Chris Farley, the former Saturday Night Live star who went on to a successful slapstick movie career, has died a tragic early death, just like his idol John Belushi. The two-hundred-ninety-pound, thirty-three-year-old comic was found dead in his apartment in the tony hundred-story John Hancock Building on Chicago's Michigan Avenue. Farley's body, clad only in pajama bottoms, was discovered by his brother, John, in the entranceway of the sixtieth-floor apartment. John Farley called 911, but the comedian was already dead when paramedics arrived. According to the Chicago Tribune, a Cook County Medical Examiner's spokesman said that Farley had a white, frothy fluid coming from his mouth and a blood-tinged fluid coming from his nose, indicating that the death might be drug-related. An autopsy was done Friday, although results of the toxicology tests could take weeks. Police said there was no sign of foul play and that no drug paraphernalia was found in the apartment.

"He was one of my best friends and one of the funniest guys I've ever known," said SNL alum Chris Rock. "I love him and I'm going to miss him." Said Al Franken, another late-night player, "There was a vulnerability spiced with genius; a real talent. I wish there was another fifty years of that. The man was a sweetheart."

Raised in Madison, Wisconsin, Farley graduated in 1986 from Marquette University, where he trained with the same theater coach as Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, and Bill Murray. He became a performer at the Second City Theater in Chicago, and before long was invited to audition for Saturday Night Live.

He joined the cast of the long-running NBC sketch show in 1990, and quickly became one of the stand-out players because of his talent for broad physical comedy. This frequently involved him falling over something, onto something, or destroying something. Comparisons to Belushi were not surprising, given that the two comedians shared a love of overindulgence in all areas of life.

Farley was a gifted ensemble player, especially when paired with the deadpan David Spade. He developed several popular characters on the show, including inspirational speaker Matt Foley, who ended his talks by working himself into a vein-popping, furniture-ruining frenzy. The comedian also did memorable impressions of such overweight celebs as Mama Cass, Newt Gingrich, Jerry Garcia, Meat Loaf, and Tom Arnold.

A master of self-deprecation, Farley was not afraid to show off his ever-expanding girth, evidenced by a now classic skit with Patrick Swayze in which the two played rival Chippendales dancers. Farley's substantial gut spilled over his tight black pants.

Farley left SNL in 1995, the same year he starred in his first feature, Tommy Boy, with his close friend Spade. The film earned the pair an MTV Movie Award for Best Onscreen Duo, and performed well enough at the box office that they reteamed for Black Sheep in 1996.

Farley put himself through the ringer physically on-screen, as seen earlier this year in Beverly Hills Ninja. While it drew laughs and box office, he realized he couldn't keep it up. "Although I love this kind of comedy, sometimes I feel trapped by always having to be the most outrageous guy in the room," he said in 1996. "In particular, I'm working on trying not to be that guy in my private life." He added that Lorne Michaels "told me that that's what killed Belushi more than anything else."

Farley had grown tired of playing the buffoon: "You know, I've experienced the 'Fatty Falls Down' three times in movies now, and I know people come to see my movies for that; I'm very grateful for that, but I would like to explore a little bit more," he said this year. "I'd like to do something a bit more subtle, something more dramatic." He was working towards that end with Almost Heroes, a.k.a. Edwards and Hunt, a long-delayed period piece in which he and Matthew Perry play Lewis-and-Clark-type explorers. It's set for release on April 3, 1998.

In recent months, tabloid reports of substance abuse and critical weight problems were coupled with public appearances in which an out-of-breath Farley seemed to be sweating buckets no matter what the temperature. Spade was clearly worried about his friend: "I mean, the fact that he cut out drugs and alcohol is the biggest thing," Spade told Steppin' Out magazine recently. "But he's my friend and I'm just concerned. . . . He needs to watch his weight, he drinks too much coffee, he smokes."

Allusions were made to his recent troubles during an October 25 SNL hosting gig. In the opening skit, cast member Tim Meadows tries to convince Michaels that Farley is fit to helm the show, but warns, "He's still got the eating problem, I won't lie to you about that." Farley then enters, trailed by his "sponsor"pratfall king Chevy Chase. Meadows then sums up Farley's contribution: "Fatty falls down, ratings go up."

"I've been big all my life," Farley explained to Playboy in September. "I don't want to get content being this way. In the back of my mind I still think I'm going to lose the weight." But he admitted he had a self-control problem, and was working on that and "some of my other demons."

Farley, like Belushi and John Candy, leaves behind a comedic legacy that will keep people laughing for years to come. "I remember going to see Animal House with my dad and hearing him roar with laughter every time John Belushi came on-screen," Farley said in 1994. "I thought that was great, to have somebody make my dad laugh uncontrollably. I wanted to do that. I wanted to be like him." Sadly, Farley got his wish: Belushi died at the age of thirty-three too.