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2 articles from 2006

14 February 2006 | WENN | See recent WENN news »

Reservoir Dogs actor Chris Penn died accidentally from an enlarged heart and the effects of a combination of various medications, according to autopsy and toxicology tests. The Los Angeles coroner's office released a statement late Monday, confirming the reasons behind the shock death of Sean Penn's younger brother in his Santa Monica, California, apartment on January 24. The tests labeled the primary causes of death as "nonspecific cardiomyopathy" (an oversized heart) with the "effects of multiple medication intake." Chief coroner investigator Craig Harvey says, "There is absolutely no indication that this is anything but an accident. We know he had several prescriptions, including promethazine with codeine, which featured predominantly in his death. We don't know how much he ingested or when. There are a lot of 'what ifs' to be factored in." Chris, 40, starred in hit films Rush Hour, Starsky & Hutch, True Romance and The Funeral, for which he won the Volpi Cup at the 1996 Venice Film Festival. »

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25 January 2006 | IMDb News

Actor Chris Penn, brother of Sean Penn and star of such films as Reservoir Dogs and Mulholland Falls, was found dead Tuesday at a condominium in Santa Monica; he was 40. Few details were released surrounding Penn's death late Tuesday afternoon, though sources reported there were no signs of foul play, and an autopsy was to be conducted to determine the cause of death. A spokesperson for the Penn family confirmed the actor's passing and released a statement saying that Penn's family "would appreciate the media's respect of their privacy during this difficult time." The son of director Leo Penn and actress Eileen Ryan, Penn was the younger brother of Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn and musician Michael Penn, and began his acting career in the early 80s, appearing in such films as Rumble Fish, All the Right Moves, and Footloose; he appeared alongside his brother in the 1986 film At Close Range. Penn went on to specialize in working-class character roles, achieving fame for his portrayal of Nice Guy Eddie Cabot in Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs as well as such films as Short Cuts, The Funeral (for which he received an Independent Spirit Award nomination), and Mulholland Falls. Most recently, he appeared in the film version of Starsky & Hutch as well as episodes of TV series Entourage and Everwood, and his latest film, The Darwin Awards, was slated for a premiere Wednesday night at the Sundance Film Festival. --Prepared by IMDb Staff »

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2 articles from 2006