The NY Times’ blog has clarification on the scene where Oscar-nominated actor Heath Ledger was found dead, and contrary to previous reports there were no illegal drugs found in Heath’s massive apartment, nor was there even any alcohol. All the police found were prescription medications that were specifically prescribed to him, and according to TMZ the bottles were nearly full, suggesting they were either new prescriptions or were hardly used. The Times reports that “officials… emphasized that no illegal drugs were found in the apartment and that there were no obvious signs of suicide.”

Heath admitted in an interview last year to suffering from insomnia after the grueling preparation for his role as the Joker and turning to Ambien to help him sleep. The prescriptions found in his apartment, according to TMZ, were anti anxiety medications Xanax, Valium and Lorazepam along with sleeping drug Lunesta and sedative Restoril. Again, the bottles were supposedly nearly full.

Yesterday we decided not to report a story that quoted police sources as finding “drug packets” in Heath’s apartment along with a rolled up $20 bill with “traces of narcotics.” It turns out that story was false, according to new information, and that the rolled up $20 bill was just some money Heath had lying around and it didn’t test positive for drugs. The notoriously sketchy Daily Mail called Ledger a heroin addict after the “drug packets” story came out and claimed to have a source that said he spent a month in rehab last year and that his supposed addictions helped hasten the end of his relationship with Michelle Williams. It looks to me like the Daily Mail just made that shit entirely up (I’ve caught them doing it before and they routinely fabricate quotes) and jumped on the news of the “drug packets” as an easy explanation for Ledger’s death.

According to the NY Times, Ledger was snoring loudly and laying face down on the bed with the sheet pulled up to his shoulders at 1 p.m. when his housekeeper went into his bedroom to change a light bulb. The masseuse came in for Heath’s weekly appointment at 2:45 p.m, but did not enter his bedroom until 3:00. She shook him and he did not wake up, so she first called Mary Kate Olsen, who was a friend of Ledger’s, asking her what to do. MK was in California and said she would call some security people she knew to send someone over to help. The masseuse shook Heath again and when he would not wake up she called MK back, and MK told her to call 911. 911 was finally called at 3:26 pm.

The masseuse is said to have tried to perform CPR on Heath, at the urging of the 911 operator, until the paramedics arrived at 3:33 pm. The paramedics used CPR and a defibrillator but were unable to revive him.

You understand why someone would be reluctant to call 911 when a famous person is involved, but the lapse of almost a half an hour between when he was discovered and when emergency services were called seems extreme. It may have been too late for him at that point, but we’ll probably never know.

The initial autopsy was ruled inconclusive. The coroner confirmed that Ledger had pneumonia at the time of his death, although it was ruled out as the definitive cause of death. This is looking a lot like a tragic accident that took an incredibly talented young actor before he even approached his prime.