Actor Dennis Hopper got a much deserved star on the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame this week. But, it was obvious to anyone that saw pictures taken at the event that the actor is in failing health. The gaunt actor, who is suffering from prostate cancer, had to be helped on stage by a friend. His right arm and eye were bandaged, something Hopper attributed to a fall outside his home.
Hopper appeared on the Walk of Fame surrounded by family, friends, and colleagues Friday. A tour bus drove by during the ceremony, with the tour guide saying, “We love you Dennis” over the loudspeaker.
The 73-year-old film icon has appeared in over 100 movies and he called filmmaking his “college.” He came to the town at age 18 and said, “Everything I’ve learned, I’ve learned from Hollywood. This has been my home and my schooling.”
When he first started acting, Hopper appeared in television shows such as “Cheyenne,” “The Rifleman,” and “The Twilight Zone” while landing small roles in Rebel Without a Cause and Giant. But it would be 1969’s Easy Rider, which Hopper wrote, directed, and starred in, that would put his star on the map.
Among those on hand to honor Hopper at the ceremony was former Easy Rider co-star Jack Nicholson, Viggo Mortensen (who appeared in Boiling Point with Hopper), David Lynch (who wrote Blue Velvet in which Hopper starred), and Dwight Yoakam. Mortensen said Hopper was “a constant source of ideas, inspiration, and humor for his friends and colleagues,” while producer Mark Canton called him “the coolest guy on the planet.”
Also on hand was Hopper’s 7-year-old daughter Galen. Hopper is currently separated from his wife Victoria and the two have been going through a bitter divorce after 14 years of marriage.
Hopper’s star is located in front of the Egyptian Theater. The ceremony only lasted 30 minutes, but Hopper’s doctors approve his going as they felt it would be a positive experience.
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