Latest news with #CrocodileDundee
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
As Crocodile Dundee star Linda Kozlowski makes a rare public appearance in Los Angeles - why did the actress who claimed Paul Hogan's heart turn her back on fame?
Almost 40-years have passed since Crocodile Dundee turned Paul Hogan into a global star and his roguish titular character into one of Hollywood's most enduring money-spinners. Made on a relative micro-budget of just $10million and crafted predominantly for mainstream American cinema, the film grossed an astonishing $328million following its 1986 release and introduced Hogan - already a household name in his native Australia - to a wider audience. But as it changed Hogan's fortunes, so too did it impact those of his glamorous and hitherto unknown co-star, Linda Kozlowski. Born and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, Kozlowski was 27-years old when she won her first film role as Sue Charlton - the tenacious reporter hired to interview Mick 'Crocodile' Dundee before ultimately falling in love with him. It would be a career defining role for the actress, who would play Charlton across three films as Crocodile Dundee's initial success spawned a lucrative franchise. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the Daily Mail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. But it would also be the catalyst for a notable change in her personal life, with Kozlowski and Hogan developing an off-screen relationship that would lead to marriage in 1990 and, eight years later, the birth of their son, Chance. The couple would divorce in 2014 and Kozlowski has since found love with Moulay Hafid Baba, the Moroccan tour guide and location scout she met through friends and subsequently married in 2017. A low-key affair, the ceremony was reflective of Kozlowski's decision to turn her back on the film industry after years spent living beneath the tall shadow cast by Hogan and his hugely successful franchise. She told the Los Angeles Times in 1988 that she ended up being typecast by Hollywood casting directors after Crocodile Dundee - a film she described as a blessing and a curse. 'After Crocodile Dundee, I turned down lots of stuff, most of it where I'd play the girlfriend of some funny man,' she said. In an interview with Scripps Howard News Service in 2001, she discussed her choice to leave Hollywood behind and quit acting after starring a series of low-budget films with little or no commerical appeal. 'These straight-to-video schlocky films I was getting were giving me an ulcer, basically because I was the only one on the set that cared about anything,' she said at the time. 'I'd say, "Well, this scene doesn't make sense." [They would say,] "Aw, so what, just say the lines." [And] I thought, "This isn't fun anymore. This is not why I studied, it's not what I love." Between that and my biological clock, I decided to give it all away.' On Wednesday, the former actress made a rare public appearance with her ex-husband, their son Chance and Baba in Los Angeles. Kozlowski, who sported blonde hair while starring in three Crocodile Dundee films alongside Hogan, now has a shoulder length brunette locks. Opening up about their divorce in 2014, she told New Idea: 'Honestly, we just naturally grew apart. 'One of our problems was we really had nothing in common and, over time, that happens to a lot of people.' She insisted, however, that she and Paul were amicable. 'We've been separated to a certain degree for a long time,' she explained. 'The divorce is not sudden. It is very friendly. We talk all the time. We co-parent our son.' Between motherhood and 'living in Paul's shadow,' Linda was forced to retire from acting after being typecast in Hollywood, a source says. 'Linda loves acting, loves theater, loves the arts,' a source exclusively told the Daily Mail. But she felt like she was being offered 'pretty crappy roles' and 'started not liking' the industry as much as a result. 'She thought the roles and the rocket to superstardom were going to take her places she never even imagined. But the roles weren't there, she wasn't offered anything of substance,' the insider said. Since leaving Hollywood, Kozlowski divides her time between Los Angeles and Morocco, Baba's country of birth. Friends and business partners before embarking on a relationship, the couple launched Marrakech based company Dream My Destiny, which provides tours for tourists and location scouting for films, more than a decade ago. Speaking in 2014, Kozlowski said the experience and business venture had breathed new life into her ambitions following her divorce. 'Paul is very famous and I lived for a long time in his shadow,' she admitted. 'I feel good now to be out on my own and be doing my own things. 'My partner Baba really knows Morocco like the back of his hand,' she gushed. 'And combine that with my sense of what's happening now. What's hip, what's trendy, what do people want... What do the ladies want! I have a sense for that being an actress and traveler. 'So when you put us together we are really on top of the pulse of Morocco.' Two years ago the couple purchased a newly remodelled single story, four-bedroom, two-bath home in Ojai for nearly $2million. Ojai is a haven for artists and people who love the outdoors with its numerous biking, hiking, and horse trails. But their home in the village-like city isn't the only residence of Linda's, since the retired actress appears to have spent her one-off payment of $6.25 million in her divorce settlement on becoming a property tycoon. The brunette has bought three Venice Beachfront properties, which is dubbed Silicon Beach for the tech-CEOs it attracts. She's even earned the title of the Queen of Silicon Beach after having sold one home for $1.9 million in order to buy a $2 million home that she's now renting out. A neighbour told Daily Mail Australia in 2017: 'She has been really smart and made millions. She got a settlement from Paul of course and she's used it well. 'She's definitely her own woman now. Property prices have rocketed in Venice and she's rode the crest of a wave, no doubt about it.'
