Sally Menke dies at 56: she was found dead


Film editor Sally Menke, who edited most of Quentin Tarantino’s movies, was found dead this morning in what appears to be a tragic accident.

The sad news of Menke’s death robs movie lovers of a woman who was brilliant at her job and an unsung master of a craft that all too often goes overlooked. We’ll never get to see another Tarantino/Menke collaboration.

Menke had gone hiking the morning of September 27, 2010 with a friend and her dog.

Menke’s friend left her after an hour. When Menke failed to come home, her friends alerted the police.Search dogs, a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter, and officers from patrol units spent hours in Griffith Park searching for her.

Her locked car was found in a Griffith Park parking lot.Menke’s body was found at the bottom of a ravine near 5600 block of Green Oak Drive on September 28, 2010.

Menke’s dog was found alive and sitting next to her body. No cause of death was immediately reported, and it is unclear whether the extreme heat – 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) in downtown Los Angeles on September 27 – was a factor.