Actors, Writers, Family Memorialize Ned Vizzini
Renowned authors, celebrities, and family members joined together in mourning the sudden death of New York Times bestselling author Ned Vizzini, who wrote about his struggles with depression.
Vizzini, the author of "It's Kind of a Funny Story," committed suicide Thursday, by jumping off the roof of his parents' home in New York. Now, members of art community are sharing their grief on social media to commemorate the accomplishments and capture the spirit of the 32-year-old New York author.
John Green, author of "Looking for Alaska" and "The Fault in Our Stars," writes:
I knew Ned only a little, and I was always intimidated by him (and competitive, too, no doubt). But he was so generous as a novelist.
— John Green (@realjohngreen) December 20, 2013
John Schwartz from the New York Times writes:
Please tell me the news about the wonderful @Ned_Vizzini is just somebody's idea of a sick joke. One he might have found funny, but still.
— John Schwartz - NYT (@jswatz) December 20, 2013
Actress Emma Roberts writes:
So sad about @ned_vizzini. It's Kind of a Funny Story is such a special book&movie to me. My heart goes out to his family.
— Emma Roberts (@RobertsEmma) December 21, 2013
Daniel Radosh, Daily Show writer, posts:
Touching to see young people naming Ned Vizzini an inspiration. To me he'll always be the brilliant kid who had me looking over my shoulder.
— Daniel Radosh (@danielradosh) December 20, 2013
Journalist Scott Neumyer writes:
@nedhepburn touching tribute to Ned, man. I miss the guy already
— Scott Neumyer (@scottneumyer) December 20, 2013
Vizzini was not shy about sharing his lifelong struggle with depression, and often wrote about it in his works. One of his most famous books that was later adapted into a feature film titled ""It's Kind of a Funny Story" recollects the days he spent in a psychiatric ward of the Brooklyn hospital nearly ten years ago.
As a junior at Stuyvesant High School in Manhattan, Vizzini wrote an article in that was published in The New York Times Magazine called "Teen Angst? Nah!" in which he addressed topics like sex, money, smoking, drinking, and college. Later in his career, he toured college campuses in an effort to openly talk to students about the difficulties in dealing with depression.
Vizzini leaves behind his wife, Sabra Embura, son Felix, along with his mom, dad, brother, and sister.
The talent agency that represents Vizzini according to his website was not immediately available for comment.