Johnny Knoxville article from AP -Interesting.....

[Capt_Redneck]

Saw this from my homepage......Pretty good article on Jonny Knoxville. A bit strange but interesting......

http://www.optonline.net/Entertainment/Article/Feeds?CID=type%3Dxml%26channel%3D31%26article%3D15390616

Knoxville a Southern Mix of Contradictions

During a recent interview with Johnny Knoxville, the "Dukes of Hazzard" star suggests drinking a round of tequila shots "stuntman"-style, which entails snorting the salt and squirting the lime juice in your eye.

That's what you'd expect from the guy who created "Jackass," the MTV reality series that made self-induced pain fashionable and made the charismatic Phillip John Clapp from Knoxville, Tenn., an instant star.

Only he's not that guy _ not all the time. He looks like that guy, with the trademark smoked aviator sunglasses, faux-hawk hairstyle and facial scruff. But sitting in a hotel bar, the 34-year-old Knoxville is unerringly polite, addressing a waiter as "sir" and his interviewer as "ma'am" in a low, slow voice with a slight twang that emerges now and again.

He speaks earnestly about the forces that shaped him growing up (the music of Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson, the writing of Jack Kerouac and Hunter S. Thompson) and those that influence him now (his wife, Melanie, and their 9-year-old daughter, Madison, whose name is tattooed over his heart).

His iPod also contains entire sections of Broadway show tunes and Barbra Streisand songs. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

This combination of contradictions _ rowdy party boy coupled with sensitive romantic _ has prompted comparisons to a number of Hollywood icons.

"Dukes" director Jay Chandrasekhar likens Knoxville to Burt Reynolds, or a "funny Steve McQueen." John Waters, who directed Knoxville last year in the sex comedy "A Dirty Shame," says he's both "a movie star and a great actor," and expects him to carve out an eclectic career similar to Johnny Depp's.

Knoxville's acting coach in Los Angeles is reminded of Jack Nicholson. "They're both inappropriate men who are honest about themselves, and that's extraordinarily appealing," said Cameron Thor, whose clients include Sharon Stone, Drew Carey and Cameron Diaz.

Knoxville's reaction to such comparisons?

"Wow," he says, taken aback. "That's a really cool thing to say."

After graduating from high school, the son of a tire company owner and a homemaker was inspired to move to Hollywood _ he named himself after his home town while writing freelance magazine articles _ by a copy of Kerouac's "On the Road." It was given to him by his cousin, country singer-songwriter Roger Alan Wade, at age 14.

The location for this momentous event: a bar, which Knoxville had entered with a fake ID.

"Jackass" came about by accident. He'd planned to try out self-defense equipment on himself _ pepper spray, Taser, etc. _ then write about the experience. His editor, Jeff Tremaine, suggested videotaping the stunt. A phenomenon was born. Skateboarding mishaps, intentional paper cuts, nipple-biting baby alligators _ Knoxville and his buddies did it all, both on the TV series, which ran from 2000-2002, and the movie, which Tremaine directed.

He chose "Jackass" over the offer of a cast spot on "Saturday Night Live" because "I either say yes to my friends, where we had all the control, or yes to `Saturday Night Live' where none of my friends were really going to be there and I had no control."

A series of supporting movie roles followed, including "Big Trouble," "Men in Black II," in which he played Lara Flynn Boyle's two-headed alien sidekick, and "Walking Tall" with The Rock. Earlier this year, he played pimped-out skateboarding promoter Topper Burks in "Lords of Dogtown."

Whatever Knoxville does, though, some people still assume he's that "Jackass" dude, 24/7. Guys at bars have come out of nowhere and bashed him in the head (which has led to a few fights). Girls have burned him with cigarettes and lighters.

"I kind of brought it on myself, so ..." he trails off. "Worse things could happen."

When asked how he plans to show he's capable of more than "Jackass," he grows slightly defensive _ but remains polite.

