Belushi was found dead on March 5, 1982, in a bungalow at the Chateau Marmont hotel in West Hollywood. He was 33.
With access to the late John Belushi’s archive, director and writer R. J. Cutler explores the life of the iconic comedian, actor and singer, based on interviews for the book Belushi: A Biography by Tanner Colby.
The film covers Belushi’s early years as one of the original cast members of “Saturday Night Live” up to his tragic death in 1982.
The docu was criticized for omitting Cathy Smith, Belushi’s friend and drug dealer who had served 15 months in state prison for injecting the comedian with a fatal dose of heroin and cocaine.
The film premiered on Showtime on November 22, 2020
“Affectionately chronicling John Belushi’s outsized talent and personal foibles, this documentary captures both the joy and tragedy of the comedic titan’s legacy.”
The death of Belushi is not given much time, and sparse details are included, like how “friend” of Belushi and his supposed dealer, Cathy Smith, served 15 months in a California State Prison, after pleading guilty to manslaughter for injecting Belushi with a lethal dose of cocaine and heroin (“speedball”).
There’s also no mention of John’s legacy or influence, which would have been a nice context.
Smith, 39, pleaded no contest June 11, 1986 to involuntary manslaughter and three counts of furnishing and administering controlled substances to Belushi, in the hours before he was found dead on March 5, 1982, in a bungalow at the Chateau Marmont hotel in West Hollywood.
“John Belushi would not have died when he died except for the heroin that was furnished and administered by the defendant,” the prosecutor said.
Smith was arrested at the scene, but was let go by police after questioning. She sold her story to the National Enquirer and fled to Canada where she was later deported after the case was reopened. The transcript of Smith’s police questioning suggest that they didn’t ask where she got the drugs. This led to speculation that she was an informant and they gave them to her. She was let go because it was a sting gone bad.
