Dennis Hopper self-portrait with broken plates

Andy Warhol, Dennis Hopper, Danny Williams, Taylor Mead

Hi:
Great work by Andy. I am sure there is a Poloroid based 80s photo of dear Dennis. I am reading Factory Made: Warhol and the Sixties by Steven Watson. I have used info. from that book on these stories about the Dennis Hopper/Andy Warhol Connection. Now Dennis is dying, divorcing his 5th wife, and I sure want to pay tribute to him. The Andy Warhol connection is a less-known to the public side of Dennis Hopper. Hopper was a very early collector and enthusiast of pop art. He is a painter, collagist as well. The Danny Williams docu. raises the difficult issues about Andy Warhol. A Walk into the Sea: Danny Williams and the Warhol Factory. Andy wasn't always a very nice guy. People got lost in his orbit. And he displayed seemingly careless behavior about people's lives at times. The Freddie Herko comment and controversy. " I wish we could have filmed his suicide." There are those who don't speak highly of Andy then, or now. Taylor Mead seems to have a different opinion on different days. And Andrea Feldmen. And what many said about Andy in the Edie book. He seemed to provide the platform for people to soar and star but also provided the platform to spectacularly fail. Danny Williams was not an intimate insider or long-lived in the Warhol universe. I believe he and Andy were lovers and that may have been what brought him into the Warhol circle for his short-lived time there.
Danny Williams is an important "minor" character, in the Warhol saga but I don't hold Andy responsible for his or the others deaths. These individuals ultimately couldn't cope with their own lot in life and unfortunately were victims of the 60s and all the experimentation with drugs. Danny Williams swam out to the sea and never returned. He was a speed abuser. And undoubtedly depressed about his life. Andrea Feldman jumped out of a window, like Herko, but not as elegantly, and Edie had a very screwed up childhood with that narcissistic hyper- sexual Father and all that shit. Edie probably prolonged her life because of Warhol. She had eating disorders before eating disorders were cool.
Andy acted as a witness to their destruction and seemingly did nothing to stop it. Their association with him gave them a legacy. And the accusation that Andy, Morrisey etc. was jealous of Danny Williams and his innovations for the light show Exploding Plastic Inevitable. I have sympathy for Danny's grandmother in the film. I am envious of the filmmaker, his niece, and her interview with Brigid Berlin. Def. check that one out again.

Dennis Hopper, Taylor Mead, Andy Warhol connection

In late September 1963, Mead accompanied Warhol and others on a car trip cross-county from New York to Los Angeles for the opening of Warhol's Elvis exhibit at the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles. This was Andy's second exhibit at the Ferus. His first was in the previous year from July 9 - August 4, 1962 which is generally accepted as Warhol's first solo pop show. At the first exhibit Warhol had shown the Campbell's soup paintings.

While in Los Angeles, Warhol and his entourage filmed scenes for what would become Taylor's first film for Warhol: Tarzan and Jane Regained.... Sort of. The film also featured Naomi Levine who played Jane and was the first person to appear naked in one of Warhol's films. During the shooting of Tarzan And Jane she ripped off her clothes and jumped into the swimming pool where they were filming. Warhol sometimes referred to her as his first superstar. Previous to making this film she had appeared in Jack Smith's film, Normal Love. Tarzan and Jane also featured Dennis Hopper, Pat and Claes Oldenburg and the artist Wally Berman in small roles. While in Los Angeles, Warhol also shot the footage of the Elvis exhibit that has become known as Elvis At Ferus.

Two paragraphs from Warholstars website. The Photo is Taylor Mead and Dennis Hopper filming their Tarzan Movie.

More on the Tarzan from warholstars.org:
During one scene, Dennis Hopper appeared as a "stunt double" for Taylor Mead. Taylor, unable to climb a tree to get a coconut as called for by the film, yelled for a stunt man. Dennis Hopper (who Andy had met a few months earlier in New York) ended up climbing the tree for Mead. Later, in 1969, after the release of Easy Rider, Taylor would comment to Andy: "I think that afternoon by the pool was a turning point for Dennis... It opened up new possibilities for him." (POP45)



Dennis Hopper and wife Brooke Hayward gave a Hollywood party for Andy, Taylor and Wynn Chamberlain upon their arrival in LA. Dennis had bought one of the Campbell's Soup Can paintings at Andy's first art show at the Ferus. I heard the price was $75. Irving Blum, the gallery owner, bought back Hopper's purchase and a few others that had sold, and kept the collection together. The original 32 Soup Cans. He sold it to MOMA for several mil, a few years back.

Phantasmagoric: English Language word or the week. Matt Bomer provides the pretty.

