Bruce Willis in full rant is best show in town

NEW YORK -- Bruce Willis is supposed to be giving a press conference on behalf of his new movie this morning.

And yes, he does have a lot to say about the upcoming 16 Blocks, in which he plays a corrupt, burned-out cop who's given the opportunity to redeem himself.

But a Willis press conference -- his preferred way of communicating with a media he often dislikes -- also tends to be a performance. And it's entertainment quotient rises when it becomes a series of rants.

So he's in prime form today as he launches into a tirade against Entertainment Weekly magazine; explains why he hates being labelled a Republican; and, in typical Bruce Willis fashion, both defends and denounces violence and suggests policemen should be paid lots more money. ....

Beneath the brashness there's a committed actor who also thinks long and hard about the society of which he's a part. Willis is also smart enough to know that 16 Blocks offers him his best role in years.

"I'm from Jersey and I have a strong affinity towards working-class people," he declares. That's why he likes cops. "I believe with any job that requires you possibly to get shot at or get shot dead, you should be paid hundreds of thousands of dollars.

"These guys don't get paid anything. Yet they go out there and do it and there's not a lot of them out there and they're the last line between us and the wolves and the chaos that's out in the world.

"All these guys -- cops, EMT workers, men and women, emergency room doctors and nurses, people that every night have to see horrific things -- there should be thousands of films done about these guys. And they should get paid more money. A lot more money."

Moments later, he's off on a tangent when a reporter suggests that Willis is one of the few Hollywood actors who is "proud" to be a Republican.

"I'm a Republican only as far as I want a smaller government. I want less government intrusion. I want them to stop pissing on my money and your money -- the tax dollars that we give 50 or 40 per cent of every year, and I want them to be fiscally responsible, and I want those goddam lobbyists out of Washington. Do that and I'll say I'm a Republican.

"But other than that, I want the government to take care of people who need help -- like the kids in foster care, the half million kids in orphanages right now.... I want them to take care of the elderly and give them free medicine, give them whatever they need. There's tons, billions and billions of dollars, that are just being wasted. Okay? I hate government. I'm apolitical. Write that down."

... Almost immediately, Willis gets asked a political question anyway: is it ever legitimate to use violence in order to do the right thing?

"Occasionally -- when push comes to shove," replies Willis, who adds that he's not a violent man and doesn't advocate violence. But the United States and other countries in the free world "should do whatever it takes to end terrorism in the world." He's not just talking about the Middle East.

"I'm also talking about going to Columbia and doing whatever it takes to end the cocaine trade. It's killing this country. It's killing all the countries that coke goes into.... It's just a plant that they grow, and these guys are growing it like it's corn or tobacco or any other thing. By the time it gets here, it becomes a billion-dollar industry.

... He then springs to the defence of controversial writer James Frey who received a verbal flaying from a furious Oprah Winfrey on her show last month for embellishing parts of his best-selling memoir, A Million Little Pieces.

"That's a great book," Willis says defiantly. He's unhappy that Frey had been "sucker-punched on Oprah, one of the most powerful women on television, just to grind her own axe about it."

"Hey Oprah -- you had President Clinton on your show. And if [he] didn't lie about a couple of things, I'm going to set myself on fire right now."

"MR. WILLIS: Thank you, Mr. President, for that really wonderful introduction. And thank you for your commitment to children in need of adoption and foster care. I am honored that you have chosen me to be the National Spokesperson for Children in Foster Care.

And thanks to Mrs. Bush, a strong advocate, to serve a cause higher -- I'm sorry, thanks to Mrs. Bush, a strong advocate for children, and a co-star -- my newest co-star -- (laughter) -- in the public service announcement that we're about to see today.

Mr. President, you have asked all Americans to serve a cause higher than themselves, and to recognize that these children are our highest priority. You called on all of us to do what we can to make America better. A few years ago I became aware of the real needs of so many children in our foster care system. When I began to look more closely into this problem, I realized that too many children in foster care are falling through the cracks, and many are leaving the system as young adults without any support to help them reach their full potential. I also learned that there are many, many people in this country who would welcome the chance to help children in foster care, if only someone showed them how they could do it.

As a dad, I know how important it is for children to be raised in a loving home. And as a public figure, I realized that I could lend my time and energy to help raise public awareness of children in foster care. I'm looking forward to helping the thousands of young boys and girls in foster care to find the kind of loving family I know exists in our country.

Last February I met with the White House and expressed my interest in helping these children, in doing this -- and in doing these PSAs. Mr. President, Mrs. Bush, thank you for your focus on this issue. I know that if we help these kids, and help those people in this country who want to help them, we'll be doing our part to make America a much better place. Thank you very much."

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/07/20020723-7.html

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