Denise Truscello/WireImage
In this photo from the Hard Rock Hotel in 2002, Brittany Murphy with then-boyfriend Ashton Kutcher and Danny Masterson and Wilmer Valderrama of That ‘70s Show.
Sunday, Dec. 20, 2009 | 4:31 p.m.
Sun Coverage
The death of Brittany Murphy this morning at age 32 was a shock to one of her closer friends in Las Vegas, Tricia McCrone, the sister-in-law and publicist of Wayne Newton.
According to reports, Murphy was found unconscious in her shower at her Hollywood Hills home today at 8 a.m. by her mother, Sharon. Efforts to revive Murphy failed, and she was pronounced dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
"I can't believe this. It's terrible, terrible," McCrone said this afternoon, crying during a phone conversation. "Thirty-two-year-old people don't just die. She was like family, like my baby sister."
In a statement issued while he was on holiday vacation in Montana, Newton said: "Brittany has always been a great talent and a great friend. We will all miss her greatly and embrace her family with sincere love and condolence. There is a new star in heaven tonight. We truly loved her."
McCrone heard the news about noon today during a phone call from a common friend of her's and Murphy's, two-time "Dancing With the Stars" champion Cheryl Burke, who danced with Newton on the hit ABC show and also onstage during Newton's gala premiere Oct. 23 at the Tropicana.
McCrone met Murphy about six years ago during one of the USO tours to the Persian Gulf that Murphy participated in as a volunteer. Newton has been the president of the USO's Celebrity Circle since 2001 and has organized the star-studded variety shows since.
Murphy also appeared as a guest on the contest show "The Entertainer," hosted by Newton, a contest among entertainers vying for a headlining gig at the Las Vegas Hilton (the song-and-dance man Delisco won the title) in 2005. Murphy and McCrone attended the opening of the Empire Ballroom together in 2005, and Murphy had been a guest of Newton's at fundraisers for the Lupus Foundation of America and Hurricane Katrina relief.
In October, Murphy was scheduled to appear at Newton's opening at the Tropicana but could not attend because she accompanied her husband, Simon Monjack, on a doctor's appointment.
McCrone described Murphy as seeming to be in generally good health. "She never drank. I maybe saw her drink one glass of champagne," McCrone said. "The only thing was, she was so skinny. ... I'm just so, so sad, for her mother. Those two were like the Two Musketeers, us against the world. It's awful."