Sexual frustration. Creative frustration. Eating decadent chocolate produces some of the sensations one feels when they are (enjoying) making love. I have got to get my character out there. Her neurosis could start with a nighttime dream. However, I don't envision the screenplay starting out that way. Is it cliche or whatever to start out with a sex scene? Seems a cheap attempt at grabbing attention. It worked in Before the Devil Knows You are Dead." Or did it?

Isn't our English vocab. word of the week a beauty. In Steve Watson' book "Silver Factory." He describes Flaming Creatures, a major underground/experimental film of Jack Smith, indie film pioneer-- as "phantasmagoric."

Accompanied by the pretty of Matt Bomer


Main Entry: phan·tas·ma·go·ria
Pronunciation: \(ˌ)fan-ˌtaz-mə-ˈgȯr-ē-ə\
Function: noun
Etymology: French phantasmagorie, from phantasme phantasm (from Old French fantasme) + -agorie (perhaps from Greek agora assembly) — more at agora
Date: circa 1802
1 : an exhibition of optical effects and illusions
2 a : a constantly shifting complex succession of things seen or imagined b : a scene that constantly changes
3 : a bizarre or fantastic combination, collection, or assemblage
— phan·tas·ma·gor·ic \-ˈgȯr-ik, -ˈgär-\ or phan·tas·ma·gor·i·cal \-i-kəl\ adjective

Dennis Hopper: A true American original individual

LOS ANGELES – Dennis Hopper, battling prostate cancer, wants out of his marriage.
The 73-year-old actor-director filed for divorce Thursday in Los Angeles, citing irreconcilable differences with Victoria Duffy, his wife of nearly 14 years.
Hopper has been battling prostate cancer and in October canceled all travel plans to focus on treatment.
Hopper is seeking joint custody of the couple's 6-year-old daughter and offering to pay spousal support to Duffy.
The "Easy Rider" star last year finished shooting the second season of "Crash," a TV version of the Oscar-winning 2004 film that airs on the Starz network. Hopper also has several film projects in the works.
Phone and e-mail messages left for Hopper's manager, Sam Maydew, have not been returned.

I apologize, the above was not written by me and I do not I the source. I mean no violation of copyright. or whatever. All that stuff.

The words below I wrote:

GOD BLESS YOU /DENNIS HOPPER A true American legend. And he has Andy Warhol connection.

Here is a photo of the current stately DH and a photo of the woman he is divorcing. He made a stinging comment about "wanting to be with close friends and family (only) during this trying time". OUCH.

Sandra Bullock, Meryl continued,

Sandra Bullock has made US box-office history after her film The Blind Side became the first solely female-led movie to rake in more than $200m (£125m), Variety reports. The milestone puts the 45-year-old star of Speed and Miss Congeniality ahead of A-list peers such as Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, Angelina Jolie and Reese Witherspoon, none of whom have managed a similar feat.

The Blind Side
Production year: 2009
Country: USA
Directors: John Lee Hancock
Cast: Quinton Aaron, Sandra Bullock

This is what I wanted to write about. And at her age too is unusual. That was mentioned in a different story. she is having the best year of her career---well good on you girl. I predict she is the sentimental favorite to win the Oscar for her performance. And why /how her film connected is a mystery. it could have easily been a movie that slipped through. Like this one with Harrison Ford. and Brenden Frasier.
Anyway. I think it is great because it is about time.
And Sandra Bulloks husband is hot,...she always seems really in love with him.

Golden Globes: Meryl Streep is flippin' HOT. And classy. Sandra Bullock

This is a photo of Meryl Streep taken last night in LA at the Golden Globe ceremony. Notice she is is holding the Golden Globe statue. She won. She was nominated 2x in the same category. She is on top of the world-- to evoke James Cameron's catch phrase. Meryl is 60 years old. Had a stellar year. Was in tons of films. Loved her acceptance speech last night. Pitch perfect, more so than Monique's. She talked about her Mother and how her Mother was like Julia Child . Meryl is one of three sexy 60 year olds along with Susan Sarandon and Helen Mirren. Mirren is down right sexy in "Calender Girls" and Susan is a hot Mother in "SpeedRacer." Really playing a woman half her age. Meryl is sexy in "It's Complicated." she said in an interview that "Bette Davis is rolling over in her grave." So so so true, If you ponder the theme of All About Eve. And course Sandra Bullok breaking these box office records this year. Unprecedented for a female star period. And Sandy's husband. Jesse James. I will tell you my reaction to him. It is unprecedented for these women at around 60 to be playing a sexual being. And shown as sexy to the audience. Sarandon plays her age--a Grandmother, in The Lovely Bones. But of course a non-traditional Grandmother type.
And I say; to all of this: Right On. hahaha so corny.
I say It's about time.