBC version of the P.G. Wodehouse stories that were made into a series, that version called “World of Wooster.” Dennis Price played opposite in the role of Jeeves. Carmichael was also Lord Peter Wimsey, a Bertie-esque character in a series based on the Dorothy Sayers’ detective mysteries.

He is survived by his wife Kate and two daughters from his first marriage.

Frances Reid, Dec. 9, 1914 – Feb. 3, 2010, star of NBC’s long-running soap, has died in Los Angeles at the age of 95.

Fans knew her as the matriarch, Alice Horton, on NBC's soap 'Days of Our Lives.’

She was one of the original members of the cast when the show first aired on Nov. 8, 1965. And she played the part of Alice for the next 40 years, her character morphing in true soap opera style; from loyal wife, to snowy haired town elder. She was murdered by a serial killer…and then she wasn’t, returning live and well as only those in soap opera land can.

Frances Reid’s career began with a small part in film, back in the 1930s. In 1939, she debuted on Broadway in 'Where There's a Will.' In 1954, she joined the radio soap opera 'Portia Faces of Life.’ Reid also had other roles on TV soaps including parts in 'As the World Turns' and 'The Edge of Night.'

But it was the role of Alice that earned her Daytime Emmy nominations in 1979 and in 1987. She was given a Daytime Emmys' Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004.

Frances Reid was married to actor Philip Bourneuf, who died in 1979.

John McCallum, March 14, 1918 – Feb. 3, 2010, Australian actor, director and TV, theater and film producer, has died in Sydney at the age of 91. He had been suffering from leukemia.

“Skippy The Bush Kangaroo” was a popular children’s TV series airing in Australia from 1965 to 1968 and it was this show that John McCallum was perhaps most well known. Ninety-one 30-minute episodes were made over the course of three seasons telling the adventures of a young boy and his intelligent pet kangaroo. Like a parallel to the U.S. series, ‘Lassie,’ numerous references to “Skippy” began showing up in pop culture such as Mick in “Crocodile Dundee” quipping “Good one, Skippy” and even in an episode of “House.”

John McCallum first went into film production in 1961. Over his career, he produced or directed over 200 films for TV including the well-known ‘Skippy’ series.

As an actor, he was also quite popular, mostly during the 40s and 50s. Credits include “It Always Rains On Sunday,” “Travelers Joy,” “Miranda,” “Valley of Eagles,” “Woman In Question,” “Derby Day,” “Trent’s Last Case,” “The Calendar” and “Port Of No Escape.”

John McCallum is survived by his wife Googie and children Joanna, Nicholas and Amanda.

David Brown, July 28, 1916 – Feb. 1, 2010, courtly producer of Steven Spielberg’s early films and other hits, has died at his home in Manhattan. He was 93.

The description of David Brown harkens to a different era. He is described as having a mannerly way, always in fine clothing with a distinctive mustache and projecting a fine, courtly presence. His early days were in publishing as a journalist, rising to become a managing editor at Cosmopolitan.

When David Brown switched to film, it was a partnering up with Richard Zanuck and the pair eventually formed their own production company. One of their first films was the 1973 hit “The Sting” starring Robert Redford and Paul Newman.  The next year, they produced “The Sugarland Express” with Steven Spielberg and then hired him to direct the cult-classic shark movie, “Jaws.”

From there, more mega-hits followed including “Cocoon,” “Driving Miss Daisy,” and “The Verdict” where he worked with Paul Newman in the starring role again. Even after the partnership with Zanuck dissolved, David Brown continued to produce some of the most well-known big screen hits of the day. He produced two Alex Cross movies, “Kiss The Girls” and “Along Came a Spider” with Morgan Freeman starring and ended up buying the film and stage rights to “A Few Good Men” written by playwright Aaron Sorkin.

The play opened November 1989 going strong for 500 performances and the film, released in 1992, was also successful starring Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson.

“He was the last great gentleman producer,” Mr. Sorkin said in an interview. “You’re not going to see his kind again.”

Rodolfo de Anda, July 6, 1943 – Feb. 1, 2010, Mexican actor turned producer and director, has died in Mexico City. The cause of death was complications from diabetes and thrombosis.  He had been hospitalized since the week before due to a stroke caused by diabetic issues. Rodolfo de Anda was 67 years old.

He was the son of producer, director, actor Raul de Anda and he began his own acting career in the mid 1950s. De Anda’s IMDB listing has over 150 acting entries both in film and on television beginning with “La venganza del Diablo” and “Echenme al gato.” His own son, Rodolfo de Anda, Jr. is also in the industry, producing the TV series “The Pantera” on which he appeared in a recurring role.  De Anda’s brothers included producer Raul de Anda Jr. and director, actor Gilberto de Anda.

In 1999, Rodolfo de Anda portrayed General Ampudia in “One Man’s Hero” starring Tom Berenger and, interestingly enough Prince Albert of Monaco – the son of Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier. The film, about a group of Irish immigrants fighting in the Mexican-American war, was nominated for an ALMA Award and a PFS Award.

Justin Mentell, Dec. 16, 1982 – Feb. 1, 2010, young actor from the TV comedy show “Boston Legal” and ex-speed skater, has died in a fatal automobile accident. He was 27 years old.

