Posted on 04/01/2025 9:41:56 PM PDT by Macho MAGA Man
Val Kilmer, a homegrown Hollywood actor who tasted leading-man stardom as Jim Morrison and Batman, but whose protean gifts and elusive personality also made him a high-profile supporting player, died on Tuesday in Los Angeles. He was 65.
The cause was pneumonia, said his daughter, Mercedes Kilmer. Mr. Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014 and later recovered, she said.
Tall and handsome in a rock-star sort of way, Mr. Kilmer was in fact cast as a rocker a handful of times early in his career, when he seemed destined for blockbuster success. He made his feature debut in a slapstick Cold War spy-movie spoof, “Top Secret!” (1984), in which he starred as a crowd-pleasing, hip-shaking American singer in Berlin unwittingly involved in an East German plot to reunify the country.
He gave a vividly stylized performance as Morrison, the emblem of psychedelic sensuality, in Oliver Stone’s “The Doors” (1991)
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
True story:
Following production one day while making the movie Tombstone, Val Kilmer and Kurt Russell were having a drink in a local bar. Kurt Russell commented he wanted to be buried in the Tombstone cemetary (not Boot Hill) when he dies. A local told him he couldn’t be buried in the Tombstone cemetary unless he owned property in town.
The next day, Val Kilmer had a local realtor locate a small parcel of land in town. He purchased the property and gave it to Kurt Russell as a joke gift.
To this day, Kurt Russell still owns this property. My wife and I sit and drink our morning coffee looking at the open desert across the parcel every morning.
We’ve always liked watching Kilmer’s movies, he was a good actor, always managed to play his parts well. We’re sorry that he’s gone; we will miss his regular visits to Tombstone.
This is pretty shocking. A great actor, perfect as Doc Holliday, Batman, Simon Templar, and in Heat and Ghost in the Darkness. God rest his soul.
Another of my weird coincidences. I decided to watch the 2008 movie Conspiracy last night. Terrible movie and I skipped some of it. But that Val Kilmer movie last night and his death soon after.
Another. Actor David Dukes in the Stephen King movie Rose Red was so obnoxious I started thinking and subvocalizing “I hope you die soon in this movie.”
Then at the end they say in memory of David Dukes and have a few minutes on the interviews. He died during the filming and they used a mannequin from a distance and someone else to finish the scenes. So he actually did die. Weird.
Loved his role in Tombstone!
I’ll be your huckleberry
Yes you did Val.
Billy Idol was set to play Morrison but got busted up in a motorcycle accident.
Val got it instead.
Yeah, I have a lot of issues with that movie, myself.
All of his songs were poetry.
Amongst all else lost due to fire/ water damage were my paperbacks of his poems.
/wandering lost in the severed gardens
His best scene ever.
It’s hilarious and also serious in a way.
https://youtu.be/jGh6R3ZA0-Y?si=cPQA113gzCYi-t5t
At least Oliver Stone gave Idol a cameo of sorts in the movie.
Movie was great. Called Val I believe.
Ping
Some of that cost him good gigs down the line but Val seemed to put his art above money for the most part. I admire how he dealt with throat cancer and wouldn't let himself be regarded an invalid because of it - an experience I share with him. Godspeed.
For sure!
Met him years ago on a beach in Costa Rico. Regular guy and was type of person I could easily hang be his wing man. God speed Iceman
Met him years ago on a beach in Costa Rica. Regular guy and was type of person I could easily hang be his wing man. God speed Iceman
RIP Val, Doc Holiday.
That's exactly the impression I got from his interviews.
He was a great actor in his prime, but I never followed his career closely. Then, when his health declined, I found some interviews.
One of my favorites is this one:
Val Kilmer explains how he came to create the persona of Doc Holliday - plus, scenes from Tombstone.
RIP Val. Sorry to hear this news... The years have passed too quickly.
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