At times it seemed as though a former president had died. But no, it was bigger than that. Anna Nicole Smith's sudden demise, in the heart of a ratings sweeps period, already can be seen as the crowning achievement of a woman who adored being bathed in the pop, pop, pop of the paparazzi's trigger fingers. It made her feel larger than life, which was always her preference. Few if any have left us with more footage and less substance. Smith sold herself right up until her final day, as the subject of a sub-cheesy, sweeps-driven investigative series by Entertainment Tonight and its running mate, The Insider. Still, she ranks only #9 on our list of top 10 shocking celebrity deaths. See who else made the list. Go to Top 10 Shocking Celebrity Deaths slide show! For more from Ed Bark on iVillage, see the rest of his posts. For more of Ed in general, see his blog Uncle Barky's Bytes.
