Pretty boys can think [Clooney says Bush ran away on 9/11]

The Guardian (UK) ^ | February 15, 2003 | Sally Vincent

[aculeus]

If you're a hugely bankable Hollywood star, there are certain expectations of you. Maintain your profile, toe the line and keep schtum about politics. George Clooney, on the other hand, is hollering his disdain for his government and its dumb war plans, and he's directed his own, somewhat risky, film. Interview by Sally Vincent.

[Fanmag fluff snipped.]

"The question is," he goes on, "do we go on murdering each other, or are we going to take time out to ask ourselves why we're so angry in the first place? I get mad at someone, then I find out more about why they did what they did to make me mad, and the anger disperses. We get angry because we don't have enough information." His mousseline is now neatly stacked on the side of his plate. All tidied away.

"It's the head guys who really tick me off," he says. "You dumb down at the top, so what does that do to the bottom? Who's going to stand up for us now? I just want someone smart to stand up and shout, 'Bullsh**!' They tell us we're going to war and no one's saying 'Bullsh**' loud enough. And the language! Listen to the language! 'Evil.' 'Evil'? 'Nexus of evil'? 'Evil-doer'? That's my favourite, 'Evil-doer'! What's wrong with their vocabulary: couldn't they come up with 'schmuck'?"

This makes me laugh uncontrollably. I wonder if he'll mind if I gobble up his mousseline. "Look at us," he cries, "we're the guys who marched into France and liberated them, handing out stockings and chocolate. And we've slowly become all the things we fought against. How'd it happen?"

I feel the soul of America is at large. The words of Walt Whitman beat in my brain. "O Captain! My Captain!" I bleat. Clooney looks at me sideways. "We're so smart we don't even try to elect a leader. We elect someone to manage our country. Bush was elected, or sort of elected, on the issues of school vouchers and welfare reform. When the big one hit, we found we didn't have a leader at all. What did Bush do on 9/11? He ran away and hid. Even Reagan knew more about leadership than that, and he was as bad a symbol of America as I can think of, off-hand. But at least he's been in enough cowboy movies to know he had to come out and stand on top of the rubble and be seen shaking his fist or something. What has it all come down to? Selling things on television, is what. The three-second soundbite. We don't have any great speakers any more, we don't have great television any more, we don't have great films any more. Everything's knocked out by committee. That's how it is. How we deal with everything. That's politics. You turn on the TV for the news now and what do you get? 'Showdown in Iraq!' it goes, like it's a game. The news is a f***king game show. They're selling us a pre-emptive war and no one says, 'Bullsh**'. It's a conglomerate decision, all rounded off to make it palatable so we'll swallow it, believe it. But it's a lie. Of course it's a lie. We've been lying to ourselves since Vietnam. And if you say that, if you stand up and say no to the war in Iraq, immediately you're being 'unpatriotic'. But if you don't, if it's not you, who the f**k's it going to be?"

O Captain! My Captain! "It's not my place. I'm not a big, like, yogi guy, I'm just a stoopid film star. Stooooopid, goofball film star."

"Big guru guy," I say.

"Big guru guy," he says.

....

[sofaman]

For the definition of the word "Putz", see "schmuck".

Also defined as Barbara Scheissand, Julia Ruderts, Mike Fairyll and Martin Preen.

[Dahoser]

What has it all come down to? Selling things on television, is what. The three-second soundbite. We don't have any great speakers any more, we don't have great television any more, we don't have great films any more. Everything's knocked out by committee. That's how it is. How we deal with everything. That's politics.

And the truth comes out. Thank you, Dr. Freud.

Folks, it has little to do with W and Iraq. Clooney's anger is at Hollywood. He's aggravated at the dumbing down of the industry, the appeal to the lowest common denominator. He's obviously intensely frustrated that his career has ground to a halt and his creative aspirations have been blocked. What he's discovered is that being the world's sexiest man and a big star only go so far when you ain't paying the bills for the show, only acting in the show. In the end, you gotta say the lines they give you, and do the movie they want, the way the want it. He found out he's just the hired help, a few steps up from the caterer. Reality hits hard.

So he takes it out on W because he probably does disagree with the war, and it's yet another thing he feels is out of his control. Only in this case, he can publicly lash out with impunity (or so he thinks) whereas with Hollywood, publicly lambasting the people he needs for his next role eliminates the next role and the one after that.

Till now, of course. Now he has publicly lambasted them, and don't think for a minute it's going to go unnoticed. No doubt he's said as much already to certain people which is why he is in disfavor. Fortunately for him, there's a healthy direct-to-video market out there.

[desertcry]

I you take clinton out of clooney, you got a looney. Otherwise, you have a crooked commie looney.

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

Good info. Thanks!

It seems to me that the actors who are making the most anti-war noise are the ones whose careers have taken a downturn or are tanking outright and they're trying to get some attention.

Susan Sarandon: hasn't had a decent role in a movie since 1999. She's only been doing cameos, voices in cartoons, and narrations in TV shows. She has plenty of time to be a screaming liberal activist and hang out with Rosie O'Donut at anti-gun rallies because her Hollywood career is tanking.

Alec Baldwin: hasn't had a decent movie role since at least 1997. IMDB Movie Guide is listing all of his TV narrations, cartoon voices, cameos, and Saturday Night Live appearances because that's all he's done in the last 7 years.

