River Phoenix

The song "Transcending" on the Red Hot Chili Peppers album "One Hot Minute" is dedicated to River Phoenix.

Sings a song on John Frusciante s album "Smile from the Streets You Hold."

(October 1997) Ranked #86 in Empire magazines "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list.

The 1994 R.E.M. album "Monster" is dedicated to River in the liner notes--he was friends with lead singer Michael Stipe.

Born at 12.10 pm-PDT

Was supposed to begin work on Neil Jordans Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles two weeks after his death. He was to play Daniel Molloy, the interviewer, which then went to Christian Slater , who donated his entire $250,000 salary to two of Phoenixs favorite charitable organizations: Earth Save and Earth Trust. The film has a dedication to Phoenix after the end credits.

He was almost definitely set to star as Izzy Singer in Safe Passage . Sean Astin got the part after Rivers death.

Brother of Joaquin Phoenix , Summer Phoenix , Rain Phoenix and Liberty Phoenix.

Was a vegan.

Natalie Merchant wrote a song, "River," which is in his memory. In addition, her song "Carnival" was inspired by him.

His date to Johnny Depp s club the evening he died was actress Samantha Mathis.

Listed as one of twelve "Promising New Actors of 1986" in John Willis Screen World, Vol. 38.

Ashes scattered at familys Florida Ranch.

The famous Brazilian singer and songwriter Milton Nascimento wrote a song called "River Phoenix (Carta a Um Jovem Ator)" ("Letter to a Young Actor" in English) in 1988. Milton was quite impressed with Rivers performances in The Mosquito Coast and Stand by Me , and he decided to write a song in reverence of his talent. When he got to know about the song, he came to Brazil and spent some days in Milton Nascimentos country home. After that first contact, they became good friends. In the track "Curi Curi" (Tsaqu Waipi) from Nascimentos album "Txai" that was released in 1990, River reads a speech written by him protesting the destruction of the Amazon and betrayal of its people.

Born in a log cabin in Oregon.

He disliked flying and traveled everywhere by car or by train.

Nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his work in Sidney Lumet s Running on Empty , Phoenix lost out to Kevin Kline for his performance in A Fish Called Wanda . At the time of the Academy Awards ceremony in March, 1989, Kline and Phoenix were filming the movie I Love You to Death . Sitting in the audience, Phoenix applauded enthusiastically when his co-stars name was announced as the winner.

Phoenix, whod been playing the guitar since childhood, had his own band with his sister, Rain Phoenix , called Alekas Attic.

My Own Private Idaho director (and close friend of River) Gus Van Sant published a novel in 1997 titled "Pink," which is a loosely disguised fantasy homage to his late friend. Van Sants movie Even Cowgirls Get the Blues includes a dedication of to River during the opening credits.

River recorded an album the summer before his death titled Never Odd or Even (the title is a palindrome), which was released. A friend of his named Sasa Raphael (who worked with River on the album and played bass in Rivers band Blacksmith Configuration) almost succeeded in making the album available for free download on the Internet in the summer of 2000,on the anniversary of what wouldve been Rivers 30th birthday, but was later sued by the estate of River Phoenix for copyright reasons.

His parents named him River after the river of life in Hermann Hesse s classic spiritual novel "Siddhartha"; and Jude, his middle name, after The Beatles song "Hey, Jude."

Ranked #69 on The 100 Greatest Movie Stars on Channel 4.

The story is apocryphal that Rivers last words were supposedly (to the reporter trying to help him outside the Viper Room) were "No paparazzi, I want anonymity", although the quote has become something of an urban legend. In fact, according to witnesses (which included a nearby paparazzo), River stumbled out of the nightclub and fell hard, face-first, onto the sidewalk (experts believed he likely died at that moment) before spasming violently against the pavement for eight minutes, never having uttered a word. And while that photographer chose not to capture that moment on film, the day before Phoenixs cremation in Florida, a reporter broke into the funeral home, rearranged the body, and took a picture. This picture was later to be sold to the National Enquirer for $5,000.

Was an involved environmentalist and bought up several hundred acres of rain forest in Costa Rica and Brazil, not to develop them, but to just keep them so they would not be cut down.

Rufus Wainwright s song "Matinee Idol" is about him.

Died on the same day as Federico Fellini.

He was a very talented writer, songwriter, and sketch artist. Often wrote songs while he was driving to work.

Is one of only three actors to have played the son of and the younger version of the same actor, by playing Harrison Ford s son and playing young Indiana Jones. The other is Bruno Kirby , who played Richard S. Castellano s son on "The Super" , and the young Clemenza in The Godfather: Part II . Logan Lerman played one of Mel Gibson s sons in The Patriot and the younger Nick Marshall in What Women Want .

Two of his nephews have been posthumously named for him. His sister Liberty Phoenix gave birth to a son named Rio Everest Phoenix. Rio is Spanish for River. His other sister Summer Phoenix gave birth to a son, Indiana Affleck. River played Indiana Jones in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade .

His death is listed as #16 in the top 101 events in E! Televisions 101 Most Shocking Moments in Entertainment.

