Hopefully followed soon by his forking sister, may she rot in hell.

Had no use for him.

Me neither...

0-0

never been fonda either of them, particularly that slut Jane

but yeah, the wrong one died....at least early

Bye.

Maybe he made some good movies or something I don't know. He was an enemy of everything I believe in.

Didn't wish him harm, but won't shed any tears over him either.

Well. Bye. Take your sister with you...

I agree that the only reason we know the man's name is because of his famous father. The same goes for his arrogant sister.

But, Peter Fonda was responsible for producing, writing and acting in one of the great road films of American cinema- Easy Rider. Talk about a time capsule of American culture/counterculture!

I looked through a list of his film credits and there's only a couple of other films of his that I really like. Fonda's performance in Roger Corman's The Wild Angels is why we have Easy Rider and if you haven't seen this biker film, you should seek it out. It bridges the cultural gap between The Wild One and Easy Rider. That is to say- The Wild One came out in 1953, which marks the beginning of the Eisenhower era in America, during which strict conformity to accepted social norms was fully expected- Levittown suburbs, conventional job, marriage, 3.2 kids, dog and station wagon, the whole nine yards. Here comes Marlon Brando and his biker gang, invading and disrupting a small town and rebelling against "whatever you got." Brando and the bikers are complete outsiders and an irredeemable blight on society. Only at the very end of this film do we see a glimmer of hope that Brando might understand what society expects of him. Gosh, he might want to conform, but he just doesn't know how to do so.
In The Wild Angels (notice the similarity of the titles of these two films. This is no coincidence. What it is, is pure Corman), the biker gang is still viewed as complete outsiders, but there are no attempts whatsoever at conformity by any of the gang, and now (1966), near the beginning of the counterculture movement in the United States, Corman invites the viewer to identify with these outsiders. Although there are crimes committed by some of the biker gang, Fonda's character is portrayed as heroic in his rebellion, and this set the stage for Easy Rider three years later, in which Fonda and Dennis Hopper are the heroes of the film, rebelling against why-don't-you-get-a-haircut rednecks in diners and pickup trucks.

It seems to me I recall all sorts of praise for Fonda's performance in Ulee's Gold, and I do like this film, buy Fonda sleepwalked through the thing. His character coud have been played by any number of more capable actors. Yes, I realize that the character of Ulee is by nature a laconic man, but, come on. Wake up, Pete.

The same goes for his performance in Steven Soderbergh's The Limey, a favorite crime film of mine. I do understand why Soderbergh cast Fonda in this film, given his status as one of the key icons of the counterculture movement of the 1960s, which is the foundation of Fonda's character in the film. However, as with Ulee's Gold, Fonda's performance could have been equaled and most likey surpassed by other, more talented actors.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:...Fonda's performance could have been equaled and most likey surpassed by other, more talented actors.

This to me was his career as an actor. There are actors that are great even in bad movies, that make the movie better. Fonda was the exact opposite. I never saw any movie he was in that I thought, wow, he made that movie.

Had his name been "Joe Blow", he would have never even made it into Hollywood.

quote:

Originally posted by Southflorida-law:
This to me was his career as an actor. There are actors that are great even in bad movies, that make the movie better. Fonda was the exact opposite. I never saw any movie he was in that I thought, wow, he made that movie.

I simply cannot imagine anyone else as Wyatt in Easy Rider. The same goes for Dennis Hopper in his role in that film. The character of Wyatt in Easy Rider was an evolution of his character, Harmony Blues, in The Wild Angels. Corman's film cemented Fonda as a counter culture icon, and if anyone ese had played Wyatt in Easy Rider, the film would not have resonated nearly as strongly with viewers. You have to look at it from the perspective of the mid to late 1960s.

Other posts have made my feelings clear on the guy, especially his actions in the last couple of years.

He was a footnote in Beatles lore. On one of his early acid trips, George Harrison was having a hard time with the drug and Fonda tried to calm him down, relating his experience of having died on the operating table after being shot in the abdomen when he was 10 years old; "I know what it's like to be dead" he kept repeating. Lennon, also on acid, walked by, and annoyed by this guy he didn't know, retorted "you're making me feel like I've never been born, who put all of that shit in your head?"

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:...I simply cannot imagine anyone else as Wyatt in Easy Rider. The same goes for Dennis Hopper in his role in that film. ..

There are a few actors I could image in that part. but I agree as to Dennis Hopper.

Not comparing the movies, but just acting, when you look at the acting in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid or Midnight Cowboy (both released the same year as ER) I makes Fonda (and even Hopper) look cardboard. IMO.

I see the real stars of'ER' being the Captain America bike, the music and the attitude that was more effective with the low budget. TBH Fonda came across more as a California hair-boy than a hippie and hippies were 1969. Hopper fit the hippe bill perfectly, Nicholson was typically over the top but it worked. Fonda had credibility based on his recent history of drive-in biker movies, but came across as a poser. His leather was too clean, he was too clean. An important movie that doesn't hold up very well.

Let me put it this way- if it weren't for Peter Fonda, there would never have been an Easy Rider. You guys want to piss on the man, go ahead and piss on him, but don't sit there and tell me that an inanimate object was the reason Easy Rider achieved cult status.
His leather was too clean? Do you have any idea how petty and nitpicky that sounds? Hate the guy if you want to, but you cannot redirect the success of this iconic film to any one or anything else. Wow.

If Peter Fonda had ridden a generic bike and wore a common motorcycle helmet, Easy Rider wouldn't be a cult film? That is just plain nuts.

I'm no fan of the man, but come on.

I speak as someone who was nineteen at the time, this film had all our attention then. I'll give Hopper equal credit for getting this film made, at least. And yes, the bike absolutely drew us in. Until this film, actual contemporary music was not that common, another big attraction of 'ER'. We took note of Hopper, Nicholson, the characters along the way, a different look at our country but I can't say anyone was talking about Fonda or his role. On the bike, wow, philosophizing not so much.

I'm not denying the importance of this film, it was huge, but I say despite Fonda in and of himself. Earlier I questioned his "royalty" and couldn't care less about his recent ugly comments. Just someone looking for attention. I have no agenda beyond trying to gauge "ER's" place in the world.

quote:

Originally posted by nhtagmember:
never been fonda either of them...

I liked Ulee's Gold because it introduced me to Tupelo Honey, the true Nectar of the Gods.

Van Morrison introduced me to Tupelo Honey a long time ago.

Thanks for that Parabellum....

almost as good a "Brown Eyed Girl".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?...t=PL8EAA83325701CE9C

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