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Crocodile Dundee's Linda Kozlowski teases bombshell Hollywood return as she looks unrecognizable in reunion with ex Paul Hogan
She was a blonde bombshell known for a scandalous marriage to her Aussie co-star nearly 20 years her senior. But over the last two decades, Linda Kozlowski has shied away from the spotlight in favor of a private life outside of Hollywood. Linda rose to fame playing New York reporter Sue Charlton in the 1986 blockbuster Crocodile Dundee, where she met her first husband, Australian actor Paul Hogan.
News.com.au
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Legendary Aussie actor Paul Hogan seen arriving at Sydney Airport in wheelchair
Veteran Aussie actor Paul Hogan has made a welcome return home to Australia. The Crocodile Dundee star was seen arriving at Sydney Airport on Wednesday, with airport staff pushing him through the terminal in a wheelchair following his long-haul flight from the US. Despite looking frail, the 85-year-old was looked happy and in good spirits behind a pair of black sunglasses as he joked with staff attending to him. Hogan appeared to be travelling alone without his 27-year-old son Chance, who with the actor is rumoured to be planning to relocate to Australia from their home base in Venice Beach, California. Just weeks ago, Hogan was spotted having dinner in LA with his ex-wife Linda Kozlowski, 67, his co-star on the 1986 action-comedy Crocodile Dundee who is also the mother of Chance. They were married in 1990 but divorced in 2013. The former couple, who had not been seen together in public in six-years, were accompanied by their son and Kozlowski's longtime partner Moulay Hafid Baba. In a previous interview with the Daily Telegraph, former Sydneysider Hogan said the only reason he still lives in the US is because of Chase, who lives with him in Venice Beach. 'I've been homesick for years,' he told the masthead in 2022. 'I miss the people, the ambience – and there's something you just can't put your finger on, but there's something about Australia that is friendlier and more laid-back.' 'I'd rather be there, but I have my last child who is an American – he only has me, whereas my tribe at home, they've all got each other.' Hogan has five other children from his previous marriage to Noelene Edwards. They were married in 1958 before separating and divorcing in 1981. Together they share five adult children: Brett, Clay, Scott, Todd and Lauren. Hogan was last in Australia in January this year when he attended the re-release of Crocodile Dundee almost 40 years later. Crocodile Dundee: The Encore Cut had cut out the film's infamous groping scene involving his character Mick Dundee – a move Hogan welcomed. 'It's not a matter of wokeness,' he told the Daily Telegraph at the time. '[Mick Dundee] is outback. He wouldn't grope people.'
West Australian
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- West Australian
Paul Hogan spotted at Sydney Airport after rumours he is moving back with son Chance
Paul Hogan was spotted in a wheelchair at Sydney Airport on Wednesday with staff wheeling him through a terminal. The 85-year-old Aussie icon touched down in Australia solo despite rumours he was planning a move back to his homeland with his son, Chance, 27. Photos of Hogan being wheeled through the airport by female staff members show the movie star wearing a blue shirt, dark blazer and pants and a pair of sunglasses. His arrival Down Under comes after a long flight from the US, where he lives and was seen this month reuniting with his ex-wife and Crocodile Dundee co-star Linda Kozlowski, 66, in Los Angeles on a dinner outing with Chance. Their son has been living with Hogan in Venice Beach since his parents' divorce in 2014. Chance sparked worries over his well-being in 2019 when the rising punk rocker was photographed vomiting on a street in Santa Monica after a gig. His unruly behaviour worsened in January this year when he posted a video of himself to social media that showed him drinking wine and making suicidal comments. Hogan once told the Today show that he dreamed of returning home to Australia but had 'business reasons and my son to stay in the States for now'. In a past interview with The Australian Hogan implied he would rather live in Australia, but revealed he felt LA should be his home at the moment while Chance was still in his 20s.
Perth Now
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Frail Paul Hogan spotted in wheelchair at Aussie airport
Paul Hogan was spotted in a wheelchair at Sydney Airport on Wednesday with staff wheeling him through a terminal. The 85-year-old Aussie icon touched down in Australia solo despite rumours he was planning a move back to his homeland with his son, Chance, 27. Photos of Hogan being wheeled through the airport by female staff members show the movie star wearing a blue shirt, dark blazer and pants and a pair of sunglasses. His arrival Down Under comes after a long flight from the US, where he lives and was seen this month reuniting with his ex-wife and Crocodile Dundee co-star Linda Kozlowski, 66, in Los Angeles on a dinner outing with Chance. Their son has been living with Hogan in Venice Beach since his parents' divorce in 2014. The Aussie icon spotted being wheeled through the airport in a 'special assistance' airport wheelchair by Qantas staff. Credit: MEDIA-MODE / MEDIA-MODE Chance sparked worries over his well-being in 2019 when the rising punk rocker was photographed vomiting on a street in Santa Monica after a gig. His unruly behaviour worsened in January this year when he posted a video of himself to social media that showed him drinking wine and making suicidal comments. Hogan once told the Today show that he dreamed of returning home to Australia but had 'business reasons and my son to stay in the States for now'. In a past interview with The Australian Hogan implied he would rather live in Australia, but revealed he felt LA should be his home at the moment while Chance was still in his 20s.
