The Tragic End Of Comedian John Belushi

John Belushi died on March 5, 1982 at the age of 33 after dosing on heroin and cocain at eh Chateau Marmont, a gloomy, gothic-style hotel that looms over West Hollywood’s famous Sunset Strip

Even though John Belushi's death brought his career as an actor, comedian, and musician to an abrupt end, many who knew him best did not find his death surprising.

Unfortunately, virtually everyone who knew Belushi well could witness his decline in the years before his death. While the "speedball" mix of cocaine and heroin that John Belushi ingested that night in Los Angeles in 1982 may have been the direct cause of his death, the truth is that this tragic end had been anticipated for a very long time. 

John Belushi’s Rise In Comedy

Early on, John Belushi showed an interest in comedy, founding his own group before being invited to join Second City in Chicago, one of the top comedy clubs in the nation. He met Canadian comedian Dan Aykroyd there, who would soon replace Belushi on Saturday Night Live.

Belushi relocated to New York City in 1972, where he spent the following three years working on various projects for National Lampoon. He met Bill Murray and Chevy Chase there.

One of the initial "Not Ready for Prime Time Players" on Lorne Michaels' brand-new late-night comedy series Saturday Night Live in 1975 was Belushi. The Chicago-based comedian Belushi, who is in his 20s, rose to national fame thanks to SNL.

The following few years saw a flurry of movie productions, including National Lampoon's Animal House, which went on to become one of the all-time highest-grossing comedies and is now regarded as a cult classic.

Belushi’s Drug Use Escalated With His Fame

The seeds of how John Belushi died were sewn very soon after his rise began. Stardom did come with a price, and Belushi began abusing cocaine and other drugs to cope with his insecurities and the long hours that came with working in film and television.

His heavy reliance on drugs worsened during the filming of The Blues Brothers.They had a budget in the movie for cocaine for night shoots. John, just loved what it did. It sort of brought him alive at night—that superpower feeling where you start to talk and converse and figure you can solve all the world’s problems.

Belushi was increasingly out of control with his drug use as he grew dissatisfied with the reception to his subsequent two movies, Continental Divide and Neighbors.

The Days Leading Up To His Death

In a drug-induced haze, Belushi spent his final few months wandering the streets of Los Angeles. People claimed that during the last few months of his life, Belushi spent roughly $2,500 per week on his drug habit. The more money he made, the more coke he blew.

Judy, Belushi's six-year-old wife and high school sweetheart, opted to stay in Manhattan rather than travel with him on his last West Coast excursion. She stated, "He started doing cocaine again, and it messed up everything in our life. We had everything working in our favor, but those nasty drugs caused everything to spiral out of control.

Harold Ramis, Belushi’s frequent comedy collaborator, visited his friend during this period and described him as “exhausted” and in a state of “total despair.” He went on to attribute Belushi’s sad emotional state to cocaine. And neither his drug use nor his emotional state would ever get any better.

How John Belushi Died

On February 28, 1982, Belushi checked into Bungalow 3 at the Chateau Marmont, a luxury hotel overlooking the Sunset Strip. Little is known about his movements for the next couple of days.

However, grand jury testimony by SNL writer Nelson Lyon shed light on Belushi’s last few hours. Lyon testified that on March 2, Belushi showed up at his home with Cathy Smith, a Canadian drug dealer he met on the set of SNL.

Lyon claims that Smith administered cocaine injections to Belushi a total of five times that day.He next saw Smith and Belushi on March 4 when they arrived at his home.

At Lyon's house, Smith then gave Belushi three or four narcotic injections.

Smith injected Belushi with a cocktail of cocaine and heroin, otherwise known as a speedball in the club’s office. It turns one into a walking zombie.

Smith drove the three of them back to the bungalow the morning of March 5, and De Niro and comedian Robin Williams dropped by for a brief visit, each helping themselves to some cocaine. Everyone left except for Belushi and Smith.

Smith later reported that, alarmed by the sound of his breathing, she woke Belushi up at about 9:30 AM and asked if he was okay. “Just don’t leave me alone,” he replied. Instead, she left a little past 10 AM to run some errands.

Bill Wallace, Belushi's personal trainer, arrived to the bungalow around noon and entered using his key. Wallace tried to conduct CPR on Belushi after he became unresponsive, but he was unsuccessful.

When the EMTs finally came a short while later, Belushi had already passed away.

A few hours later, Smith returned to the Chateau Marmont where he was briefly detained, interrogated, and then freed.

John Belushi’s cause of death was attributed to acute cocaine and heroin poisoning.

A few months after Belushi’s death, Smith admitted to being with him on his last night and administering the fatal speedball injection during a National Enquirer interview. “I killed John Belushi,” she said. “I didn’t mean to, but I am responsible.”

In March 1983, a grand jury in Los Angeles indicted Smith on 13 counts of distribution of cocaine and heroin and two counts of second-degree murder. Smith entered a no contest plea and was sentenced to 15 months in jail.