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After completing his sixth feature film, [[Sidney Lumet]]'s ''[[Running on Empty (1988 film)|Running on Empty]]'' (1988) the family made their last move to [[Micanopy]], near [[Gainesville]], Florida in 1987.
After completing his sixth feature film, [[Sidney Lumet]]'s ''[[Running on Empty (1988 film)|Running on Empty]]'' (1988) the family made their last move to [[Micanopy]], near [[Gainesville]], Florida in 1987.


In early 1989, Phoenix was nominated for an [[Academy Awards|Oscar]] for [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]] (as well as for a [[Golden Globe]]) and received the Best Supporting Actor honor from the [[National Board of Review]] for his role in [[Running on Empty (1988 film)|Running on Empty]]''.
In early 1989, Phoenix was nominated for an [[Academy Awards|Oscar]] for [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]] (as well as for a [[Golden Globe]]) and received the Best Supporting Actor honor from the [[National Board of Review]] for his role in [[Running on Empty (1988 film)|Running on Empty]]''. That year he also portrayed a young Indiana Jones in the box-office hit ''[[Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade]]''.


Phoenix met actor [[Keanu Reeves]] while Reeves was filming ''[[Parenthood]]'' with Phoenix's brother, Joaquin. The two would star together for the first time (along with [[Kevin Kline]], [[Tracey Ullman]] and [[Joan Plowright]]) in 1990's ''[[I Love You to Death]]'' and again in [[Gus Van Sant]]'s avant-garde film ''[[My Own Private Idaho]]''. For his role in ''My Own Private Idaho'', Phoenix won Best Actor honors at the [[Venice Film Festival]], the [[National Society of Film Critics]] and the [[Independent Spirit Awards]]. The film and its success solidified Phoenix's image as an actor with edgy, leading man potential. Just prior to ''My Own Private Idaho'', he filmed an acclaimed independent picture called ''[[Dogfight (film)|Dogfight]]'' co-starring [[Lili Taylor]] and directed by [[Nancy Savoca]], in which Phoenix portrayed a young U.S. Marine on the night prior to his being shipped off to Vietnam in November 1963.
Phoenix met actor [[Keanu Reeves]] while Reeves was filming ''[[Parenthood]]'' with Phoenix's brother, Joaquin. The two would star together for the first time (along with [[Kevin Kline]], [[Tracey Ullman]] and [[Joan Plowright]]) in 1990's ''[[I Love You to Death]]'' and again in [[Gus Van Sant]]'s avant-garde film ''[[My Own Private Idaho]]''. For his role in ''My Own Private Idaho'', Phoenix won Best Actor honors at the [[Venice Film Festival]], the [[National Society of Film Critics]] and the [[Independent Spirit Awards]]. The film and its success solidified Phoenix's image as an actor with edgy, leading man potential. Just prior to ''My Own Private Idaho'', he filmed an acclaimed independent picture called ''[[Dogfight (film)|Dogfight]]'' co-starring [[Lili Taylor]] and directed by [[Nancy Savoca]], in which Phoenix portrayed a young U.S. Marine on the night prior to his being shipped off to Vietnam in November 1963.

Revision as of 17:10, 21 September 2010

River Phoenix
At the 61st Academy Awards; Governor's House, March 29, 1989
Born
River Jude Bottom

(1970-08-23)August 23, 1970
Metolius, Oregon, United States
DiedOctober 31, 1993(1993-10-31) (aged 23)
Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupation(s)Actor, musician, activist
Years active1982-1993

River Jude Phoenix (August 23, 1970 – October 31, 1993) was an American film actor. He was listed on John Willis' Screen World, Vol. 38 as one of 12 "promising new actors of 1986" and was hailed as highly talented by such critics as Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel. On Halloween morning, 1993, Phoenix died of a drug overdose on the sidewalk outside the West Hollywood nightclub the Viper Room.[1] He was the oldest sibling of actors Rain Phoenix, Joaquin Phoenix, Liberty Phoenix and Summer Phoenix.

