# Whitney Houston Dies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 12, 2012, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569 "2012-02-12T01:04:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/161 "2012-02-12T20:23:52Z")
And now they are reporting elsewhere on the internets that Bobbi-Kristina has been rushed to the hospital. Sigh. I hope she’ll be all right. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/162 "2012-02-12T20:43:42Z")
I just read a headline that “Lorazepam and Valium Found In Whitney Houston’s Hotel Room.” Turns out those are just the names of her personal assistants. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/163 "2012-02-12T21:09:09Z")
I see [David Kelly](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Kelly_%28actor%29) also toddled off. He had a decent innings however. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/164 "2012-02-12T21:22:55Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > You know, this is a great point. As I thought about it more, it’s not that I don’t like Whitney Houston, it’s that I don’t like her _songs._ There’s a difference. I do appreciate the vocal range and power that she had - but I hate all of her big popular songs because of the arrangement, as you said, the cheesy 80s production. And I don’t love slow ballads either. With _I Will Always Love You_ there was the great advantage of songwriting by Dolly Parton; but there you have the slow ballad thing going. > [@drm](#): > > Ain’t cocaine’s fault (or Crack’s or whatever). Or Bobby Browns. Specially the Bobby Brown thing. She was an adult going into that relationship. Sure, codependency is a terrible thing but it’s COdependency, meaning the parties are in it together. Y’know, some stars do the fast burnout (Winehouse, Cobain, Morrison). Some live long and either prosper or fade away (name any 70something 1960s star). Some even outlive expectation (Keith Richards, Jerry Lee Lewis). But others kind of hold on for a while as we all hope for the known talent to gel into a comeback, only to have the demons catch up in the backstretch (Elvis, Michael, Whitney). ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/165 "2012-02-12T21:37:20Z")
Because of **Hippy Hollow** , I will be singing “How Will I Know?” for the rest of the day and into the night. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/166 "2012-02-12T21:39:36Z")
The last photos of Whitney as she drank and partied at the hotel bar the night before her death. > **[Last days of a diva: How Whitney argued with X-Factor star over Ray J days...](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2100025/Whitney-Houston-news-How-argued-Ray-J-days-death.html)** > > Just two days before her tragic death, the star performed at a Hollywood Grammy party where she appeared 'wasted and 'moody' before arguing with former X-factor contestant Stacy Francis. I think this was a fairly normal night for Whitney. I wouldn’t be surprised if her death was from heart failure or other natural causes. That kind of hard drinking lifestyle can burn anybody out after a few years. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/167 "2012-02-12T22:00:17Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > I see [David Kelly](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Kelly_%28actor%29) also toddled off. He had a decent innings however. The one-armed dishwasher! ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/168 "2012-02-12T22:03:44Z")
[Bobby Brown sobs for Whitney onstage.](http://entertainment.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/02/12/10386276-bobby-brown-sobs-for-whitney-onstage) I find this to be utterly shocking. Not that Bobby would sob for Whitney, but that he was actually on a stage somewhere. I had no idea… ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/169 "2012-02-12T22:10:20Z")
Whitney is almost exactly six months older than I am. Or was. Looking at those last pictures reminds me of my “worst for wear” nights. Believe me, I partied hard. I guess the difference between life and death is that I realized a decade ago that continuing to do that was going to kill me. Plus I didn’t do crack. Crack kills. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/170 "2012-02-12T22:46:07Z")
Here’s another example of Whitney [singing like a motherfuck](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19LPgLKrgLE). Cheesiness aside, “I Have Nothing” displays once more just how amazing this woman’s voice was. On top of which, as is made clear by her owning the shit out of the Star Spangled Banner, this is a woman who needs not studio magic. Do you know how many people I would strangle to be able to sing half as beautifully? 810. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/171 "2012-02-12T22:50:13Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > [Bobby Brown sobs for Whitney onstage.](http://entertainment.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/02/12/10386276-bobby-brown-sobs-for-whitney-onstage) > > I find this to be utterly shocking. Not that Bobby would sob for Whitney, but that he was actually on a stage somewhere. I had no idea… And had a not-too-shabby crowd. I wonder if any came just to see what he’d say about Whitney. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/172 "2012-02-12T23:14:41Z")
Her daughter has [been taken to the hospital](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/whitney-houston-death-daughter-hospital-289730) today. No word on why or if she’s been admitted; she was apparently at the same hotel where Whitney died. ---
