“Goodbye” William Holden Died 12 November 1981

William Holden (April 17, 1918 – November 12, 1981) was an American actor and one of the most popular and well known movie stars of all time. Holden won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1953 for his role in Stalag 17, and a Prime time Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor for his role in the 1973 television film The Blue Knight.

Holden starred in some of the most popular films of all time, including Sunset Boulevard, The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Wild Bunch, The Towering Inferno, and Network.

He died as the result of a fall in his apartment on the seaside cliffs of Santa Monica, California in November 1981. Holden was alone and heavily intoxicated when he apparently slipped, gashed his head on a table and bled to death. Evidence suggests he was conscious for at least a half an hour after the fall but may not have realized the severity of the injury and didn’t summon aid. His body was found on November 16, but forensic and other evidence suggested he had been dead for several days and most likely died on November 12.