NEW YORK — Joseph Brooks, the Academy Award-winning songwriter of “You Light Up My Life” who was awaiting trial for rape, was found dead Sunday of an apparent suicide in his Manhattan apartment, police said.
Brooks, 73, was discovered by a friend with whom he had planned to have lunch, police spokesman Paul Browne said.
Brooks was found on the living-room couch with a plastic dry-cleaning bag around his head and a towel wrapped around his neck, Browne said. A hose attached to a helium tank was hooked up to the bag, he said. It was not immediately clear how long Brooks had been there.
The apartment door was ajar, Browne said.
Police said a suicide note was found, but they didn’t reveal its contents.
Brooks was awaiting trial on allegations that he molested women who were lured to his apartment for supposed acting auditions. He pleaded not guilty to rape and other charges.
Brooks’ lawyer and Manhattan prosecutors had no immediate comment about Brooks’ death Sunday.
Brooks won the Academy Award for best original song for the 1977 Debby Boone ballad “You Light Up My Life.” He won a Grammy for the song.