In what amounts to another tragic young Hollywood death, Justin Mentell veered off a road close to Madison in Wisconsin and went down an embankment, crashing his Jeep into two trees. He wasn’t wearing his seatbelt and some reports state that he was thrown from the vehicle.

Iowa County Sheriff's Dept. Sgt. Daniel Carey gave a statement to press: "We don't believe that alcohol was a factor in the incident; there was no evidence of that here. It is possible that Mr. Mentell fell asleep at the wheel, as his mother told us that he liked to take long drives on his own and the area he crashed was pretty secluded... there was some snow lying on the surrounding areas, [but] the road conditions were clear and dry, so, they would not have been a contributing factor either."

Justin Mentell began his career acting in independent films such as the 2004 “Gotham, III. Then, using his history as a speed-skater, he landed a part in the roller derby comedy “Roll Bounce.” From 2005-06, Mentell portrayed a junior associate named Garett Wells on the ABC comedy “Boston Legal.” More recently, he appeared as ‘Terrell’ on the family animated film, “G-Force” along with Nicholas Cage.

Karen Schmeer, Feb. 20, 1970 - Jan. 29, 2010, respected documentary film editor who often worked with director Errol Morris, has died. The cause of death was due to a hit-and-run as she was crossing Broadway at 90th Street in New York just before 8 p.m. The car that struck Schmeer contained three men who were fleeing a CVS pharmacy after a report that they were shoplifting over-the-counter medications. Karen Schmeer was pronounced dead at the St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center. She was 39.

"She won an editing award at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival for her work on "Sergio,' a film about Sergio Vieira de Mello, a diplomatic rainmaker who died in a 2003 terrorist attack in Iraq. 

Greg Barker, the director of “Sergio,”described Schmeer as " one of the greatest editors of her generation...In a business full of huge egos — and believe me, she’s worked with a few of them — she was completely modest and incredibly self-effacing about her immense talent.”

Schmeer was also a principal collaborator with director Errol Morris, playing a key role in most of his projects for over 10 years including "Fog of War," the Academy Award-winning portrait of Robert McNamara, the former defense secretary and in the 1997 “Fast, Cheap and Out of Control.”

Other credits include “The Same River Twice” in 2003 and the 2005 Sydney Pollack film “Sketches of Frank Gehry.”

J.D. Salinger, Jan. 1, 1919 - Jan. 27, 2010, enigmatic literary author, has died at his home in Cornish, New Hampshire where he has lived in isolation for the last 50 years. Salinger was 91.

Mr. Salinger’s literary agent, Phyllis Westberg stated, “Despite having broken his hip in May, his health had been excellent until a rather sudden decline after the new year. He was not in any pain before or at the time of his death.”

The devoutly private author of The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger was probably most famous for not wanting to be famous. He denounced publishing, declined to be interviewed and turned Hollywood away when they wanted to make a movie of his one and only novel.  Hollywood legend has it that Steven Spielberg, Miramax heavy-weight Harvey Weinstein and the late Billy Wilder all tried and failed to secure the movie rights.

Catcher is narrated by a teenage boy, Holden Caulfield, who is expelled from a private school and spends the next three days wandering around New York. Caulfield's attitude of rebellion struck a cord with teenagers and has remained a best seller since its release. The book gained further controversy when several readers seemed to be obsessed with it,  most infamously Mark David Chapman, who murdered John Lennon in 1980.

J.D. Salinger continued to write after the release of Catcher In The Rye, however, it was less frequent. He wrote more than thirty short stories and a few novellas. Many were published in The New Yorker and collected in works such as "Nine Stories" and "Seymour: An Introduction"

Of his death, his literary agent, Phyllis Westberg commented, "Salinger had remarked that he was in this world but not of it. His body is gone but the family hopes that he is still with those he loves, whether they are religious or historical figures, personal friends or fictional characters...He will be missed by the few he was close to every bit as much as by the readers who loved reading him."

Zelda Rubinstein, May 28, 1933 - Jan. 27, 2010, the 4-foot-3 character actress and early AIDS activist, died at Barlow Respiratory Hospital in Los Angeles. The cause of death came after a mild heart attack two months before. She was 76.

She played Tangina Barrons, a medium brought in to rid a house of ghosts in the cult classic film series "Poltergeist"

It was her first major big screen appearance. Prior to "Poltergeist," Rubinstein had just started her career in film, debuting at the age of 50 as a woman playing a Munchkin in The Wizard of Oz in 1982's Under the Rainbow.

From there, Zelda Rubinstein played an organist in the  Molly Ringwald-starring "Sixteen Candles" before returning as Tangina in "Poltergeist II: The Other Side" and "Poltergeist III." Ironically, for her role as Tangina over the course of the Poltergeist series, she was nominated both for Best and Worst Supporting Actress, the first Poltergeist gaining her a Saturn Award for Best.

Other credits include "Frances," "Teen Witch," "Anguish" and "Southland Tales." Rubinstein also regularly appeared as Ginny Weedon in the TV series "Picket Fences." Her character there was killed off in typical off-beat fashion, by falling into a freezer. As a voice actor, Zelda Rubinstein could be heard in such shows as "Hey! Arnold" and "Reading Rainbow."

Steven Spielberg commented about Zelda in The Times in 1982, "I thought it would be neat to show that someone's size had nothing to do with her psychic powers...Good things can come in small packages, and that's certainly true of Zelda."