The Legacy Of River Phoenix: 10 Things About The Late Actor You'll Wish You'd Known Sooner

River Phoenix was talented actor who had legions of fans following his every move.He first showed up in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, people became obsessed with him. After, he starred in Stand By Me, he was considered one of the biggest teen heartthrobs around.

He lived a tragic life, dying at such a young age, but people have remained fascinated by his story. Here are 10 facts you probably didn't know about River Phoenix.

He was actually named River Jude Bottom when he was born

His entire family changed their last name in the late 70s after their family left the 'Children of God' religion. They moved to Florida and went with Phoenix to represent how they rose from the ashes.

He has four siblings

Their names are Joaquin, Summer, Rain and Liberty.

He had a band with his sister Rain

The band was called Aleka's Attic

Two of his sisters named their sons after him

Liberty named her son Rio which is Spanish for River and Summer named her son Indiana because River played young Indiana Jones

The Red Hot Chili Peppers dedicated an album to him

Their hit album "One Hot Minute" is dedicated to the star.

They aren't the only ones to dedicate an album to the actor.

R.E.M also dedicated an album to the actor after his death

They dedicated  "Monster" to him as they were friends with him as well.

He was supposed to play the role of Daniel Molloy in Interview with A Vampire

The movie was scheduled to start filming just a couple weeks after his death. Christian Slater took over the role but he donated the entire $250,000 salary he earned to Phoenix's favorite charities: Earth Save and Earth Trust

There are rumors surrounding his death and his last words

Some have claimed his last words were "No paparazzi, I want anonymity," but others have said that he said nothing before collapsing on the ground outside the Viper Room.

He passed away on October 30, 1993 at The Viper Room, a club owned by Johnny Depp

River Phoenix was at the bar with his girlfriend, actress Samantha Mathis, his friend Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and two of his siblings Joaquin and Rain.

Johnny Depp and Flea were both on stage when River was outside seizing due to a drug overdose on the sidewalk, but as the news moved to the stage Flea went outside and accompanied River to the hospital. Despite all efforts he was pronounced dead at 1:51 a.m. on October 31st, 1993 at the young age of 23.

His last movie came out nearly 20 years after his death

The movie Dark Blood was in production when Phoenix overdosed and while they said the movie was 80% done, they had to figure out how to deal with him missing for a good number of scenes.

The director had to sneak the footage away to Holland where it took him a long time to save enough money to edit it. It was shown for the first time at a film festival in Holland in 2012. The director uses narration to describe the missing scenes.

While his life may have ended in tragedy, he made a big impact on a lot of people. Share if you remember watching him in all your favorite movies when you were younger.