In total thus far, he has four nephews and one niece. Rio Everest Phoenix-Asch (12 June 1997), Indigo Orion Phoenix-Asch (9 November 1999 - 25 December 2001), Scarlette Jasmine Phoenix-Asch (July 2, 2001) to younger sister Liberty Phoenix , Indiana August Affleck (May 31st, 2004) and Atticus Affleck to youngest sister Summer Phoenix.

The band FenixTX was originally called River Fenix, but due to conflicts with the rights to his name, they were forced to change their name.

Harrison Ford personally recommended him for the part of the young Indy in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade after working with him on The Mosquito Coast . Ford stated that of all the young actors who were working at the time, River was the one who looked the most like himself when he was that age.

Ironically, despite his reputation for healthy living, Phoenix was a chain smoker. Peter Bogdanovich recalled, "Hed say about meat, Thats not good for you, man, thatll kill you. And hed be smoking a cigarette, and hed look at it and say, I know, man, I know."

Anonymous Australian alternative rock band TISM (an acronym of This Is Serious Mum) released a song in 1995 called "(Hell Never Be An) Ol Man River" which dealt with celebrity deaths, specifically with the death of Phoenix and his drug habit which caused it. The main refrain of the song, which reportedly angered members of the Red Hot Chili Peppers , was "Im on the drug that killed River Phoenix".

He and his brother Joaquin Phoenix are the first brothers to be nominated for acting Academy Awards.

Mentioned by Norwegian Pop-Rocker Morten Abel in the song "River Phoenix".

His final performance was in Dark Blood , a film which was abandoned three weeks from completion.

Was fluent in Spanish.

Just a month before his death he had expressed an interest in starring in The Basketball Diaries . His role was subsequently played by Leonardo DiCaprio.

Best friend was Keanu Reeves.

Had a very close bond with Harrison Ford.

Rivers father was born in California. On his fathers side, River had English, and distant German and French, ancestry. Rivers mother was born to an Ashkenazi Jewish family in New York (they were immigrants from Russia and Hungary).

Phoenix had a lazy left eye. This caused him to flutter and blink in order to center the iris. This action is visible in most of his performances. It is most apparent in Silent Tongue, in which he did not attempt to take charge of it at all; feeling that the quality added to the madness of his character.

One of GQs 50 Most Stylish Leading Men of the Past Half Century.

River and his brother Joaquin Phoenix have both played the son of Richard Harris s character: River in Silent Tongue , and Joaquin in Gladiator .

James Cameron has admitted that when he first started thinking about Titanic in the early nineties, he favored River for the lead. By the time the film was made, Leonardo DiCaprio was old enough to take the role.

Phoenix had signed onto the lead role in Broken Dreams, a screenplay written by John Boorman and Neil Jordan (to be directed by Boorman), and co-starring Winona Ryder. The film was put on hold due to Phoenixs death and has yet to be made.

Accepted his role in The Thing Called Love in an effort to both show off his musical abilities (he sang, played his own guitar, and wrote his characters songs) and make the transition from playing youths to adults roles.

Gus Van Sant had gotten Phoenix to agree to play the role of Cleve Jones in Milk when he was originally planning on making the movie in the early 1990s. The role was eventually played by Emile Hirsch in 2008.

After his death, Gus Van Sant spoke about another collaboration between the two that ended up never happening. He was asked, "You were going to do a movie with River about Andy Warhol , right?" Van Sant said, "Yeah. River kind of looked like Andy in his younger days. But that project never really went forward.".

Appeared in two movies about Espionage that were released the same year: Running on Empty and Little Nikita .

Auditioned for the role of Paul Maclean in A River Runs Through It . He was beaten out by Brad Pitt who got the role.

Campaigned for Bill Clinton in the 1992 US presidential election.

Had embarked on a massive drug binge in the days before his death. He smoked crack cocaine, injected heroin and cocaine, and snorted cocaine.

Born on the same day as Jay Mohr - and eight days before Debbie Gibson.

Animals are not our playthings. We are on this earth to protect them.

I project a definite innocence. A lot of that is just the way I grew up.

They always gave us a fair shot.

In simplicity there is truth.

In Stand by Me (1986) , I realized that what I was creating was,going to live on far longer than anything of me as a person. The,characters are more powerful than the person that creates them.

Vegetarianism is a link to perfection and peace.

When I was old enough to realize all meat was killed, I saw it as an,irrational way of using our power, to take a weaker thing and mutilate,it. It was like the way bullies would take control of younger kids in,the schoolyard.

Acting is like a Halloween mask that you put on.

Music is a whole oasis in my head. The creation process is so personal,and fulfilling.

I have a lot of chameleon qualities, I get very absorbed in my,surroundings.

I would never, never do anything unless I believed in it.

Besides, I could play the same character again and again, in a,different way each time. As many times as I have atoms in my body.

[on "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" (1982) ] I just leaped five,feet into the air. I got all red and freaked out. It was my first,television show.

In simplicity there is truth.

I would never, never do anything unless I believed in it.

Music is a whole oasis in my head. The creation process is so personal and fulfilling.