After being seriously ill with prostate cancer for several months, Dennis Hooper has died, aged 74. It was revealed he was suffering from the disease last October, and the actor has been unable to work since then.
His acting career started in the mid-1950s and he scored notable roles in the likes of Rebel Without A Cause (his very first film after a few TV parts), Giant, Gunfight At The OK Corral and Cool Hand Luke. However even at this early stage he had a reputation for being difficult and railing against the system, as well as throwing tantrums, drinking and using drugs. Indeed, it’s believed on the set of True Grit, he angered John Wayne so much the aging star chased him with a gun.
However his status changed dramatically in 1969 when he directed and starred in Easy Rider. Not only did it point towards a new type of cinema (many have said it was the start of the New Hollywood movement), but showed Hollywood there was money to be made out of the counter-culture. He also showed the studios that courting those outside the mainstream could be tricky, particularly after his follow-up, The Last Movie, went massively over-budget and over-schedule, and Hopper refused to submit to studio demands.
Although he didn’t direct many more movies, Easy Rider ensured he was an in-demand actor for the rest of his life, even if Hollywood was often suspicious of his unpredictable ways. He appeared in the likes of Apocalypse Now, Rumble Fish, Hoosiers, Waterworld, Edtv, Speed, True Romance and Swing Vote. He was also absolutely electrifying as Frank in David Lynch’s Blue Velvet, putting in one of the most memorable film performances ever. However, for much of his career he retained a nortoriety for being unpredictable, sometimed irascible and slighty nuts, indeed he often encouraged the speculation that he was a bit unhinged. In the past 20 years however his reputation improved, and indeed, he made nearly as many screen appearances in the past two decades as he did in the previous 35 years.
His private life was also eventful, marrying five times, including one marriage in 1970 that lasted only a week. Even in his final days he wasn’t out of the headlines, filing for divorce in January, which set off a series of bitter legal battles over whether Dennis was fit to make such major decisions on his deathbed, and whether he was only doing it at the behest of his blood relatives, to cut his wife out of any inheritance (a claim he denied). His final public appearance was in March, when his star on the Hollywood Walkf Of Fame was unveiled.
Hopper died today at his Venice Beach, Los Angeles home. His last two roles, in the movie The Last Film Festival and a voice part in the CG animated film Alpha & Omega, will be seen released this year.
Dennis Hopper – 17 May 1936-29 May 2010 – RIP