Dennis Hopper's Obama Monologue His Best Work Since 'Hoosiers'

We were a little surprised to find out a while ago that actor Dennis Hopper is a longtime Republican — sure, he appeared in the right-wing satire An American Carol, but so, too, did he make Meet the Deedles. Today, though, during a hushed, absorbing two-and-a-half minute monologue on The View, Hopper detailed the Jefferson-led conversion that led him to become a Reagan Republican, as well as a deeply personal story that eventually led to his unlikely presidential vote for Barack Obama. If this clip somehow ends up getting taped over the "Crash series" part of Hopper's reel, we can't say we'll be surprised. More »

Wait, what? In the middle of an otherwise routine NY Daily News article that details the trouble Republicans have convincing celebrities to attend their upcoming convention (but wait, don't they hate celebrities?), this little bombshell is dropped: "When asked about Republican stars like Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dennis Hopper, Kelsey Grammer and Chuck Norris, G.O.P. convention spokeswoman Melissa Subbotin said the party was not ready to announce its roster at this time." Dennis Hopper? Did we miss the memo that said the countercultural director of freaking Easy Rider was a Republican? We'd assumed his appearance in the right-wing Zucker film An American Carol was a strict paycheck gig, but no — Wikipedia confirms it, listing two donations the actor has made to the RNC. We'll leave the blacklisting to Jeffrey Wells, but we hope this doesn't portend an eventual run for office from the actor. After all, if Gopher could do it... [NY Daily News]

Where Do We Even Begin With This Trailer For 'An American Carol'?

We have learned a great many things during this election year, but chief among them is that Republicans hate Hollywood (though not really). In fact, their vendetta against Tinseltown is so strong that they have now seized the means of production, which would at least explain the trailer for the upcoming right-wing comedy An American Carol — that is, if anything could explain An American Carol. A spoof of The Christmas Carol from Republican director David Zucker, it's the story of a Michael Moore-resembling filmmaker who is shown the error of his ways by a cast made up of Hollywood's biggest Republicans. If that description sounds a little dry, try these details on for size: the Moore stand-in comes to his senses when he is taught to kill members of the ACLU, and George Washington is played by Jon Voight. A closer look at the insanity, after the jump: More »

EXCLUSIVE: Dennis Hopper Pleased With New Film, Not So Much With Career

For all the talk about Sir Ben Kingsley's sex scenes with Penelope Cruz and Patricia Clarkson, the new film Elegy arguably features an even more up-front intimacy between the Oscar-winner and Dennis Hopper — Kingsley's sidekick in academia who counsels him through an intense romantic relationship with an ex-student (played by Cruz). We won't spoil it for you; let it suffice to say the role is Hopper's latest in a marathon of work that has seen three films released this year and finds the 72-year-old halfway through shooting Starz' adaptation of the Paul Haggis film Crash. We tracked Hopper down this week to run through Elegy, Crash and the 50-plus turbulent years that preceded them — all in five convenient questions (and a few surprisingly candid replies) after the jump. More »

The Smokey Bunch: Young Hollywood Just Can't Quit Cigs

Loose-lipped Jack Black has recently decided to abandon his pre-married man habits like staying up too late with “beer” and “dudes,” but by far the most impressive habit Black claims to have kicked is smoking. Though we don't really immediately picture a carton of cigarettes when thinking of the Brangelina baby blabber, there are more than a few stars who we see smoking so often we automatically reach for a cancer stick whenever we see them on-screen. So who are the smokiest chimneys in Hollywood these days? We put together a list of the newbies and their predecessors, all of whom we feel should be notified that Joshua Kelley, no matter what Heigl has told them, is not, in fact, an ashtray: More »

Hollywood Privacywatch: Britney Spears Enjoys Some Poolside Chicken Fingers

PrivacyWatch celebrity sightings are submitted by the loyal readers of Defamer. We'd like to remind you that this feature is powered by you, so if you want to see more installments of PrivacyWatch, then all you've got to do is to send us your sightings. Submit yours to tips[AT]defamer.com (please put "sighting" or "PrivacyWatch" in the subject line so we don't lose them) and tell everyone about the time you saw Britney Spears huffing smokes while eating poolside chicken fingers. More »

Dennis Hopper Isn't a Racist, But He'll Play One on TV

· Dennis Hopper will inherit the Terrence Howard role in Starz's small-screen adaptation of the Oscar-winner Crash. Kidding! Or only half-kidding, sadly: Hopper is indeed attached to star in this shitshow-to-be. [Variety] More »

Indiana Jones And His Girl Enjoy A Casual Lunch In Newport Beach

PrivacyWatch celebrity sightings are submitted by our readers, and are posted several times a week, so do your duty and send them in! Submit yours to tips[AT]defamer.com (please put "sighting" or "PrivacyWatch" in the subject line so we don't lose them) and tell everyone about the time you couldn't stop giggling thinking about a Tell Me You Love Me star's stunt-cock mishaps at The Grove. More »