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The nightclub where River Phoenix died

Place of Interest in West Hollywood, California, United States

This is the location where Hollywood actor River Phoenix died from a drug overdose.

It is called the Viper Nightclub, and it is situated at 8852 Sunset Boulevard in the West Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California.

On the night of October 30th, 1993, Phoenix attended the nightclub with his girlfriend, Samantha Mathis, his brother Joaquin, and his sister Rain.

The club, which was partially owned by his friend and fellow actor, Johnny Depp, was a popular spot for young celebrities who wanted to kick back and enjoy themselves without having to worry about the paparazzi.

In the months leading up to his death, Phoenix had remained sober by focusing on his latest movie, Dark Blood, which was being filmed in Utah.

However, he quickly fell off the wagon and started abusing drugs again when he returned to Hollywood on October 26th, 1993.

Shortly after his return, he reportedly went on a drug binge with John Frusciante, who was a guitarist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Although his girlfriend stated that she didn't see him taking any drugs at the Viper Nightclub, she did notice that something wasn't right.

Mathis was aware that he seemed high. However, her suspicions were somewhat dampened by the fact that she had very little experience with that kind of lifestyle.

Unbeknownst to Mathis, her boyfriend had taken a large quantity of heroin and cocaine, as well as a number of other substances.

At one point during the night, Phoenix told punk rock singer Bob Forrest that he thought he was overdosing. When Forrest offered to give him a ride home, the actor declined and stated that he was starting to feel better.

Shortly afterwards, Phoenix got into an altercation with another man. When a bouncer noticed the fracas, he separated the two men and escorted them out of the side door of the nightclub.

After seeing her boyfriend being kicked out, Mathis went outside to see what was going on. At that point, Phoenix fell to the ground and started convulsing.

Because the side door had been shut behind them, she had to rush around to the main entrance and reenter the club from the front.

Once inside, she pushed her way through the crowds of the Viper Room and located Phoenix's brother, Joaquin.

Joaquin, who was understandably shocked and upset, called 911 and sobbed down the phone, begging them to get there quickly.

When news of the incident reached Phoenix's friends inside the club, they started to pile out onto the sidewalk. By that point, the paramedics had already arrived and were attempting to restart the actor's heart.

According to onlookers, the 23-year-old was unresponsive and starting to turn blue.

When all attempts to resuscitate him on the sidewalk failed, the paramedics put him into the ambulance and raced to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on Beverly Boulevard.

Sadly, the doctors at Cedars-Sinair were unable to save the actor's life.

At exactly 1:51 a.m. on October 31st, 1993, River Phoenix was pronounced dead.

Further information is available in the "Photos" section below.

Where did River Phoenix die?

Below, you will find the address and the GPS coordinates for this location.

GPS coordinates

The latitude and longitude coordinates for the nightclub are:

34.090485, -118.384734

Map

To view directions on how to get there, you can use the Google Maps shortcut below:

Google Maps Link

Address

The full address for this location is:

The Viper Room
8852 Sunset Blvd
West Hollywood
California
CA 90069
United States

Directions

The Viper Room nightclub is situated near the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Larrabee Street in West Hollywood. The area, which is known as the Sunset Strip, lies to the east of Beverly Hills.

Photos

Photos of the nightclub and other related images.

The Viper Room

This Google Street View image of the Viper Room nightclub was taken in March of 2018.

The main entrance is on the Sunset Strip, which is a section of Sunset Boulevard that runs through West Hollywood.

During the 1970s and 1980s, it was a jazz club called The Central. However, as time wore on, its popularity wained and it eventually fell on hard times.

When actors Johnny Depp and Sal Jenco learned from a friend that The Central was close to shutting down, they decided to purchase it and redevelop it into something new.

In 1993, the pair reopened it as the Viper Room.

Due to Depp's fame, it instantly became a trendy spot where the young actors and musicians of Hollywood could hang out together.

The club remained popular, even in the aftermath of River Phoenix's death.

In 2001, one of the club's co-owners, Anthony Fox, mysteriously vanished without a trace. Following a lawsuit, Depp agreed to sign over his interests in the club to Fox's daughter.

Side door

This is a Google Street View image of the eastern side of the club, which faces Larrabee Street.

We have circled the side door in red.

Phoenix allegedly got into an altercation with another man on the night of October 30, 1993. When a bouncer spotted the fight, he pushed the pair out of this side door.

Shortly afterwards, he fell to the sidewalk and started convulsing.

According to Phoenix's girlfriend, Samantha Mathis (pictured top right), she decided to follow him outside to see what was happening. At that point, she saw that the actor was having a seizure and went back inside to raise the alarm.

Because the side door had been shut behind them, she had to run around to the front of the Viper Room and enter the club via the main entrance.