"I don't want to distance myself from `Jackass' at all. I'm proud of 'Jackass,'" he says. "It got me here and opened up all kinds of doors. It's something me and my friends did. I'm very, very proud of it."

But his previous attempt at a meatier role was the little-seen and critically trashed dark comedy "Grand Theft Parsons" from 2003. Knoxville stars as Gram Parsons' road manager, Phil Kaufman, who steals the singer-songwriter's body to set it ablaze in Joshua Tree National Park.

"After that movie _ I wasn't very proud of my performance _ I got an acting coach," Knoxville said. "He's just helped me a lot, so much, and the past five or six films I feel like I'm getting better with every film."

Thor calls Knoxville "a natural actor _ he just didn't know it."

But Katrina Holden Bronson, the writer-director of "Daltry Calhoun," believes she's already seen what he can do. In the movie, scheduled for fall release, Knoxville stars as the estranged father of a 14-year-old music prodigy.

"I saw a depth and sensitivity to him that runs so deep," Bronson says. "... I just saw this reservoir of talent that I think is really going to blow people away."

A big reason Bronson wanted Knoxville for the film was because he's a father in real life. And talking to Knoxville about his wife and daughter, he's clearly and understandably protective of them, especially when it comes to the rampant tabloid rumors about an affair with "Dukes" co-star Jessica Simpson.

"I love the tabloids except for when I'm in 'em. Especially with the stuff they wrote about Jessica and I _ it's obviously not true," he volunteers without being asked about specific allegations. "They write these things and, you know, I've got a daughter and a wife and she's got a husband and it affects the families involved."

Thor says, "For all the stuff he likes to get printed about himself _ he very carefully nurtures the image of the hard-drinking, (expletive)-all, who-gives-a-(expletive) ... he's extraordinarily considerate."

In December, Knoxville will also star in "The Ringer," a comedy in which he poses as a contestant in the Special Olympics. The Farrelly brothers are the executive producers.

Knoxville says it's not what you'd expect.

© Copyright 2005 CSC Holdings, Inc.

[Capt_Redneck]

Saw this from my homepage......Pretty good article on Jonny Knoxville. A bit strange but interesting......

http://www.optonline.net/Entertainment/Article/Feeds?CID=type%3Dxml%26channel%3D31%26article%3D15390616

Knoxville a Southern Mix of Contradictions

During a recent interview with Johnny Knoxville, the "Dukes of Hazzard" star suggests drinking a round of tequila shots "stuntman"-style, which entails snorting the salt and squirting the lime juice in your eye.

That's what you'd expect from the guy who created "Jackass," the MTV reality series that made self-induced pain fashionable and made the charismatic Phillip John Clapp from Knoxville, Tenn., an instant star.

Only he's not that guy _ not all the time. He looks like that guy, with the trademark smoked aviator sunglasses, faux-hawk hairstyle and facial scruff. But sitting in a hotel bar, the 34-year-old Knoxville is unerringly polite, addressing a waiter as "sir" and his interviewer as "ma'am" in a low, slow voice with a slight twang that emerges now and again.

He speaks earnestly about the forces that shaped him growing up (the music of Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson, the writing of Jack Kerouac and Hunter S. Thompson) and those that influence him now (his wife, Melanie, and their 9-year-old daughter, Madison, whose name is tattooed over his heart).

His iPod also contains entire sections of Broadway show tunes and Barbra Streisand songs. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

This combination of contradictions _ rowdy party boy coupled with sensitive romantic _ has prompted comparisons to a number of Hollywood icons.

"Dukes" director Jay Chandrasekhar likens Knoxville to Burt Reynolds, or a "funny Steve McQueen." John Waters, who directed Knoxville last year in the sex comedy "A Dirty Shame," says he's both "a movie star and a great actor," and expects him to carve out an eclectic career similar to Johnny Depp's.

Knoxville's acting coach in Los Angeles is reminded of Jack Nicholson. "They're both inappropriate men who are honest about themselves, and that's extraordinarily appealing," said Cameron Thor, whose clients include Sharon Stone, Drew Carey and Cameron Diaz.