Early life

Phoenix was born as River Jude Bottom on August 23, 1970, in Madras, Oregon, the first child of Arlyn Sharon Dunetz and John Lee Bottom.[2] Phoenix's parents named him after the river of life from the Hermann Hesse novel Siddhartha, and he received his middle name from The Beatles' song "Hey Jude".[3]

In an interview with People, Phoenix described his parents as "hippieish".[2] His mother was born in The Bronx, New York, to Jewish parents who had emigrated from Hungary and Russia.[4][5] His father was a lapsed Catholic from Fontana, California,[4] and had a daughter from a previous relationship, Jodene, who later changed her name to Trust. In 1968, Phoenix's mother left her family in New York City and travelled across the United States, meeting John Lee Bottom while hitchhiking in northern California. They married on September 13, 1969, less than one year after meeting. In 1973, the family joined a religious cult called the Children of God as missionaries. While living in Crockett, Texas, their second child Rain Joan of Arc Bottom was born on November 21, 1972. Their third child was born on October 28, 1974, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, as Joaquin Rafael Bottom.[6]

On July 5, 1976, Libertad Mariposa Bottom was born, while the family had settled in Caracas, Venezuela, where the Children of God had stationed them to work as missionaries and fruit gatherers. Although John Bottom was later designated the cult's "Archbishop of Venezuela and the Caribbean", their family received no financial support from the group and lived in poverty. Phoenix often played guitar while he and Rain sang on street corners for money and food to support their ever-growing family.

Arlyn and John eventually grew disillusioned with the Children of God; Arlyn would later tell a journalist that she and her husband were opposed to the cult's practice of Flirty Fishing, stating: "The group was being distorted by the leader, David Berg, who was getting powerful and wealthy. He sought to attract rich disciples through sex. No way."[7]

Fearing the cult was moving in a negative direction, the Bottom family left the group and stayed for a period with a church in Venezuela. It was during the last years in South America that the entire Phoenix family converted to veganism, encouraged by River and Joaquin, who had witnessed local fishermen's methods of killing their catch.[8]

The family eventually made the trip back to the United States by stowing away on a cargo ship. Upon their return, they moved in with Phoenix's maternal grandparents in Florida. On December 10, 1978, Summer Joy Bottom was born in Winter Park, Florida, being the youngest child of her family. On April 2, 1979, the family officially changed their name to Phoenix, after the mythical bird that rises from its own ashes, symbolizing a new beginning.[9]

Acting career

In Los Angeles, Arlyn Phoenix was working for a casting agent at NBC. She managed to secure her talented brood a meeting with top kids' agent Iris Burton, who was so charmed by the family that she agreed to take on all five Phoenix children.

In 1980, Phoenix began to fully pursue his work as an actor, making his first appearance on a TV show called Fantasy singing with his sister Rain.[6] In 1982, River was cast in the NBC short-lived TV series, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, in which he starred as the youngest brother, Guthrie McFadden. River, who arrived at the auditions with his guitar, promptly burst into a convincing Elvis Presley impersonation, charming the show producer.[10]

It would be almost a year after Seven Brides for Seven Brothers ended in 1983 that River would find a new role in the 1984 made-for-TV movie Celebrity, where he played the part of young Jeffie Crawford. Although he was only on screen for about ten minutes, his character was a central role.[11] Less than a month after Celebrity came the after school show Backwards: The Riddle of Dyslexia. River starred as a young boy who discovers he has dyslexia. Joaquin starred in a small role alongside his brother.

In September, the pilot episode of the short-lived TV series It's Your Move aired. River was cast as Brian and only has one line of dialogue. He also starred as Robert Kennedy's son, Robert Kennedy, Jr. in the TV movie Robert Kennedy and His Times.

When River's role in Dyslexia was critically acclaimed, he was almost immediately cast as a major role in his next made-for-TV movie, Surviving: A Family in Crisis. River starred as Philip Brogan alongside Molly Ringwald and the late Heather O'Rourke. This would be his last TV performance before he began starring in films. It would be halfway during the filming of Surviving that Iris Burton would contact him about a possible role in the film Explorers.[12]

In October 1984, River was informed that he had been cast as the geeky boy-scientist Wolfgang Müller in Joe Dante's large-budget science-fiction film Explorers and production began soon after. This was River's first major motion picture role.

He had significant juvenile roles in Rob Reiner's coming of age picture Stand By Me (1986) which first brought Phoenix to public prominence; Peter Weir's The Mosquito Coast (1986), where Phoenix played the son of Harrison Ford's character; A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon (1988); and Little Nikita (1988) alongside Sidney Poitier.

During this time, the Phoenix family would continue to move on a regular basis and would notch up over forty moves by the time Phoenix was 18. After completing his sixth feature film, Sidney Lumet's Running on Empty (1988) the family made their last move to Micanopy, near Gainesville, Florida in 1987.

