Cuyahoga country coroner Frank Miller has issued a report on Harvey Pekar’s July 12th death and ruled it was from natural causes, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. However, the cause of death was given as an accidental overdose of fluoxetine and bupropion (commonly sold as Prozac and Wellbutrin.) Pekar suffered from high blood pressure, asthma and clinical depression, and was undergoing treatment for prostate cancer.
Since his death, Pekar’s place as poet of the common life, and pioneering comics writer has been cemented. He has several posthumous works coming out, including Cleveland, with art by Joseph Remnant.
[Via Kevin Melrose]
Frank Miller?
For real?
We knew about that coroner being named that back when Mr. Pekar first passed! Very funny.
That his death could have possibly been avoided makes me much more sad about the whole thing. He was one of the best this medium ever had. Even when his work wasn’t great, it was wildly innovative at the very least.
Frank Miller once asked to meet Harvey Pekar, and Pekar said “over my dead body”.
Geez. Sometimes the cure is what kills ya.
“accidental overdose of prescribed meds” is the most common celebrity death in the 2010s. There is another every month. Makes me wonder how many non-celebrities die of accidental overdose of prescribed meds. Or is this phrase just code for something else. Michael Jackson, Heath Ledger, Brittany Murphy, Greg Giraldo… the list form the last few years goes on and on.
We’re going to miss you Harvey.
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