A Timeline of Whitney Houston’s Final Days
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Flowers and candles are left by fans of US singer Whitney Houston on the street outside the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California late on Feb. 11, 2012. (ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images) (LOS ANGELES) — The sudden death of singing icon Whitney Houston has left family, friends and fans reeling as they piece together the singer’s last days and look for clues as to what may have happened. Here is a timeline of the music legend’s final days:
Thursday, Feb. 9:
Houston was a guest at Grammy nominee Kelly Price’s party, “Kelly Price and Friends Unplugged: For the Love of R&B Grammy Party” at the nightclub, Tru Hollywood.
Houston was there with her 19-year-old daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown and performed a duet with Price in the early hours of Friday morning, in what would become her last performance.
At the party, Houston reportedly clashed with singer and former X Factor finalist Stacy Francis, who had credited Houston as her inspiration and had been pulled onstage to sing with her in 1999 during a concert, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
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Houston and Francis were re-introduced at the party and all seemed fine until R&B star Ray J, who had dated Houston on-and-off for several years, entered the conversation.
“Whitney just got belligerent,” a witness told The Hollywood Reporter. “Ray was trying to defend Stacy, telling Whitney, ‘Stacy’s family!’, but Whitney was feeling crowded out and hands were raised.”
The witness said that no punches were ultimately thrown, but that it was a tense exchange.
Photos taken later that night showed Houston disheveled, agitated and bloated as she left. She reportedly had to be escorted from the club with blood dripping down her leg and scratches on her wrist.
Friends said she was simply sweating from the performance.
“There was nothing wrong. She was singing, she was dancing, she was laughing, she was playing,” Price said. “I’m going to remember her just like that because that’s the Whitney I always had the pleasure of being around.”
Friday, Feb. 10:
Houston reportedly spent Friday night at the bar of the Beverly Hilton hotel with a group of friends. She was at the bar for a long time, drinking and being very loud, according to TMZ.
Houston was staying at the hotel to attend music industry executive Clive Davis’ annual pre-Grammy bash. It is the same event where she was introduced to the record industry and the world nearly three decades ago.
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Saturday, Feb. 11:
Houston had been planning to attend friend and mentor Clive Davis’ annual pre-Grammy party at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Saturday night.
At some point in the morning or early afternoon, Houston’s cousin, the singer Dionne Warwick, spoke to Houston over the phone to make sure they were seated at the same table at Davis’ party. At this point, there were no signs of trouble, according to TMZ.
Around 3:15 p.m., Houston spoke to her mother, Cissy Houston, and everything still seemed to be fine.
Less than 30 minute later, at 3:43 p.m., someone from Houston’s entourage called hotel security when they found an unresponsive Houston in her hotel room bathtub.
Police, who were already on the scene in preparation for the event later in the evening, arrived at Houston’s room two minute later.
Officials tried to resuscitate the 48-year-old singer with CPR but were unable to revive her. Houston was pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m.
Beverly Hills police Lt. Mark Rosen said she was pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m. He said there were “no obvious signs of foul play and no obvious signs of a cause of death.”
Los Angeles coroner’s office officials left with Houston’s body around 1:50 a.m. The coroner’s office declined to speculate how Houston died when asked about reports that she may have drowned.
The Clive Davis party went on as planned, with Davis saying that is what Houston would have wanted. But it was a surreal scene as celebrities reacted to the death on the red carpet with the Beverly Hills crime lab van parked outside, and as paparazzi camped out waiting for Houston’s body to emerge.
An autopsy is expected to be conducted Sunday or Monday, according to ABC News’ Los Angeles station KABC.
Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio