Science agrees: Rock stars live fast and die young.
British researchers studied a sample of North American and British rock and pop stars and concluded they are more than twice as likely to die a premature death as ordinary citizens.
The team studied 1,064 stars in the “All Time Top 1,000” albums published in 2000. They compared each artist’s age at death with that of European and U.S. citizens of similar backgrounds, sex and ethnicity.
Mark Bellis, leader of the study, said it showed the stereotype of rock stars was true — recreational drugs and alcohol-fueled parties take a toll.
The report found that, between two and 25 years after the onset of fame, the risk of death was two to three times higher for the stars than for us squares.
In all, 100 of the stars studied had died — 7.3 percent of women and 9.6 percent of men. They included Elvis Presley, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix.
The average age of stars who died was 42 for North Americans and 35 for Europeans.
Long-term drug or alcohol problems accounted for over 1 in 4 of the deaths, the study found, and the first years of success were the deadliest.
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Personals was compiled by Alan Leo from Tribune news services and staff reports.
