The iconic musician Val Kilmer called “the funniest man I know”
In the 1990s, there were few actors who became more prominent in the public’s cultural eye than Val Kilmer. Delivering a series of eternally memorable performances in the final decade of the second millennium, Kilmer established himself as a true icon of American cinema and carved out a legacy that still burns bright today.
His turn as Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone’s 1991 biopic The Doors remains one of Kilmer’s best-ever efforts, and he duly followed up with further acclaimed performances in the likes of Tombstone, True Romance, Heat and Batman Forever, each time showing his intensity and versatility as an actor.
Having played the singer of The Doors, it’s understandable that Kilmer has as close a relationship with music as he does with cinema and the actor has stated his love and admiration for the inimitable Bob Dylan on several occasions, discussing how the pair developed a unique friendship across their respective years in the limelight.
In a 2005 interview with Esquire, Kilmer once noted, “I am a friend of Bob’s, as much as Bob has friends.” The actor went on to say that Dylan is a “funny guy” and, in fact, “the funniest man” he knows. It’s not often that we think of Dylan as a man of comedy, but according to Kilmer, there is no one with more of a talent for making one laugh.
Kilmer had also once spoken of the moment he first got to meet Dylan, who he called “the greatest American poet”, at a Carrie Fisher-hosted pre-Oscar party. At the time, Kilmer was around halfway through playing Jim Morrison for Oliver Stone, so he was very much in the mindset of the legendary Doors singer.
When Dylan walked in the room, Kilmer admitted that he felt starstruck by the musician and poet, but he was not willing to pass up the opportunity to “hang it with someone that makes people faint.” Taking his chance in both hands with his “Morrison-inspired bravado”, the actor shouted over to Dylan, “‘Hey Bobbbbbb! Are you a Yma Sumac fan?’ Like that old EF Hutton commercial.”
Dylan then proved his comic nature by taking Kilmer’s question and running with it, responding, “Yeees I am”. From there, Kilmer went over to one of his cultural heroes and struck up a lasting friendship with the musician. Still, the star-quality nature of Dylan wouldn’t escape Kilmer, and when they met again after Kilmer had performed in Tombstone, which Dylan was said to be a big fan of, Kilmer was still “real excited, like a crazy fan, like a child”.
In the Esquire interview, Kilmer had spoken of how Dylan was “ahead of his time”. “Dylan was doing stuff that was so new that everyone hated it,” Kilmer explained. “Like when he started playing the electric guitar, for example. He toured for a year, and he was booed every night.”
Kilmer admitted that he wouldn’t have been able to take the booing when performing, but said that he admired the way that Dylan would take the bottles being thrown at him and still insisted on playing the electric guitar when so many of his fans knew and loved him for his acoustic efforts. “I mean, he has a dedication to an ideal that I can’t comprehend,” the actor said, signing off his thoughts on the iconic hero of American music.
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