05 September 2008 - 09H40
McCain’s midnight cowboy
Jon Voight, best known as ‘Joe Buck’ in the 1969 Oscar-winner Midnight Cowboy, and, in later years, as Hollywood star Angelina Jolie’s father, was present at the Republican Convention to show his support for John McCain.
FRANCE 24’s Catherine Galloway, Lea Salame and James André were present at the Republican Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota, where they stumbled upon Hollywood actor Jon Voight, whose numerous characters on the big screen include wartime president Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 2001 blockbuster Pearl Harbor.
Forty years after playing the role of a New York hustler in the Oscar-winning ‘Midnight Cowboy’, Hollywood actor Jon Voight still professes his attachment to the city, and considers former New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani as a close friend.
Voight says it was Giuliani’s failed bid as Republican presidential candidate that motivated him to support McCain.
“I was down in Florida with Rudy (Giuliani), where he made a concession speech", Voight told FRANCE 24. “He said that when Abraham Lincoln was running for the presidency, his rivals thought that they might have made a better president than he. But God has a way of taking care of this country, and of people in times of crisis, and that’s maybe what he’s doing now.”
Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman in 'Midnight Cowboy' (John Schlesinger, 1969)
Photo: Courtesy METRO GOLDWYN MAYER
After the speech, Voight wholeheartedly pledged his support for McCain. “There’s something of destiny in John McCain’s heroism “, said Voight, who considers him a “man of great character“. "He’s a fellow that will keep us safe and prosperous…the world needs him.”
Asked whether his daughter, Hollywood star Angelina Jolie, shared his views, Voight emphasised the independence of thought between father and daughter. “At one point, she found (McCain) a very interesting man. But I know she’s surrounded by people of a different colour than myself. You never know."
Watch FRANCE 24’s interview with Jon Voight at the Republican convention by clicking on the picture at the top.
Watch another FRANCE24.COM exclusive - Remembering Barry Obama from fifth grade
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Comments
kook
What is the french word for kook?
re
So what,is it to inspire me,i got my own brain ,the media may not ,it is easy to impress the media ,they cant think for themselves,they have to be fed.they anaylsis is usualy crap.they are sheep ,western opinions are all universal which ever is the popular with the masses.or what thier goverments dictate.