Knoxville's reaction to such comparisons?

"Wow," he says, taken aback. "That's a really cool thing to say."

After graduating from high school, the son of a tire company owner and a homemaker was inspired to move to Hollywood _ he named himself after his home town while writing freelance magazine articles _ by a copy of Kerouac's "On the Road." It was given to him by his cousin, country singer-songwriter Roger Alan Wade, at age 14.

The location for this momentous event: a bar, which Knoxville had entered with a fake ID.

"Jackass" came about by accident. He'd planned to try out self-defense equipment on himself _ pepper spray, Taser, etc. _ then write about the experience. His editor, Jeff Tremaine, suggested videotaping the stunt. A phenomenon was born. Skateboarding mishaps, intentional paper cuts, nipple-biting baby alligators _ Knoxville and his buddies did it all, both on the TV series, which ran from 2000-2002, and the movie, which Tremaine directed.

He chose "Jackass" over the offer of a cast spot on "Saturday Night Live" because "I either say yes to my friends, where we had all the control, or yes to `Saturday Night Live' where none of my friends were really going to be there and I had no control."

A series of supporting movie roles followed, including "Big Trouble," "Men in Black II," in which he played Lara Flynn Boyle's two-headed alien sidekick, and "Walking Tall" with The Rock. Earlier this year, he played pimped-out skateboarding promoter Topper Burks in "Lords of Dogtown."

Whatever Knoxville does, though, some people still assume he's that "Jackass" dude, 24/7. Guys at bars have come out of nowhere and bashed him in the head (which has led to a few fights). Girls have burned him with cigarettes and lighters.

"I kind of brought it on myself, so ..." he trails off. "Worse things could happen."

When asked how he plans to show he's capable of more than "Jackass," he grows slightly defensive _ but remains polite.

"I don't want to distance myself from `Jackass' at all. I'm proud of 'Jackass,'" he says. "It got me here and opened up all kinds of doors. It's something me and my friends did. I'm very, very proud of it."

But his previous attempt at a meatier role was the little-seen and critically trashed dark comedy "Grand Theft Parsons" from 2003. Knoxville stars as Gram Parsons' road manager, Phil Kaufman, who steals the singer-songwriter's body to set it ablaze in Joshua Tree National Park.

"After that movie _ I wasn't very proud of my performance _ I got an acting coach," Knoxville said. "He's just helped me a lot, so much, and the past five or six films I feel like I'm getting better with every film."

Thor calls Knoxville "a natural actor _ he just didn't know it."

But Katrina Holden Bronson, the writer-director of "Daltry Calhoun," believes she's already seen what he can do. In the movie, scheduled for fall release, Knoxville stars as the estranged father of a 14-year-old music prodigy.

"I saw a depth and sensitivity to him that runs so deep," Bronson says. "... I just saw this reservoir of talent that I think is really going to blow people away."

A big reason Bronson wanted Knoxville for the film was because he's a father in real life. And talking to Knoxville about his wife and daughter, he's clearly and understandably protective of them, especially when it comes to the rampant tabloid rumors about an affair with "Dukes" co-star Jessica Simpson.

"I love the tabloids except for when I'm in 'em. Especially with the stuff they wrote about Jessica and I _ it's obviously not true," he volunteers without being asked about specific allegations. "They write these things and, you know, I've got a daughter and a wife and she's got a husband and it affects the families involved."

Thor says, "For all the stuff he likes to get printed about himself _ he very carefully nurtures the image of the hard-drinking, (expletive)-all, who-gives-a-(expletive) ... he's extraordinarily considerate."

In December, Knoxville will also star in "The Ringer," a comedy in which he poses as a contestant in the Special Olympics. The Farrelly brothers are the executive producers.

Knoxville says it's not what you'd expect.

© Copyright 2005 CSC Holdings, Inc.