John Belushi Dies of Overdose

March 5, 1982

33-year-old comedian John Belushi, one of the seven original cast members of Saturday Night Live (1975-81), dies of an overdose from a lethal combination of cocaine and heroin, known as a speedball. Two months later, the woman who was with Belushi at the time of his death, Cathy Smith, gave an interview with the National Enquirer in which she admitted she had administered the fatal speedball shot. The article was titled “I Killed Belushi”. The case was then reopened and Smith was charged with first-degree murder. A plea bargain reduced the charge to involuntary manslaughter, and she served 15 months in prison.