Philip Seymour Hoffman, one of the finest American actors of his generation, has died. Seymour Hoffman, who won an Oscar for Best Actor, for his performance as the writer Truman Capote in Capote, was found dead with a needle in his arm in his New York apartment, according to reports, apparently having over-dosed on heroin.

The actor, who was revered by his contemporaries, had done a stint in rehab last year, but clearly failed to defeat his dependence on narcotics. He was originally from Fairport in New York.

It is an overwhelmingly sad end to what was an illustrious and award-studded career. Hoffman first came to prominence in Paul Thomas Anderson's superb exploration of the world of 1970s porn, Boogie Nights (1997). A regular in Anderson's movies, he starred also in Magnolia (1999) and in the widely praised The Master (2012). He starred in numerous cult favourites and films with a rock 'n' roll dimension, starring as Brandt to The Big Lebowski, in The Coen Brothers' hilarious eponymous movie; featuring alongside John Cusack in Almost Famous; and playing the part of The Count in The Boat That Rocked, about Radio Caroline. He also played Gust Avrakotos in Mike Nichol's Charlie Wilson's War.

His role as Truman Capote was the high-point of his career, garnering a Golden Globe Award as well as an Academy Award as for Best Actor, a Screen Actors' Guild Award and a BAFTA award. He has been nominated for Tony Awards three times for his work in theatre.
An alumnus of the Tisch School of the Arts at NYU – whose students Hot Press has worked with in producing countless music videos for Irish bands – Hoffman also has a considerable body of stage work and two Tony nominations to his name.

He is survived by his partner Mimi O'Donnell and their there children.