Colin Kroll, HQ Trivia and Vine co-founder, dies at 34
By Justin Carissimo
/ CBS News
Colin Kroll, the CEO and co-founder of the popular HQ Trivia app, has died, the company said Sunday. He was 34.
"We learned today of the passing of our friend and founder, Colin Kroll, and it's with deep sadness that we say goodbye. Our thoughts go out to his family, friends and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time," a HQ spokesperson said in a statement.
The New York City Police Department said officers responded to a 911 call for a wellness check early Sunday morning at Kroll's residence in lower Manhattan. Officers discovered a male subject unconscious and unresponsive in a bedroom, and he was declared dead at the scene. The investigation is ongoing and the medical examiner will determine the cause of death, police said.
Kroll helped co-found the hosted quiz game, which became a viral sensation after launching in 2017. He was named the company's CEO in September, taking over for Rus Yusupov, who went on to serve as chief creative officer. Yusupov remembered Kroll on Twitter, saying he "made the world and internet a better place."
So sad to hear about the passing of my friend and co-founder Colin Kroll. My thoughts & prayers go out to his loved ones. I will forever remember him for his kind soul and big heart. He made the world and internet a better place. Rest in peace, brother.
— Rus (@rus) December 16, 2018
Kroll also helped found Vine, the short form video platform. Twitter bought the service in 2012 for $30 million before shutting it down in 2018.
Police initially said Kroll was 35, but the company confirmed he was 34 years old.
First published on December 16, 2018
© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Justin Carissimo
Justin Carissimo is a breaking news editor at CBS News.
Twitter 
FindJodi: The decades-long search for a missing TV news anchor
More than two decades after an Iowa TV anchor disappeared, "48 Hours" reports on new information and new efforts to find Jodi Huisentruit
14H ago 
Mulvaney called Trump a "terrible human being" in 2016
"Yes, I'm supporting Donald Trump. I'm doing so as enthusiastically as I can given the fact that he's a terrible human being," Mulvaney said on Nov. 2, 2016
8H ago 
Probe into Utah mom’s brutal throat slashing takes unexpected path
A young mom calls 911 claiming she cut her own throat in front of her estranged husband and her child — doctors say there’s no way she did it to herself
15H ago 
Colin Kroll, HQ Trivia and Vine co-founder, dies at 34
Colin Kroll, the CEO and co-founder of the popular HQ Trivia app, has died, the company said Sunday
4M ago 
Full transcript: December 16, 2018
Guests included Stephen Miller, Sen. John Barrasso, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Lanny Davis, Paula Reid, Trevor Potter, Kelsey Snell, Ben Domenech, Margaret Talev and Ed Wong
1H ago 
The case against the opioid industry
The attorney who orchestrated a multibillion-dollar settlement against the tobacco industry is back for the drug manufacturers and distributors he says are responsible for the opioid epidemic. Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET and 7 p.m. PT on CBS
Dec 14 
Tesla CEO Elon Musk: The "60 Minutes" interview
Musk opens up to Lesley Stahl about Twitter, pot, the Securities and Exchange Commission, Model 3 and Tesla
Dec 9 
Study examines effects of screen time on kids
"60 Minutes" goes inside a landmark government study of young minds to see if phones, tablets and other screens are impacting adolescent brain development
Dec 10 
Ryan Speedo Green: From juvenile delinquency to opera stardom
After a childhood of anger and violence, the 32-year-old now commands the stage around the world
Dec 9 
Remembering President George H.W. Bush
Former presidents and others look back on the life of President George H.W. Bush, who passed away Friday
Dec 2 
Paradise Lost: Inside California's Camp Fire
"60 Minutes" reveals what firefighters saw as the deadliest wildfire in California history destroyed the town of Paradise
Dec 2 
The chaos behind family separation at the border
A "60 Minutes" investigation has found the separations that dominated headlines this summer began earlier and were greater in number than the Trump administration admits
Nov 26 
Robots to the rescue after nuclear disaster
Seven years after a powerful earthquake and tsunami caused a massive nuclear meltdown in the Daiichi Power Plant, Lesley Stahl reports on the unprecedented cleanup effort
Nov 25 
"To Kill a Mockingbird" comes to Broadway
With Aaron Sorkin writing the adaptation and Jeff Daniels starring as Atticus Finch, the Harper Lee classic hits the stage
Nov 26 
Right Rail – Video Promo – Listing
"Mary Poppins Returns": Emily Blunt on playing the iconic character
In the sequel we've waited half a century to see, Mary Poppins has returned to the screen. The children she cared for in the 1964 original have grown, but their nanny is mostly unchanged, except she is played now by Emily Blunt. Anthony Mason talks with Blunt about bringing P.L. Travers' beloved, eccentric character back to life in a magical musical, and with director Rob Marshall about how he came to choose his "Into the Woods" star for the role.
