BRITTANY Murphy fans were left in shock when the actress suddenly died aged just 32 in 2009.
Her tragic death left her father Angelo Bertolotti heartbroken right up until he passed away himself.
Who was Brittany Murphy’s father Angelo?
Born in 1927, Angelo was a World War 11 veteran, who later worked as a mortician.
Before his death, Angelo told The Sun he was living penniless and surviving on government handouts, living in a tiny two-bedroom apartment in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles.
He married his ex-wife, and Brittany’s mom, Sharon in 1979.
However they went on to divorce when the actress was just two-years-old.
How did he die?
Angelo’s exact cause of death wasn’t revealed but his family said he had “extensive health problems”.
He passed away in January 2019 aged 92-years-old.
At the time his children, Jeff Bertolotti and Pia Jo Reynolds, confirmed their father died in California..
“Dad passed peacefully yesterday here in Los Angeles,” Pia Jo wrote on Facebook. “Thank you all so much for your prayers, love and beautiful words of encouragement. Please keep them coming as we walk through the next steps.”
His son Jeff said the family made the “excruciating decision” to remove their father from life support after it was clear he wouldn’t be “able to roll out of this extensive set of health problems. Anything short of letting him go would be cruel.”
Aneglo’s death came nearly a decade after his daughter Brittany collapsed in her Hollywood home and died on December 20, 2009, at age 32.
The Clueless actress’ cause of death was concluded by the Los Angeles Coroner’s office to be pneumonia and anemia.
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What did he say about Brittany Murphy’s death?
In 2019 Angelo told The Sun on his death bed he’d “given up on the truth”ever being revealed of how Brittany really died.
He exclusively revealed that he had to give up a legal fight against the Los Angeles Coroners Court to get her body exhumed and find out the true cause of death.
He spent all his money to find out the truth, but without success. He relied on his military pension to fund his hospital bills, and was cared for around the clock.
“I have no idea what happened, I wish I did. I think about my daughter a lot, think about the nice times we’ve had together. But I’ve lost hope,’” Angelo told us.
“I still don’t know who’s responsible for her death – it makes me feel pretty, well, very bad. I thought I’d solved it, but I was getting a lot of publicity from it, and I had to back off from it.
“I kept in touch with the situation as long as I could, but we need Sharon. I’ve not seen her for years, she’s disappeared somewhere, no one knows.”
The heartbroken father even admitted that he wished he was the one who was dead, as an old Vietnam War injury had left him an invalid.
“It’s difficult for me, as I’ve outlived everyone around me. A lot of people I know have passed away first. I live the best I can, but the government are very good to me. I don’t really speak to anyone, it’s a cruel situation,” he said.