Actress. Edie Sedgwick was a socialite who starred in many of Andy Warhol's short films in the 1960s. Edith Minturn Sedgwick was born in Santa Barbara, California into an illustrious and historical American family. One of her paternal great-great-great grandfathers, William Ellery, was a signatory of the Declaration of Independence. Another, Judge Theodore Sedgwick, was the fifth Speaker of the House of Representatives. Her childhood was spent on several different ranches in California in virtual isolation. Her father, Francis, was mentally and at times, physically abusive to her and her seven siblings. In the fall of 1962, she was institutionalized for anorexia. This would be the first of many hospitalizations she would endure throughout her short life. In 1963, at age 21, she was released from the hospital and moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts where she attended Harvard Art School. During this time, she became a social butterfly of sorts and became quite notorious as a party girl. By 1964, she decided to leave college for New York City to pursue modeling. She quickly began making the social rounds and met artist Andy Warhol. She began making films with Warhol and hanging out at his infamous Factory. In 1965, her popularity had grown and she was dubbed a "Superstar" by Warhol and the "Girl Of '65" by newspapers. Her iconic look of silver sprayed short hair, heavy black eye makeup and black tights made her a darling of the fashion world. Her public antics angered her conservative parents and they stopped her allowance. Shr continued to make films with Warhol but became disillusioned and angry over not being paid for her work. At that point, she started using drugs and became difficult to work with. In early 1966, her relationship with Warhol had deteriorated and she left the Factory for good. Her drug use increased, being frequently admitted to hospitals for depression and drug abuse. In 1968, she left New York City for Santa Barbara where she would again be hospitalized for drug use and depression. She would eventually receive over 20 shock treatments and continued to struggle with mental illness and drug abuse. During one of her many hospitalizations, she met her future husband, Michael Post. She and post were married in July of 1971 on one of her childhood ranches. By most accounts, she was attempting to get her life back on track. She had completed what she hoped to be her comeback film, the non-Warholian "Ciao! Manhattan" and had high hopes for the film and her future despite her continued reliance on prescription drugs. On the morning of November 16, 1971, her husband awoke to find her lying next to him, dead of a prescription drug overdose. Her death is listed as "accidental suicide." She was 28 years old.