**Author:** ![Imasquare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Imasquare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Imasquare)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2012, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/173 "2012-02-13T00:10:17Z")
> [@fusoya](#): > > Why does everyone keep blaming Bobby Brown for her death? She was old enough to make her OWN bad choices. Do people still blame Mary Kate Olsen for Heath Ledger’s death? > > God I hate that Bodyguard song. Now its gonna be EVERYWHERE again… Yeah I think that’s her worst song, for me anyway. Her best was her first - _Saving All My Love For You_ which never seems to get airplay anymore. It seems from latest reports that illegal drugs were not found in the room. They think she may fallen asleep in the bathtub after taking prescription medication. Not necessarily an overdose either. I’ve taken Xanax before and it made me very sleepy. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2012, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/174 "2012-02-13T00:53:57Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > If Al and the Rev both die in the same car crash who will speak on their behalf? Oprah? She had an amazing set of pipes. My church Choir director, a woman more at home with Tony Bennett and Mel Torme, was speaking with great admiration this morning about Whitney’s range and her ability to jump from one end of it to the other (three octaves or so) without a hitch. ---
**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2012, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/175 "2012-02-13T01:16:09Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > And had a not-too-shabby crowd. I wonder if any came just to see what he’d say about Whitney. He earns a decent living doing concerts. ---
**Author:** ![SaharaTea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@SaharaTea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SaharaTea)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2012, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/176 "2012-02-13T02:25:10Z")
> [@ryobserver](#): > > I don’t recall seeing the video of “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” before. Damn, was she really that young once? _Whitney_ was one of the first albums I ever owned, and I have vivid memories of dancing around my bedroom to that song when I was 9 years old. ☹ I can see why people blame Bobby Brown for her troubles, because it does seem like she was a completely different person after she married him. But it’s important to remember that the “girl next door” image in the 80s was something carefully crafted by Clive Davis. She had been divorced from Bobby for years and had plenty of opportunities to clean up her act. What a waste. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2012, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/177 "2012-02-13T02:43:38Z")
All those people around her and no one staged and intervention. Sad > [@](#): > > Whitney Houston was in bad shape in the days before her death, reports say > The sudden death of troubled superstar Whitney Houston was a shock to many, but not to all. In fact, there were multiple reports that Houston, who had a long history of drug and alcohol abuse, was behaving erratically in the days preceding her death on Saturday. > > The Los Angeles Times reported that Houston appeared out of it at Thursday rehearsals for Sunday’s Grammy Awards telecast. The paper said Houston, 48, “appeared disheveled in mismatched clothes and hair that was dripping wet with either sweat or water” when she showed up to offer advice to younger singers Brandy and Monica, who would be performing on the awards show. > > Houston was also “skipping around the [hotel] ballroom in a child-like fashion and wandering aimlessly about the lobby” and was even “doing handstands by the pool,” the L.A. Times reported. > > The singer’s breath also smelled of liquor and cigarettes at that rehearsal, an unnamed source told the Associated Press. > **[Whitney Houston was in bad shape in the days before her death, reports say](https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/whitney-houston-was-in-bad-shape-in-the-days-before-her-death-reports-say)** > > The sudden death of troubled superstar Whitney Houston was a shock to many, but not to all. ---
**Author:** ![JpnDude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/838e76/32.png) [@JpnDude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JpnDude)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2012, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/178 "2012-02-13T04:38:59Z")
It’s such a shame what her life became towards the end. I was never a big fan of “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” or “I Will Always Love You” or even “Greatest Love of All”. However, “All at Once” and “One Moment in Time” still bring tears to my eyes. I have lots of old school memories involving her music. RIP Whitney. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2012, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/179 "2012-02-13T05:11:22Z")
Some drug dealer is gonna default on his car note… ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2012, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/180 "2012-02-13T15:48:29Z")
Whitney herself long ago pointed out that her 80’s image should not confused with her true personality. Anyone who blames Bobby for her demise has simply bought into the innocent pop princess storyline that Clive Davis sold to the masses. I feel bad for Bobby. Not only does he have to deal with the death of his ex (whom he loved like crazy), but he has to deal with people pointing fingers at him. I hope he doesn’t fall back into addiction because of this and then follow in her footsteps. What made Whitney unforgettable was that she was just as talented as she was beautiful. It makes absolutely no sense for someone to be doubly gifted like she was. I take it as further evidence that nature is random, because why would an intelligent creator concentrate so much impressiveness in one person? It wouldn’t be fair. And I’m not saying this in a jealous way, either. It’ll be long ass time before the world sees another Whitney. IWAL was a masterpiece, I thought. Just because it was overplayed doesn’t change that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569.md?page=10)