You may define “artist” as broadly as you wish. Obviously the lamented Mr. Jackson does not qualify.
Heath Ledger & Kurt Cobain are the first names that came to mind.
Also came in to post Heath Ledger. Died shortly before his most successful movie (and probably would have stayed his most successful if he lived) was released. If that’s not the height of success, I don’t know what is.
How about James Dean? He only made a few movies before he died (was it only three, or something?).
Please add Glenn Miller and James Dean to the list.
I would think that Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison would all qualify, though some may argue about the trajectory of thier careers at the time of thier deaths (probably Morrison in particular)…
Oh, and Buddy Holly.
Rudolph Valentino was another one. His funeral caused unprecedented chaos in NYC. The studio was in a panic to find a replacement to fill his “Latin lover” niche. I believe they settled on Ramon Navarro, but the magic wasn’t there.
Along the same lines was Carlos Gardel, who died in a 1934 plane crash in Colombia. He was a huge international singing and acting star, who made films in Argentina, France and the US. His funeral brought Buenos Aires to a halt for days.
Along with Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper.
Selena
Hank Williams was a bit of a mess when he died, but I gather he was a bit of a mess all along and it isn’t clear to me that his talents had declined.
:smack: George Gershwin!
John Belushi
The man was thrown out of the Grand Ole Opry for being too drunk. That in and of itself is an achievement.
If we can include athletes, Sean Taylor comes to mind. The hit he put on Brian Moorman in the Pro Bowl was art.
Oh, and Jeff Buckley.
John Lennon was shot a month after releasing his first album in five years.
I don’t know that I’d call that the height of his fame. The height of his fame has to be with the Beatles. I’m not calling him a has-been at the time of the death, or even someone who, like MJ, was trying to build a comeback; but Lennon was hardly on top of the world when he died.
Jim Croce.
Freddie Prinze. He was the star of “Chico and the Man” and a wildly successful stand-up comedian who frequently appeared on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and on Dean Martin’s celebrity roasts. Four months before his death he signed a develpment deal with NBC worth $6 million over 5 years. He died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound on January 28, 1977. His death was originally ruled a suicide, but later was ruled an accidental death due to the influence of Quaaludes.
Would you recognize career suicide as a legit form of death?