In early 1989, Phoenix was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor (as well as for a Golden Globe) and received the Best Supporting Actor honor from the National Board of Review for his role in Running on Empty. That year he also portrayed a young Indiana Jones in the box-office hit Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Phoenix met actor Keanu Reeves while Reeves was filming Parenthood with Phoenix's brother, Joaquin. The two would star together for the first time (along with Kevin Kline, Tracey Ullman and Joan Plowright) in 1990's I Love You to Death and again in Gus Van Sant's avant-garde film My Own Private Idaho. For his role in My Own Private Idaho, Phoenix won Best Actor honors at the Venice Film Festival, the National Society of Film Critics and the Independent Spirit Awards. The film and its success solidified Phoenix's image as an actor with edgy, leading man potential. Just prior to My Own Private Idaho, he filmed an acclaimed independent picture called Dogfight co-starring Lili Taylor and directed by Nancy Savoca, in which Phoenix portrayed a young U.S. Marine on the night prior to his being shipped off to Vietnam in November 1963.

Phoenix teamed up with Redford and again with Sidney Poitier for the conspiracy/espionage thriller Sneakers (1992). A month later he would begin production on Sam Shepard's art-house, ghost western Silent Tongue (which would be released in 1994). He then appeared in Peter Bogdanovich's country music-themed film, The Thing Called Love (1993), the last completed picture before his death.

Regarded by critics at the time as one of the most promising young actors on the cusp of the '80s and '90s,[citation needed] River and younger brother Joaquin would later go on to become the first brothers in Hollywood history to be nominated for an Oscar in the acting categories.

Music

Although Phoenix's movie career was generating most of the income for his family, it has been stated by close friends and relatives that his true passion was music. Phoenix was a singer, song writer and an accomplished guitarist. He had begun teaching himself guitar at the age of five and had stated in an interview for E! in 1988 that his family's move to Los Angeles when he was nine was made so that he and his sister "... could become recording artists. I fell into commercials for financial reasons and acting became an attractive concept ..." Prior to securing an acting agent, Phoenix and his siblings had attempted to forge a career in music by playing cover songs on the streets of the Westwood district of LA, often being moved along by police because of the gathering crowds who obstructed the pavement.

Whilst working on A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon in 1986, Phoenix had written and recorded a song, "Heart to Get," specifically for the end credits of the movie. 20th Century Fox cut it from the completed film, but director William Richert put it back into place for his director's cut some years later. It was during filming that Phoenix met Chris Blackwell of Island Records, this meeting would later secure Phoenix a two-year development deal with the label. Phoenix disliked the idea of being a solo artist and relished collaboration and so focused on putting together a band. Aleka's Attic were formed in 1987 and the line up included his sister Rain.[13] Phoenix was committed to gaining credibility by his own merit and so he maintained that the band would not use his name when securing performances that were not benefits for charitable organizations. Phoenix's first release was 'Across the Way,' co-written with band mate Josh McKay, which was released in 1989 on a benefit album for PETA titled "Tame Yourself." In 1991 River wrote and recorded a spoken word piece called "Curi Curi" for Milton Nascimento's album TXAI. Also in 1991 the Aleka's Attic track "Too Many Colors" was lent to the soundtrack of Gus Van Sant's My Own Private Idaho a film which included Phoenix in a starring role. In 1996 the Aleka's Attic track Note To A Friend was released on the 1996 benefit album In Defense Of Animals; Volume II and featured Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers on bass.

Phoenix had collaborated with friend John Frusciante after his first departure from Red Hot Chili Peppers and the songs "Height Down" and "Well I've Been" were released on Frusciantes second solo album Smile From The Streets You Hold in 1997. The title track may also be an ode to Phoenix.

Phoenix was an investor in the original House of Blues (founded by his good friend and Sneakers co-star Dan Aykroyd) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which opened its doors to the public after serving a group of homeless people on Thanksgiving Day 1992.[14][dead link]

Activism

Phoenix was a dedicated animal rights, environmental and political activist. He was a prominent spokesperson for PETA and won their Humanitarian award in 1990 for his fund-raising efforts.[15] Also in 1990, for Earth Day, Phoenix wrote an environmental awareness essay targeted at his young fanbase, which was printed in Seventeen magazine. He financially aided a slew of environmental and humanitarian organizations and bought 800 acres (320 ha) of endangered rainforest in Costa Rica.[16]

