Shocking. Stunning. Sad. Andrew Breitbart died in Los Angeles last night at age 43. Here is the news from his site BIG HOLLYWOOD:

“Andrew passed away unexpectedly from natural causes shortly after midnight this morning in Los Angeles.
We have lost a husband, a father, a son, a brother, a dear friend, a patriot and a happy warrior.
Andrew lived boldly, so that we more timid souls would dare to live freely and fully, and fight for the fragile liberty he showed us how to love.
Andrew recently wrote a new conclusion to his book, Righteous Indignation:
I love my job. I love fighting for what I believe in. I love having fun while doing it. I love reporting stories that the Complex refuses to report. I love fighting back, I love finding allies, and—famously—I enjoy making enemies.
Three years ago, I was mostly a behind-the-scenes guy who linked to stuff on a very popular website. I always wondered what it would be like to enter the public realm to fight for what I believe in. I’ve lost friends, perhaps dozens. But I’ve gained hundreds, thousands—who knows?—of allies. At the end of the day, I can look at myself in the mirror, and I sleep very well at night.
Andrew is at rest, yet the happy warrior lives on, in each of us.”

More details from the AP:

“Breitbart was walking near his house in the Brentwood neighborhood shortly after midnight Thursday when he collapsed, his father-in-law Orson Bean said.

Someone saw him fall and called paramedics, who tried to revive him. They rushed him to the emergency room at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, Bean said.

Breitbart had suffered heart problems a year earlier, but Bean said he could not pinpoint what happened.
‘I don’t know what to say. It’s devastating,’ Bean told The Associated Press.

Larry Dietz, watch commander at the Los Angeles County coroner’s office, said a cause of death was unknown and an autopsy would ‘more than likely’ be conducted.

Breitbart is survived by his wife Susannah Bean Breitbart and four children.

Reaction to his death was quick.

‘RIP ‘O Mighty Warrior!’ Texas Gov. Rick Perry said in a message on Twitter, the medium where Breitbart confronted with his critics with often abrasive messages. Indeed, Breitbart’s final message called a follower ‘a putz.’

His online profile, meanwhile, called him a ‘mild-mannered family guy’ and ‘husky male model.’

Media Matters, the liberal watchdog that was a frequent Breitbart critic, said the organization’s ‘thoughts and prayers are with his family today.’
‘Media Matters has a long history with Andrew Breitbart,’ Media Matters’ Ari Rabin-Havt said. ‘We’ve disagreed more than we’ve found common ground, but there was never any question of Andrew’s passion for and commitment to what he believed.'”

RIP Andrew Breitbart.