Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Remembering Dennis Hopper

Dennis Lee Hopper was born on May 17, 1936 in Dodge City, Kansas. Attending the Actor’s Studio he made his first television appearance in 1954. His first film appearances were in "Rebel Without a Cause" (1955) with James Dean and "Giant" (1956). Hopper would continue to appear for the next 15 years in TV and small film roles. In 1969 he appeared in and directed "Easy Rider". The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay which Dennis co-wrote. The film catapult him to cult fame but it wasn’t until "Apocalypse Now" (1979) that brought him to the attention of the general film audience. He received acclaim for his roles in "Blue Velvet" and "Hoosiers" both 1986. He received a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his role in "Hoosiers". He directed "Colors" (1988) and played the villain in "Speed" (1994). He later would gain recognition for his role in the TV series "Crash" (2008). Dennis appeared in two Euo-westerns: "Straight to Hell" (1987) and "Blood Red" (1989). Besides being a cult icon Hopper was a renowned photographer since the 1960s. In 2009 it was made known that Hopper was suffering from prostate cancer and he died from the disease on May 29, 2010. Today we remember Dennis Hopper on what would have been his 75th birthday.

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