As well as giving speeches at rallies for various groups, he and his band often played environmental benefits for well known charities and also that of local ones around Gainesville, Florida.[17]

Death

Prior to his death, Phoenix's image — one he bemoaned in interviews — had been squeaky-clean, due in part to the public discussion of his various social, political, humanitarian and dietary interests not always popular in the 1980s; as a result, his death elicited a vast amount of coverage from the media at the time. To this day, most family and friends remain silent on the subject.[18]

The Viper Room on Sunset Strip

On the evening of October 30, 1993, Phoenix was to perform with his close friend Michael "Flea" Balzary from the Red Hot Chili Peppers onstage at the Viper Room, a Hollywood night club partly owned at the time by actor Johnny Depp.[19] Phoenix had returned to Los Angeles early that week from Utah to complete the three weeks of interior shots left on his last (and, uncompleted) project Dark Blood.[20] His younger sister Rain and brother Joaquin had flown out to join him at his hotel. Phoenix's girlfriend Samantha Mathis had also come to meet him, and all would be present at the scene of Phoenix's death.[21]

At some point in the evening, Phoenix went to the bathroom to take drugs with various friends and dealers.[22] It is frequently reported that an acquaintance or dealer offered him Persian Brown (a powerful form of heroin mixed with methamphetamine, which is commonly snorted), however his autopsy report revealed no traces of methamphetamine in his system, but rather cocaine, morphine and diazepam (Heroin metabolizes to Morphine and shows up as such in the blood).[23] Soon after consuming a combination of heroin and cocaine he became ill, and somebody reportedly gave him diazepam as it is commonly used to counter-act the effects of a stimulant overdose. However, because he had consumed heroin the treatment is thought to have been counter productive.[22] During the early morning hours of October 31, 1993, Phoenix collapsed outside the club from a drug overdose of heroin and cocaine (known as a speedball) further amplified by the administration of diazepam. He convulsed for five minutes. When his brother Joaquin called 9-1-1, he was unable to determine whether River was breathing. Sister Rain Phoenix proceeded to give mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to no avail.[citation needed]

During the episode, Johnny Depp and his band P (featuring Flea and Phoenix's friend Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers) were onstage. According to Haynes the band was in the middle of their song, "Michael Stipe", which includes the line "but we didn't have a part, not a piece of our heart, not Michael, River Phoenix or Flea or me.", while Phoenix was outside the venue having seizures on the sidewalk.[dubious – discuss][24] When the news filtered through the club, Flea left the stage and rushed outside. Paramedics had arrived on the scene and found Phoenix in a flatline state, and they administered drugs in an attempt to restart his heart. He was rushed to the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, accompanied by Flea, via an ambulance. Further attempts to resuscitate Phoenix (including the insertion of a pacemaker) were unsuccessful. He was pronounced dead at 1:51 a.m. PST on the morning of October 31, 1993.[25]

The following day the club became a makeshift shrine with fans and mourners leaving flowers, pictures and candles on the sidewalk and graffiti messages on the walls of the venue.[26] A sign was placed in the window that read, "With much respect and love to River and his family, The Viper Room is temporarily closed. Our heartfelt condolences to all his family, friends and loved ones. He will be missed".[27] The club remained closed for a week. Depp continued to close the club every year on October 31 until selling his share in 2004.[28]

Phoenix's death (and the idolisation of celebrities who die young) was the subject of the 1995 song "(He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River" by Melbourne band TISM.

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1985 Explorers Wolfgang Müller Young Artist Award for Exceptional Performance by a Young Actor - Motion Picture
1986 Stand by Me Chris Chambers Jackie Coogan Award shared with Wil Wheaton, Corey Feldman and Jerry O'Connell
The Mosquito Coast Charlie Fox Young Artist Award for Best Young Male Superstar in Motion Pictures
1988 A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon Jimmy Reardon Alternative title: Aren't You Even Gonna Kiss Me Goodbye?
Little Nikita Jeff Grant Alternative title: The Sleepers
Running on Empty Danny Pope/Michael Manfield National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor
Nominated - Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture
1989 Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade Young Indiana Jones
1990 I Love You to Death Devo Nod
1991 My Own Private Idaho Mike Waters Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead
National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor
Volpi Cup for Best Actor
Dogfight Eddie Birdlace
1992 Sneakers Carl Arbegast
1993 Dark Blood Boy Incomplete/Unreleased
The Thing Called Love James Wright
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues Pilgrim Uncredited
1994 Silent Tongue Talbot Roe
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1982–1983 Seven Brides for Seven Brothers Guthrie McFadden 21 episodes
Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor in a Drama Series 1984
Nominated - Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor in a New Television Series 1982
1984 Celebrity Jeffie (age 11) Miniseries
ABC Afterschool Special Brian Ellsworth Episode: "Backwards: The Riddle Of Dyslexia"
Nominated - Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor in a Family Film Made for Television shared with Joaquin Phoenix
It's Your Move Brian Episode: "Pilot"
Hotel Kevin Episode: "Tranitions"
1985 Robert Kennedy & His Times Robert Kennedy, Jr. (Part 3) Miniseries
Surviving Philip Brogan Television movie
Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Starring in a Television Special or Mini-Series
Family Ties Eugene Forbes Episode: "My Tutor"
1986 Circle of Violence: A Family Drama Chris Benfield Television movie

