Heath Ledger Dies in NYC

Heath Ledger, probably best known for his role as a gay cowboy in "Brokeback Mountain", for which he received an Oscar nomination, was found dead Tuesday in his Manhattan apartment.

It was not immediately confirmed if the Australian born movie star had committed suicide, though he was found naked in bed with a bottle of sleeping pills by the housekeeper. Police do not suspect foul play, but are unsure if Ledger purposefully or accidentally overdosed. Ledger had made an appointment with a massage therapist and when the housekeeper came to tell him they had arrived, she found him dead in his bed.

New York City officials stated that an autopsy to determine the cause of death would be performed Wednesday. A crowd of people gathered on the upscale Soho block of Ledger's residence while several police officers guarded the door.

Ledger met Michelle Williams on the set of "Brokeback Mountain" where she played his wife. They were engaged and lived together in Brooklyn. They had a daughter, Matilda, until the two separated last year. Matilda's godparents are Ledger's "Brokeback" co-star Jake Gyllenhaal and William's "Dawson's Creek" co-star Busy Phillips. Recently, Ledger had been seen with model Emma Ward in New York City.

Ledger had recently finished filming the sequel to 2005 "Batman Begins", "The Dark Knight" in which he plays the Joker. His latest movie to come out was "I'm Not There" a film about Bob Dylan. He was in the process of filming "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" when he died. Other notable films include "The Patriot" alongside Mel Gibson, "A Knight's Tale", "10 Things I Hate About You" with Julia Stiles and "Monster's Ball" where he plays the son of Billy Bob Thorton.

Before he married Williams, Ledger had relationships with other blond bombshells Naomi Watts and Heather Graham.

Heath Ledger was born in Perth, Australian in 1979. His father, Kim Ledger was a miner and race car driver and his mother, Sally Ledger Bell was a French teacher. Heath and his sister Katherine were named after the two major characters in Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. He first started acting at age 10 when he landed the role of Peter Pan in a local theater production. He moved to Sydney and began acting in independent films at age 16. At 19, Ledger moved to Los Angeles and got his big break in "10 Things I Hate About You".