People surrounding the Frank E. Campbell Funeral Home, where Heath Ledger's body was being held for a private viewing on January 25, was a mass of photographers, police officers, satellite trucks and confused-looking passersby.
Many of them were hoping to catch a glimpse of Heath Ledger's parents, who had reportedly flown in from their native Australia to view the body of their son, who died on Tuesday.
The transport casket for actor Heath Ledger is loaded into a hearse outside the Frank E. Campbell funeral home in New York, Jan. 25, 2008. New York City's medical examiner conducted an autopsy on Ledger on Wednesday and said a cause of death for the film star would be determined in 10 days to two weeks. Ledger, 28, was found on Tuesday face down and naked at the foot of his bed with sleeping pills and other prescription medication nearby, police said, in a death that shocked his family, fans and Hollywood.(photo: Xinhua/Reuters)
Every black sedan that pulled up to the building was greeted with the pop of flashbulbs and a rush of paparazzo, but Ledger's parents were not seen (there were other viewings taking place at the home).
At about 4 p.m., a large pine casket was carried from the funeral home's side entrance by several attendants, and placed into a waiting hearse.
According to MTV news, NYPD officers said that the casket contained Ledger's body, but would not confirm where the hearse was heading. According to several reports, its destination was an area airport, where the actor's body would then be flown back to his hometown of Perth, Australia.
Downtown, outside the apartment building where Ledger died, a much calmer scene was taking place on Friday afternoon.
A makeshift memorial is seen in front of 421 Broome Street in New York, NY, where actor Heath Ledger was found dead in his apartment Jan. 23, 2008.
Outside, flowers, candles, and handmade tributes blanketed the sidewalk as mourners paid their respects and passersby stopped to observe the makeshift memorial.
A crowd of media and other bystanders gather in front of 421 Broome Street in New York Jan. 22, 2008, where actor Heath Ledger was found dead in his apartment.
A couple of blocks away from the building is a Caribbean restaurant called the Brawta Caribbean Café. Restaurant owner Jennifer Ewers said Ledger was a regular. Ledger would sit at a table near the window, where he enjoyed his usual order of jerk chicken, rice and peas, and steamed cabbage. Ewers said he also would order Sorrel, a red-colored drink with medicinal properties that Ledger had grown to like after a waitress had recommended it. Ledger and his two-year-old daughter used to play hide-and-seek outside the restaurant.
"He was always pleasant, always smiling," Ewers said. "He would walk down the street like a normal person. He was just a guy in the neighborhood."
(Agencies via Xinhua January 28, 2008)