Sean Penn: hasn't had a decent movie role since 1998. He's currently trying to pass himself off as a director since nobody's asked him to act in a legitimate movie in at least 5 years. If it weren't for cameos and cartoon voices, this guy wouldn't have a career at all.

Dustin Hoffman: hasn't had a decent movie role since 1999. He's done 4 or 5 movies in the last two years. I haven't seen them, but the IMDB Movie Guide has reviewed them as being boring predictable genre pieces that are mediocre at best and are barely noteworthy. His last 4 movies have all lost money. His biggest role was one where he played a cross-dresser. With the exception of Rain Man, I've never understood Dustin's popularity.

Michael Moore: Became famous by filming a movie with a camcorder that made it to the big screen and hasn't done anything of substance since. His last movie promoting gun control is going over like a lead balloon. With 2 film credits and about a dozen TV show appearances, Moore is not a legitimate filmmaker or actor. The liberal media carries his dumb ass because he's a raving liberal.

Madonna: her movie roles have always been terrible and her last movie sets a new standard for tanking badly. Her last few albums have not done well. She's doing anything she can for attention. She won't leave Hollywood until she's dragged away kicking and screaming. Hollywood and the music industry continues to carry Madonna and she's been allowed to keep her celebrity status for now although nobody is extending her any real work opportunities.

George Clooney: last two movies sucked, it's been at least 3 years since he's done anything noteworthy. He's panicking because he can't get any good roles and his popularity is taking a bad nosedive. While perusing George's photos of public appearances, I noticed that he always looks drunk and/or stoned.

[Calvin Locke]

... Ed Asner...

Ah, so that's why he's popping up in all the shows lately. Well, at least two that I've seen recently.

[kstewskis]

Obligatory Mel Gibson bump.

THANK YOU! (bowing to lorrainer)

what would we ladies do without you??

[CyberAnt]

Hmmmm? Why doesn't he just move somewhere else - if America is so bad - perhaps he'd like to live in IRAQ!!

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

Mel Gibson has actually stepped up to better things than just being a crazy PO'd cop blasting bad guys.

Too bad so many other celebrities have stepped backwards. It is the height of arrogance to insult their fans, insult their values, travel overseas to trash our country, and then expect their careers to not take a hit. A lot of celebrities are squealing about their rights to free speech and that it's okay to dissent on govt. policy because they're getting hammered by the public. Fine, they have the right to say that stuff. But we also have the right to say their actions stink and not go to see their movies. Most celebrities think that free speech is a one-way street. Wrong, with those rights come responsibilities. They're crying like babies because they're actually being held accountable. Too bad.

[The Wizard]

no one, just another failing star

[Dialup Llama]

The explanation for GC's sudden activism is that Clooney's film Solaris (totally awesome movie BTW) is opening in Europe and he is obviously pandering to the Euro left as he needs a bigger box office than he got in the US.

[CarmelValleyite]

I've seen this guy in person more than once.....(really unattractive, by the way), always huddling with (male) "friends" in local eateries... (Studio City, CA) Friends who work on the studio lots where he has filmed his crap swear he is NOT straight so the pot bellied pig probably IS a good mate for him.

You'd think the guy would figure out that NO ONE CARES what he thinks, but "they" never learn, i.e., Babs S., M. Sheen, ad nauseum. Even BEFORE he got diarrhea of the mouth over political/world affairs, I found him nauseating and never saw him in anything on screen.

Sure wish he'd join the Human Shields on their magical mystery bus ride to Baghdad!!!! God, I hate Clooney! (Can you tell???)

[CarmelValleyite]

You're right about Mel Gibson!!! The guy is GORGEOUS, AND nice, polite, everything good....

Charming, charming REAL man --- and I've seen HIM more than once, too -- over in his home territory of Malibu. Can't say enough good things about him.

[VaBthang4]

Steady on there George....you bitter little twit.

[FITZ]

I wouldn't be surprised if someday we find out that Clooney is another Rock Hudson type.

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

Check out my photo in #104. Finding a bad picture was very easy. While looking through the pics of George's public appearances, he always looks like he's under-the-influence. Maybe I'm wrong, but I swear that's what I saw.

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

No doubt, at least Mel decided to step up and do some good things while his colleagues sink lower and lower.

[Northern Yankee]

The guy calling Bush a coward, while mouthing off to a British journalist..

Some man...

When was the last time Clooney crawled into an F-4 phantom, and flew supersonic?

Bush was a helluva pilot, and had the best proficiency record in his Texas ANG unit. Having worked with fighter pilots my hat goes off to them. Takes a lot of courage to crawl into a fighter, and knock around the wild blue yonder.

I don't think Clooney has any idea what courage is all about.

Then Clooney comes out and say "there are no good movies anymore, and no good tv shows on anymore.

What's the matter George, can't get work these days?...

[Paul Atreides]

Considering George Looney's resume, which I posted on this thread, you would think that he'd be used to being offered schlock. Maybe, instead of blaming others for not offering him parts, he should do some soul-searching about the fact that he is a lousy actor and mouthing off against his country and President during a time of war. Other than his last name, his only real claim to fame is portraying a womanizing doctor who looks hurt when caught with another woman.

[Northern Yankee]

Yep... us good Catholic boys are just a marvel.

[Northern Yankee]

Yep...

An overblown, spoiled, ego centric baby.

My first graders have better manners than Georgie boy!