4H ago 07:45 
The fall of Sears
At its peak, Sears, Roebuck was the largest retailer in the world. And then, the company that dominated the department store and mail order business for much of the 20th century officially filed for bankruptcy, buckling under its massive debt load and staggering losses. David Pogue looks at the company and its failure to evolve in a changing economy.
5H ago 08:46 
Michael Bublé on "Love"
Michael Bublé took a two-year break from performing after learning in 2016 that his then-three-year-old son, Noah, had been diagnosed with liver cancer. The chart-topping singer, who is now back with a new album, "Love," opens up to correspondent Tracy Smith about how there was "no choice" for him and his wife to put their careers on hold.
4H ago 07:44 
Re-making Lego
Lego, the tiny plastic bricks that engage young minds and fingers, have clicked with generations of kids. So, why is the popular toy undergoing a remake? Roxana Saberi visits the Lego factory in Billund, Denmark, to find out.
5H ago 05:10 
"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus"
"Sunday Morning" host Jane Pauley looks back at the original letter written to the editor of the New York back in 1897 by an eight-year-old girl who asked: "Is there a Santa Claus?"
4H ago 04:01 
Colin Kroll, HQ Trivia and Vine co-founder, dies at 34
Colin Kroll, the CEO and co-founder of the popular HQ Trivia app, has died, the company said Sunday
4M ago
Full transcript: December 16, 2018
Guests included Stephen Miller, Sen. John Barrasso, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Lanny Davis, Paula Reid, Trevor Potter, Kelsey Snell, Ben Domenech, Margaret Talev and Ed Wong
1H ago 
$25,000 reward offered for info about missing Colorado mom
An anonymous donor provided the reward money to the Woodland Park Police Department, which is leading the search
1H ago 
Giuliani says Mueller will interview Trump "over my dead body"
"Yeah, good luck, good luck — after what they did to Flynn, the way they trapped him into perjury"
55M ago 
Klobuchar says "absurd" court ruling would set Obamacare "on fire"
Klobuchar also said Congress needs to get to the bottom of what happened with a 7-year-old girl who died in custody at the border
2H ago 
Top GOP senator says he's hopeful a shutdown can be avoided
"I think that's what the American people expect of the people that they elect — keep the government open," Sen. John Barrasso said
3H ago 
2018 additions to the Library of Congress' National Film Registry
"The Shining," "Jurassic Park," "My Fair Lady" and "Brokeback Mountain" are among the classic films to be preserved for future generations by the Library of Congress
27 photos 
The timeless photojournalism of Chris Hondros and Tim Hetherington
"War and Peace in Liberia" is a new exhibition in New York City celebrating the work of two acclaimed war photographers, who were both killed in conflict zones
15 photos 
Yemen's humanitarian crisis
The nation's civil war has claimed at least 10,000 lives, and generated the world's worst humanitarian crisis
15 photos 
Notable deaths in 2018
A look back at the esteemed personalities who've left us this year, who touched us with their innovation, creativity and humanity
136 photos 
Biggest stories of 2018, ranked
This year was a doozy. These were the top stories on CBSNews.com
55 photos 
Gold Star families get trip to Disney
Attendees received "we remember" pins to wear to the park and went to an event where each of their fallen family members were honored
Dec 14 
Thanks for the help of a loving neighbor
For many people flooded out of their homes in and around Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, the most welcoming port in the storm has been a total stranger. Jaret Hucks, who owns the Midtown Inn and Cottages, has given away almost a thousand free nights to this community's poorest and most vulnerable evacuees. Steve Hartman revisits the story he first reported earlier this fall, and about a new flood that followed.
Nov 25 02:13 
This man proposed to his girlfriend – with 16 dogs in tow
Most people expect a ring, flowers and perhaps music at their dream proposal, but one man surprised his girlfriend with all that — and more
Dec 14 
Teen's gift for special needs classmate goes viral
"I got happy tears," said Matthew Sabetta when he unwrapped the box
Dec 13 
Army veteran saves 5-year-old girl with leukemia
Four years after Mike Laureano returned from serving his country in Iraq, he stumbled upon another way to serve
Dec 13 
Quadriplegic student walks across graduation stage using exoskeleton
"I feel so blessed to have been able to accomplish that milestone," says new college grad Aldo Amenta
Dec 12