Further reading

  • Glatt, John. Lost in Hollywood: The Fast Times and Short Life of River Phoenix. ISBN 1-55611-440-0.
  • Furek, Maxim W. The Death Proclamation of Generation X: A Self-Fulfilling Prophesy of Goth, Grunge and Heroin. ISBN 978-0-595-46319-0.
  • Lawrence, Barry C. In Search of River Phoenix: the Truth Behind the Myth. ISBN 0-9672491-9-8.
  • Robb, Brian J. River Phoenix: a short life. ISBN 0-06-095132-X.

References

  1. ^ Remembering 1993 Gary Kirkland Gainesville Sun - December 26, 1993
  2. ^ a b River's Untimely Death from People (November 15, 1993)
  3. ^ http://www.aleka.org/phoenix/zines/scans/sky_january_1994_b.jpg
  4. ^ a b Pfefferman, Naomi. "JewishJournal.com". JewishJournal.com. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  5. ^ "Ten American showbiz celebrities of Russian descent". Pravda.Ru. 2005-11-18. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  6. ^ a b "Rio's Attic - Timeline of a Phoenix". River-phoenix.org. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  7. ^ "River Phoenix - XFamily - Children of God". XFamily. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  8. ^ http://www.aleka.org/phoenix/zines/scans/Cleo%20May%201992b.jpg
  9. ^ "PREMIERE April 1988". Aleka.org. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  10. ^ "Rio's Attic - Phoenix TV". River-phoenix.org. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  11. ^ "Rio's Attic - Phoenix TV". River-phoenix.org. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  12. ^ "Rio's Attic - Phoenix TV". River-phoenix.org. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  13. ^ "Entertainment | A decade without River Phoenix". BBC News. 2003-10-31. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  14. ^ [1][dead link]
  15. ^ "Biography of River Jude Phoenix". Buzzle.com. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  16. ^ "Actor had business interests in Tampa". Pqasb.pqarchiver.com. 1993-11-02. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  17. ^ "Autopsy Reveals Little on Death of River Phoenix - Page 2 - Los Angeles Times". Articles.latimes.com. 1993-11-02. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  18. ^ http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=CSTB&p_theme=cstb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB4216413198EF0&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM
  19. ^ Schindehette, Susan (1994-01-17). "High Life - Substance Abuse, Stars Behaving Badly, River Phoenix". People.com. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  20. ^ By. "Actor River Phoenix dies - Entertainment News, Film News, Media". Variety. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  21. ^ Levitt, Shellley (1993-11-15). "River's End - Untimely Deaths, River Phoenix". People.com. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  22. ^ a b "The Untimely Death of River Phoenix". Reel Reviews article. Retrieved 2007-04-24.
  23. ^ http://www.franksreelreviews.com/shorttakes/phoenix.htm
  24. ^ Aaron, Charles. "They Came from Hollywood", Spin, 30 July 2007.
  25. ^ Weinraub, Bernard (1993-11-02). "Death of River Phoenix Jolts the Movie Industry". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-06-07.
  26. ^ "The Club Scene, Running on Full After Phoenix's Death, It's Business (Almost) as Usual at L.A. Hot Spots". Pqasb.pqarchiver.com. 1993-11-09. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  27. ^ Weinraub, Bernard (1993-11-02). "Death of River Phoenix Jolts the Movie Industry". NYTimes.com. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  28. ^ "Johnny Depp - Depp Sells His Share Of Viper Room - Contactmusic News". Contactmusic.com. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
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